Fremantle Doctor won’t blow in at Optus Stadium
Optus Stadium will be different to the WACA for many reasons, most notably the absence of Perth's Fremantle Doctor that made swing bowling a relative breeze.
The city's afternoon sea breeze, so reliable you could almost set your watch by it, often proved a game changer in WACA Tests.
Those fast bowlers who used the gusts to their advantage had the ball hooping and created collapses in near-unplayable spells, also enjoying some cooling relief from sapping heat.
But Optus Stadium's three-tiered stands mean the pitch isn't anywhere near as exposed as the WACA, something both Australia and India will have to adjust to when the four-Test series continues on Friday.
"It comes in and bounces off the back of the stadium," curator Brett Sipthorpe said of the Fremantle Doctor.
"It's a bit of an interesting one, it just swirls, so it's certainly not the same as what we had across the road.
"It swung a lot in the Shield game. It was conventional swing virtually the whole way through so maybe it actually helps the swing, not having that cross breeze.
Virat Kohli inspects the Optus Stadium pitch.Credit:AAP
"It seems to trap the humidity in here, so it should be interesting."
Much has been made of a strip expected to offer a lot of assistance to fast bowlers, who have claimed 43 of 54 wickets to fall at Optus this season.
But the temperature is expected to hit 38 degrees on Friday, ensuring one team's quicks could be facing a long day in the field if they get it wrong.
"It gets really hot in here, it traps that heat in and we won't get the breeze," Sipthorpe said.
"They've had all the talk about pace and bounce and movement, but how long can you sustain heavy pressure in 38 degrees?
"If you win the toss do you bowl and make the most of the conditions?
"Or do you think – actually, we're going to be pretty tired after 50 overs in 38 degrees."
There is plenty of grass on the centre-wicket block. It suggests there will be little reverse-swing on offer, as was the case at Adelaide Oval.
"The wicket's got a great grass cover, so it's not going to gouge the ball at all," Sipthorpe said.
AAP
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