What

The second Test of the four-match series between Australia and India

When

January 3-7, 2012. The game begins at 5:00 am, IST.

Where

Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney. Although the SCG is traditionally known to suit spinners, curator Tom Parker has suggested that the wicket will help the fast bowlers for at least the opening days of the Test. Australia lost an Ashes Test to England here last year, but won all seven Test matches played here before that Test since January 2005.

The Teams

Australia head into this Test with captain Michael Clarke naming an unchanged side from the first Test. What that means is that offspinner Nathan Lyon retains his place in the playing eleven ahead of pacer Ryan Harris who was named in the 12-man squad for this Test. But Lyon will be looking to put in a much better performance than in the first Test at the MCG where he had ordinary figures (22.5-2-91-1).

The other concern for Australia would be the form of Shaun Marsh. Marsh, who was returning from a back injury when he was named for the first Test, had scores of 0 and 3 in his two innings at Melbourne. With Ricky Ponting having struck some good form, it might be prudent for the Australians to return Ponting to his familiar spot of No. 3 and get Marsh to come in at No. 4.

India will have to bat much better if they have to make a contest out of the Sydney Test. The visitors could well hand Rohit Sharma his first Test cap; Virat Kohli’s two half-centuries from nine innings means that the latter may still not be ready to handle the demands of Test cricket.

MS Dhoni’s other concern in the batting department is Gautam Gambhir’s lack of runs. The Indian opener hit his last century in January 2010 and has scored only two-half centuries in his last 13 innings in Tests. With Virender Sehwag giving the opposition an opportunity to take his wicket every time he goes for a shot, Gambhir will be under extra pressure to perform in Sydney.

Key players

With 20 wickets from his first three Test matches, James Pattinson is a pacer to reckon with. Pattinson hustled the Indians, including the likes of Dravid and Tendulkar, with his pace and bounce in the Boxing Day Test. Just 21 years old, Pattinson displays a rare maturity which augurs well for Australia’s pace attack in the years to come.

Umesh Yadav was the pacer in the Indian camp who caught everyone’s attention in the first Test. Clocking speeds in excess of 140 kmph regularly, Yadav’s seven-wicket haul was by far the best performance by an Indian bowler in Melbourne. Also, the fact that six of Yadav’s seven wickets in that match were of top-order Australian batsmen shows that the young Vidarbha lad is capable of troubling the best in the business.

Trivia

• Sydney Cricket Ground will be hosting its 100th Test match. It will become the third ground – after Lord’s (123) and MCG (104) – to host 100 Test matches.

• In their last 16 innings in overseas Tests, India have scored 300-plus runs only once.

Venue Stats

Highest total in an innings: India 705/7 decl. in 187.3 overs v Australia - January 2, 2004

Lowest total in an innings: Australia 42 in 37.3(x4) overs v England – February 10, 1888

Best individual score in an innings: Tip Foster (England) – 287 v Australia - December 11, 1903

Best bowling figures in an innings: George Lohmann (England) 27.1(x4)-12-35-8 v Australia – February 25, 1887

Average first innings score at Sydney Cricket Ground: Overall - 309, since 2000 – 361

Average second innings score at Sydney Cricket Ground: Overall - 308, since 2000 – 410

Result summary at SCG:

Head-to-head

Last meeting between both sides at SCG: 2-6 January 2008

Brief scores: Australia 463 & 401-7d beat India 532 & 210 by 122 runs

Form guide (most recent listed first):

India: Lost, Drawn, Won, Won, Lost (2 wins, 2 losses)

Australia: Won, Lost, Won, Won, Lost (3 wins, 2 losses)

The Squads

India: MS Dhoni (c & wk), Virender Sehwag (vc), R Ashwin, Rahul Dravid, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer Khan, Virat Kohli, VVS Laxman, Abhimanyu Mithun, Pragyan Ojha, Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, Vinay Kumar and Umesh Yadav

Australia: Michael Clarke (c), Brad Haddin (vc), Ed Cowan, Ben Hilfenhaus, Mike Hussey, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, James Pattinson, Ricky Ponting, Peter Siddle & David Warner

All stats are as onas on January 2, 2012