Justin Groves, the grounds manager at the SCG, says that there is a green tinge to the pitch, but it will break up as the game wears on (1:11)
Tea England 3 for 122 (Root 16*, Malan 16*) v Australia
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Mark Stoneman and James Vince both continued their series trend of failing to capitalise on starts as Australia picked up three wickets in a three-hour opening session at the SCG. Alastair Cook also fell after building himself a platform and at the tea break, England were 3 for 122, with Joe Root on 16 and Dawid Malan also on 16. Root had won a delayed toss in Sydney, where play had started two hours and ten minutes late due to morning rain.
It was a toss that Steven Smith said he was not unhappy to lose, given the moisture in the surface and cloud overhead, as well as the return to the side of strike bowler Mitchell Starc, who had missed the Boxing Day Test due to a bruised heel. However, Pat Cummins was the only bowler to break through inside the first ten overs when he banged one in a touch shorter to catch the edge of the bat of Stoneman, who had made a run-a-ball 24.
It was a delivery that Stoneman might have either left or played with a cross-bat, but the extra bounce made it a tricky one for his straight bat, and it continued a frustrating series for the England opener. Only once has he failed to reach double figures, but on no occasion has he progressed past the fifties, with scores of 53, 27, 18, 36, 56, 3, 15 and now 24.
Similarly, Vince has failed to have a significant impact on the series at No. 3, after impressing with 83 in the first innings of the campaign at the Gabba. Here, Vince toiled for 54 deliveries for his 25 before impatiently slashing at a short and wide delivery and edging behind off Cummins. Stoneman currently has 232 runs for the series at 29.00; Vince has 224 at 28.00, after scores of 83, 2, 2, 15, 25, 55, 17 and 25.
Cook, fresh from his unbeaten 244 at the MCG, looked in a patient mood at the SCG until on 39 he was lbw to Josh Hazlewood on review. The on-field umpire Joel Wilson had turned down Hazlewood’s appeal, but Australia’s review showed that by a slim margin the ball had pitched in line with the leg stump and was going on to hit.
The early rain meant the day had been condensed into two sessions, with the final session due to occupy two and a half hours, with the possibility of a further 30 minutes to accommodate the necessary number of overs.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo