Tim Paine To Closely Follow The Upcoming Test Series Between England And West Indies
Published - 23 Jun 2020, 08:59 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:30 AM
Australian Test captain Tim Paine will join the billions in keenly following the international cricket as it returns to the fore next month. The international sport will finally get a release from the painful shackles of the COVID-19 crisis, which created widespread upheavals when it stood suspended. Professional cricket at the international level has held halted since March.
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The Englishmen and the Caribbeans will take the field in whites to kickstart the sport by squaring off in the first of three Tests in Southampton on the 8th of July. Unlike anything ever witnessed, all three Tests would be contested behind closed doors and bowlers have to adjust without saliva to shine the ball. It indeed will be a historical series in itself.
Tim Paine feels excited at the prospect of watching Test cricket again and see how the two sides acclimatise to the new rules and surroundings at the international level.
Tim Paine asserted that not only him but coach Justin Langer and his teammates would also be witnessing it closely.
“I am fascinated like anyone is to watch some Test cricket again and to see exactly how the West Indies and England series is going to work and the different things that they are going to be doing that haven’t been done before in cricket. I think it is going to be interesting and certainly for me and Justin (Langer) and the Australian international players it’s something we are going to watch very closely.” Tim Paine stated as quoted by Hindustan Times.
You get a mental freshen up, which your David Warners and Pats and Steves never get: Tim Paine
Keeping in mind the one-off Test against Afghanistan and the high-voltage series against India later this year, the Tasmanian admitted that their star players would have a domestic season as warm-up games. Hence, their bodies and minds would remain in the right shape ahead of a gruelling summer.
The likes of Steve Smith, Nathan Lyon, David Warner, Pat Cummins, Marnus Labuschagne would have a massive role to play along. Skipper Tim Paine will look to win the series for Australia against India after losing the previous time.
“The next Test we’ll play is our summer, so we’re really lucky here that we’ll have a pre-season, all our nationally contracted players have gone back to their states, which is a great thing for both them and all our young domestic players in the country to be learning off Steve Smith, Marnus [Labuschagne], Pat Cummins and all these guys.
You get a mental freshen up, which your David Warners and Pats and Steves never get, but also these guys are getting to do a full pre-season, getting their bodies right, which they haven’t been able to do for a number of years.” the 36-year-old keeper-batsman added.
