Queensland quick Michael Neser looks set to make his Test debut against New Zealand on Thursday with Australia considering an unconventional five-man attack for the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The hosts, who can clinch the three-match series with a second successive victory, are wary of the surface at MCG where bowlers had to really toil for any success in recent times.
Boozy celebrations have been a part of Australian cricket for decades but Test hopeful Fawad Ahmed will be politely declining when the victory beers are passed around on the tour of the Caribbean and England.
Cricket Australia boss James Sutherland defended the use of the controversial pink ball in the face of players' criticism and is adamant it will prove a success during Test cricket's first day-night match in Adelaide next month.
Out-of-favour India batsman Virender Sehwag and Sri Lankan spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan will lead two MCC sides in a series of matches in the Middle East to help launch the new county season.
Finch, who is on the board of Australian players' union, said it is not only about the IPL and all stakeholders have to make compromises to get cricket to thrive again.
Australia opener Matt Renshaw is a doubt for the series-opening Test against Pakistan after suffering a head injury in a tour match in Dubai.
'I think the next process for me, if I do get a chance in the Test arena, is to try and play more back-to-back cricket now'
While form is important, Tim Paine's hopes of retaining his spot may ultimately rest on whether selectors feel he might be a major distraction amid the pressures of an Ashes series.
New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden may reportedly be recalled for the back-to-back Ashes series in England and Australia to take the pressure off the four over-stretched and error-prone Ashes officials during the next seven Tests.
'I think I got hit against India in Brisbane on the same thumb last season as well and the pain is always going to be there'
MCG moved to improve the playing surface after receiving the negative rating from ICC following last year's drawn Test against England, when only 24 wickets fell in five days.
Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin is in a race to be fit for the Test series against India after being ruled out of Australia's One-Day series against South Africa.
Netherlands cricketer Tim Gruijters has accused team management of cheating by forcing him out on medical grounds so they could bring in Tom Cooper as a last-minute replacement for the World Twenty20 in Bangladesh.
Pattinson will have to get through the county season unscathed to be considered for the Ashes starting in August.
ill Pucovski has become the third Australian cricketer to report mental health problems to the team management in just over two weeks
Pandya is undergoing rehabilitation after suffering a lower-back injury during the Asia Cup in Dubai.
The left-arm pacer is expected to join Peter Siddle and Ryan Harris in the Australian attack for the first Test against England starting at Gabba on November 21 after missing out on the Ashes tour of England earlier this year.
Australia batsman Adam Voges has copped a sickening blow to the head while batting for Western Australian on Thursday in the Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania. The right-handed batsman has been ruled out of the match in at the WACA Ground in Perth. Voges was on 16 when he was struck by a bouncer from fast bowler Cameron Stevenson on the opening day of the match.
Joe Burns said India have a skillful bowling attack, spearheaded by Jasprit Bumrah, and they have to 'start well' against them.
Australia captain Michael Clarke batted with a broken shoulder on the recent tour of South Africa and has been advised to rest, ruling him out of the domestic first class final later this week, Cricket Australia said on Monday.
Sean Abbott, the Australian fast bowler who delivered the ball that killed Phillip Hughes, has made a remarkable return to cricket, helping New South Wales beat Queensland on Friday.
Keeping with tradition at the good old WACA, a raging quick wicket has been laid for this inaugural five-day game. It has a healthy layering of grass which could impact strategies for both sides.
Pace spearhead Mitchell Starc says he let the noise get to him when India toured Australia two years ago but "couldn't care less" now as he gears up for the upcoming home Test series against Virat Kohli's team.
Chappell said 'the skill level of Indian youth teams would embarrass some of our first-class teams'.
Former Indian cricketer Atul Wassan on Sunday said that the idea of experimenting with the pink ball and the day and night Test would be a flop from the perspective of attracting more spectators to the stadium to watch the game in real time.
Australia's Josh Hazlewood is a 'genius' with line and length and will have no trouble being ready for next week's Ashes opener against England
Australia fast bowler Josh Hazlewood says he is fit and ready for the Ashes series against England after taking six wickets and coming through a Sheffield Shield match unscathed.
Glenn Maxwell fights to secure Australia's number six batting spot for the Ashes series.
Penpix of players in Australia's Ashes squad.
The last barrier to a 365-day professional sporting calendar in Australia looks set to come down with a report in the local media on Friday saying cricketers had agreed to play Twenty20 matches on Christmas Day.
According to cricket.com.au: "Renshaw will fly to Johannesburg this evening to join the under siege tourists ahead of Friday's final Test against South Africa in the wake of the Cape Town ball-tampering crisis."
'I think it makes total sense in Test cricket'
Boult was ruled out of the rest of the first Test against England after experiencing pain in his ribs, New Zealand Cricket said on Monday.
The shocking death of batsman Phillip Hughes on Thursday has cast doubts on whether the first Test between Australia and India will go ahead in Brisbane next week.
A pugnacious left-hander brimming with self-confidence, he has been in an out of the Australian national team for the past five years.
Australia opener Marcus Harris has warned against getting carried away by the grass on the MCG pitch
Australian paceman James Pattinson has said he was ready to seize his unexpected chance in next week's historic New Zealand third Test following the retirement of Mitchell Johnson.
'There will be uncertainty among players of both the teams of playing a pink ball Test'
Cheteshwar Pujara has set an example for others with his first-innings century
'When I first met him, I felt he had given up on life, but now his willingness to live has enhanced.'
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