Australia captain Tim Paine said on Friday he doesn’t expect his side to let up in attempting to take a 2-0 lead in the four-Test series against India when the two sides meet in Melbourne from Saturday.
“The moment we take our foot off the pedal, and think we’re going all right, performances can slip,” Paine said. “But we’ve been fantastic in how we’ve prepared for this game. We can’t pay any attention to mental scars or whatever people are talking about.
“India is a proud cricket country, they’re an extremely talented side. We know some of the players they’re talking about coming in... if we give them an inch, they’ll take a mile.”
The match would normally draw a crowd of up to 80,000, but just 30,000 people will be allowed into the MCG. Despite the strange build-up due to COVID-19 restrictions, Paine is happy just to be playing the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.
“Seeing the MCG sometimes with 30,000 in it you’re a bit disappointed when you turn up,” he said. “To have 30,000 fans there is certainly better than not playing the Boxing Day Test at the MCG, so everyone’s excited.”
Joe Burns will again partner Matthew Wade at the top of the order after Burns’ unbeaten 51 in the first Test.
On Thursday, Cricket Australia officials met to determine whether the MCG might hold two Tests in a row if a new COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney prevents the New Year's Test from being played in Sydney from Jan. 7.
The CA board decided to wait further to give the SCG its “best chance” to host the third Test. The board also wants to stick with Brisbane hosting the fourth Test beginning Jan. 15, just four days after the SCG match is scheduled to end.
But should the COVID-19 outbreak in Sydney result in the SCG Test being untenable, CA’s preferred contingency is playing the third Test at the MCG.
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