WACA still packs a punch: Langer, Paine
Dec 11, 2017 - 5:00 PM The WACA pitch may lack the venom of yesteryear but Tim Paine and Justin Langer agree the additional bounce on offer should help Australia in the third Ashes Test.Australia will seek to claim an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series by winning the contest that starts on Thursday. It will be the final major event at the WACA, with the new stadium on the other side of the Swan River to open soon.
The WACA has been a quick's paradise for most of its existence because of its trademark pace and bounce. However, in recent years there have been no shortage of complaints about flat pitches.
"It's still got more pace and bounce than most of the wickets around the country, so I think it will suit us really well this week," Australia wicketkeeper Paine said.
"All Australian players, domestically and internationally, have enjoyed coming to the WACA. It's a place that other international teams find really uncomfortable, which is a bonus for us.
"The nicks tend to carry quite comfortably.
"The first 30 or 40 balls can still be really difficult to get yourself in, but once you do it can be a beautiful place to bat."
Western Australia coach Langer, who played 105 Tests and has loved the WACA since his childhood, suggested the deck produced for the third Test would do England no favours.
"Even though we say it's not as quick as it has been, it's quicker than most pitches in the world," Langer said.
"We probably take it for granted a little bit, but the extra bounce is usually what brings opposition teams unstuck.
"It hasn't been as fast as we've talked about for probably 20 years to be honest, but there's the bounce.
"Traditionally, Australia are very hard to beat here."
England's sole Test win at the WACA came in 1978, when Australia's XI was decimated by the breakaway World Series Cricket.
Source: AAP
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