Vettori's absence a reason behind Australia's lackluster show at Perth? Australian head coach differs

The Perth pitch, the same that played absolutely in favour of the pacers on the opening day of the first BGT Test, staged a dramatic transformation on the second day. While Jasprit Bumrah completed his fifer by dismissing Alex Carey early on Saturday, the Indian bowlers endured some difficulty in fending off Mitchell Starc. Despite the challenge posed by the tailenders, India managed to secure a 46-run lead over the hosts as Australia was bowled out for 104. The change in pitch conditions became evident to the Australian bowlers when India came out to bat later that day. Following the day’s play, Australian head coach Andrew McDonald shared his thoughts on the team’s performance in the Test so far. He also addressed the absence of bowling coach Daniel Vettori from the camp.

Australian head coach praises Rahul and Jaiswal following Day 2 of Perth Test

KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal put on a splendid batting partnership, a contrasting sight from India's opening innings in the match. However, the batters were heavily aided by the dried up Perth pitch as they claimed a foothold in the clash. At stumps on day two, both the Indian openers remained unbeaten, knitting a 172-run partnership. Moreover, their untethered batting put India in a lead of 218 runs over the hosts. At the end of the game on second day, Australia's head coach opened up on his team's condition in the match.

McDonald was quick to deny the impact of Vettori's absence from the camp. Daniel Vettori, Australia's bowling coach departed from Perth to join SRH at the IPL 2025 mega auction scheduled for November 24-25 in Jeddah. When questioned about the same, McDonald noted that the former NZ spinner is constantly in touch with the team. Moreover, Australia's standing in the match has much to do with the massive change in the nature of the Perth pitch.

"He [Vettori] is still connected with us. A lot of pre-planning, prep work gone in. The answer is no [it didn’t make a difference], he’s got some commitments elsewhere. I think the wicket’s changed considerably. The seam and swing was down compared to yesterday," McDonald said.

While the Australian head coach explained the track's nature at length, he did not remain behind in praising the Indian opening duo. Both KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal cruised relatively seamlessly to their respective half-centuries. Moreover, in their 172-run partnership, the batters showcased some impressive strokes, with Jaiswal hitting Starc and Lyon for sixes. This partnership between Jaiswal and Rahul is the first 100-run opening stand for India in Australia in 20 years.

"The surface looked considerably drier today, and it dried out fairly quickly. We thought there may have been a little bit more there, so if you want to say it we were a little bit surprised there wasn't as much seam movement or swing," McDonald said. "I thought KL and Jaiswal played extremely well also. You needed to ride your luck a little bit also, our guys got the balls in the right areas and there were some plays and misses as well," he added.