The liveliest of dead rubbers

Match facts

November 24-28, 2016 Start time 1400 local (0330 GMT)

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Remember back in April, when South Africa’s players were reluctant to accept a day-night Adelaide Test? It could be a series decider, they said, and there could be a No.1 ranking on the line. What quaint, innocent times they were. This series was decided when Australia capitulated in Hobart, and indeed there is a Test ranking up for grabs for the winner of this match, but it is No.4. Still, what both teams wouldn’t have given for the pink-ball day-night factor to be the primary focus of this past week. Instead, all anyone has cared about is what South Africa’s captain sucked in Hobart, and why Australia sucked in Hobart. As for the day-night Test, both teams will just suck it and see.

In the end, for all the argy-bargy – both verbal and physical – around the ball-tampering issue, South Africa will have Faf du Plessis available in Adelaide and may or may not change their XI. As for Australia? They will be unrecognisable – and not just to the public. Three debutants – opener Matt Renshaw and middle-order batsmen Peter Handscomb and Nic Maddinson – have been confirmed. Smith even revealed that prior to this week, he had never so much as set eyes on Renshaw. In his column on Cricket Australia’s website, Smith wrote of the squad convening in Adelaide: “I had to quietly ask a couple of the guys who had met Matt beforehand to make sure they pointed him out to me if he happened to walk past.”

It is a remarkable situation in which the Australians find themselves. Three debutant batsmen in Australia’s Test top six is exceptionally rare. It last happened during the World Series Cricket divide, and before that in 1946 in the first Test following a six-year hiatus due to World War II. But to find the last occasion that was not caused by external circumstances we must go all the way back to 1936 and Don Bradman’s first Test as captain. Even that instance is debatable – it occurred only when the batting order was tweaked in the second innings. Not since 1924 and the shared debut of Bill Ponsford, Victor Richardson and Arthur Richardson has it happened in the first innings.

All of this just highlights how extraordinary Australia’s selection sweep has been this week. South Africa’s week, too, has been far from normal. But now the focus can shift to the pink-ball day-night Test, the third in the game’s history. Should South Africa win, they will move to No.4 on the Test rankings …

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