The second Ashes Test, which begins on Thursday of next week, will be a lottery, according to former England fast bowler Stuart Broad, and the toss is crucial in Brisbane with the pink ball.
Australia has won 13 of their 14 day-night Test matches; their only defeat occurred against the West Indies at the Gabba last year.
Only two of England’s seven pink-ball games have been victories. They have lost all three in Australia, first by 120 runs in Adelaide in 2017 and then by 275 runs and 146 runs in Adelaide and Hobart in 2021.
“We know the pink-ball Test, having played a few ourselves, is a bit of a lottery,” Broad, who has played in all of England’s pink-ball Tests so far, said on ‘For The Love of Cricket’ podcast.
“It is all about timing a little bit of when you bowl with the brand new ball. Winning the toss and batting is pretty crucial in the pink-ball Test in my opinion.”
Mitchell Starc took ten wickets in the first Test, which Australia won by 8 wickets after England’s batting collapsed twice in Perth. With 81 wickets, the fast bowler is also the top wicket-taker in the pink-ball Tests and might be a threat to the visitors’ batting unit once more.
“That’s why I think it is quite important to bat first because even if you are bowled out by tea when it’s starting to go dark, you have a brand new ball under lights,” Broad said.
“And if you bat well you can control when you bowl in the game and in the day.”
As Pat Cummins and fellow pacer Josh Hazlewood are once again sidelined due to injuries, Australia, who lead the series 1-0, will once again be led by stand-in captain Steve Smith.
