Australian cricket's biggest day conjures up plenty of memories for the
hosts, but only one painful recollection for the visitors. The MCG on
Boxing Day was the scene of Darrell Hair's fateful decision to call
Muttiah Muralitharan for throwing, in a match that finished in a
comfortable 10-wicket victory for Mark Taylor's Australians. Back then,
the result was entirely overshadowed by anger surrounding Hair's
decision, and the bitterness it engendered was to infect the rest of the
tour. This time around there is no such issue burning away, though the
ball tampering allegations that marked the latter stages of the
Bellerive Oval match provided a reminder that Australia and Sri Lanka
seldom oppose one another without something rancorous cropping up.
Pushed into the final hour by Mahela Jayawardene's tourists before
claiming victory in Hobart, Australia seek a series win to conclude a
year that has been moderately successful if not overwhelmingly so. They
remain a team in development, and will take on an even more transitional
look on Boxing Day should Michael Clarke not recover from a hamstring
strain in time. His absence would hand the captaincy to Shane Watson,
while opening the way for Usman Khawaja's recall. The bowling attack has
already been re-shaped, Mitchell Johnson and the debutant Jackson Bird
shuffling into the spaces left by Ben Hilfenhaus (injured) and Mitchell
Starc (unhappily rested).
The Sri Lankans must defy a history of Test match underachievement in
Australia if they are to keep the series alive. They have never won a
five-day encounter down under, though in Hobart they came close to
securing a stalemate. Melbourne and Sydney will afford the visitors
pitches more useful to their cause than Hobart proved to be, with
Rangana Herath a considerable threat on surfaces offering even a modicum
of turn. The greater question for Sri Lanka will be which pacemen can
step up to provide wicket-taking support - the lack of an effective pace
spearhead has been the overwhelming reason behind their lack of a
victory on these shores.
Form guide
(Most recent first)Australia WLDDW
Sri Lanka LLWDD
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