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Adelaide: England must get its focus back on the cricket as it tries to save its Ashes campaign when the action shifts to Adelaide for the day-night second Test of the series, starting on Saturday.
Root and England were more fussed on Moeen Ali’s availability. The off-spinning all-rounder has been nursing an injured spinning finger, and Root said a decision would be taken closer to the start of the game.
In case Moeen didn’t make it, Mason Crane, the uncapped 20-year-old leg-spinner, could be in line for a debut.
On the plus side for England, the day-night Test is expected to bring James Anderson and Stuart Broad into the game quite a bit with the pink ball likely to move in the air a fair bit under lights.
Anderson and Broad, who have 899 Test wickets together, are at their potent best in home conditions, but picked up five wickets between them in the Australian first innings at the Gabba before returning wicketless in the second as Australia romped to a 10-wicket win.
As for the batting, Alastair Cook scored only two and seven in the first Test, and that could be a concern for the visiting side, which put up only 302 and 195 in its two innings.
On the other side of the divide, there are Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, who shared 14 wickets in Brisbane and will have a chance to attack in a pack, with Nathan Lyon for company, in Adelaide after Australia named an unchanged XI for the second Test.
Not to forget, Australia has beaten New Zealand and South Africa in the two day-night Tests played in Adelaide in the past. Hazlewood has been Australia's most successful bowler in the two pink-ball Tests in Adelaide with a total of 15 wickets.
More than its bowlers, who bowled Australia out for 328 in the first innings to concede only a 26-run lead, it’s the English batsmen who must come to the party in Adelaide and also find a way to send Steven Smith back cheaply, as Anderson pointed out.
Teams
Australia (announced XI): David Warner, Cameron Bancroft, Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith (capt), Peter Handscomb, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon.
England (from): Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman, James Vince, Joe Root (capt), Dawid Malan, Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Jake Ball, James Anderson, Gary Ballance, Mason Crane, Ben Foakes, Craig Overton.
Pitch and conditions
Like Gabba, Adelaide Oval expected to offer spin in Day-Night Test
Stats and trivia
The two leading wicket-takers in pink-ball first-class cricket are both playing in this match: Mitchell Starc tops the list with 42 while Josh Hazlewood has 33.
Alastair Cook scores 243 in his first day/night against West Indies in Birmingham.
Match facts
December 2-6, 2017
Start time 1400 local (0330 GMT)
