The best and only thing the Australian cricket team can do when it comes to the Optus Stadium pitch is nothing at all.
They got their first look at the surface on Monday afternoon and like most first-class pitches around the country at the moment, the green tinge means it blends into the rest of the centre-wicket area.
After the Bazballers had made to order pitches rolled out for them when they hosted the 2023 Ashes, there is a temptation for the Aussies to strike back by ensuring the wickets Down Under are tailored to the local team’s benefit.
But that would not be in the “spirit of cricket” that Australia have been warned about by the English, who will surely claim a moral victory, as is their penchant, if they suspect the pitches have been doctored.
Cue the clutching of pearls and raucous grumbling from the Long Room at Lord’s.
Optus Stadium curator Isaac McDonald said he was expecting “pace and bounce” in the pitch when he chatted with The West Australian last week.
As is often the case in the dry heat of the western capital, the weather forecast will play a major role in how well the pitch plays over the course of what is hoped to be a five-day Test.
Last summer’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy series opener started with a clatter of wickets in the Perth showpiece stadium with 17 batters dismissed on day one.
India were rolled for 150 with the Aussie seamers having a field day before the home side collapsed to be 7-67 by stumps after a Jasprit Bumrah-inspired onslaught.
After the Australians were polished off for 104 early on day two, the Jekyll and Hyde surface became a batting paradise with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli compiling hundreds to bat their opponents out of the game to set up a 295-run win.
The curator wants the Optus Stadium surface to replicate the reputation of Perth’s grand old venue, the WACA Ground, famous for being the bounciest wicket in the world.
It’s hard to do so when first-class matches are still being played across the Swan River at the old HQ.
The WACA also had somewhat of a green tinge last week when WA hosted Queensland but visiting opener Matt Renshaw managed to score a ton batting first in a total of 390, Cameron Green nearly did likewise in a similar team total in response.
Queensland whacked a quick 203 to set up a run-chase and WA got home by the skin of their teeth late on the final day via a 23-run last-wicket partnership. The perfect scenario for a first-class fixture.
Cricket Australia officials are nervous that they won’t get the full five-day bang for their buck in the opener to the marquee Ashes series.
With the Bazballers blasting away, any Test they play in could be over well ahead of time.
But if the pitch is overly green and the spectacle is ruined, then serious questions need to be asked.
Mitchell Starc said a few days ago that he hopes the curators “stick to their guns and prepare the wickets they want” with Nathan Lyon raising similar sentiments that they should not be told to ensure pitches are flat so a five-day contest is guaranteed.
Mitchell Starc celebrates after taking a wicket. (Photo by Santanu Banik/Speed Media/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Former England captain Michael Vaughan, as part of his ongoing role of being a provocateur on social media, posted on Monday: “I just wonder if Australia will now attempt to make a dry track to make sure Lyon is hugely in the game … #JustSaying #Ashes”
First of all, no one is ever just saying, especially when they use it as a hashtag.
And secondly, Vaughan is trying to get under the skin of the locals – the team, the media and the fans – by suggesting skulduggery could be at play.
He must have been offline during the last Ashes series when Ben Stokes openly admitted that they wanted flat pitches ideal for their aggressive brand of strokeplay.
England look like they will roll out four frontline quicks for the first Test with Stokes also being used in short spurts and Joe Root’s part-time offies their only spin option.
CA chief executive Todd Greenberg said that they won’t be interfering in pitch preparation so in many ways, the issue is no bigger or smaller than it should be leading up to any other Test.
It’s very likely going to be tricky for batters, just like every other match in Perth, and the fast bowlers are going to be salivating because it is the antithesis of many of the unresponsive pancakes that they break their back on when touring the subcontinent.
But just because the pitch has a green tinge or plenty of bounce, it doesn’t mean that batters can’t thrive in Perth.
The outfield, like the pitch, is also probably the fastest of any first-class venue with full value for shots.
And just because a wicket is bouncy doesn’t mean that seamers are guaranteed to get wickets.
Lengths will need to be adjusted – the secret is to bowl fuller than usual, rather than bang the ball into the surface.
Curtly Ambrose was heavily criticised by fellow West Indies legend Michael Holding at the WACA more than 30 summers ago when he “wasted” the new ball by bowling too short.
When he was next called on to bowl, he pitched the ball up a lot more and took 7-1 in one of the most devastating spells in cricket history.
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