Against the West Indies at the Sabina Park Cricket Ground, Australia dropped Nathan Lyon from the Test XI for the first time since 2013.
Australia had already sealed the series 2-0 to retain the Frank Worrell Trophy. Ahead of the third and final Test match, a pink-ball affair at Kingston, there had been speculations around them leaving out Lyon. They came true when the team was announced: Scott Boland had replaced Lyon.
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This was the first time since the Lord’s Test of the 2013 Ashes that Australia dropped Lyon from a Test XI. Lyon was injured at the same venue during the 2023 Ashes and missed the next three Tests of the series. That brought to an end Lyon’s streak of 100 consecutive Test matches for Australia – a count surpassed by only Alastair Cook, Allan Border, Mark Waugh, Sunil Gavaskar, and Brendon McCullum.
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Once fit, however, he has played every Test match since then. In the two Tests in the ongoing series, he has nine wickets at 18.33 despite the conditions being of little assistance to him. Yet, he had to make way for Boland at Kingston.
Why did Australia drop Lyon?
For the Test, the Australian batters practised against the pink Dukes ball. They reported some “swing and nip” during these sessions as the ball retained its hardness.
Cummins spoke about “a few more unknowns” ahead of the session. “I think mainly pink ball and trying to get our heads around exactly what it’s going to do: That last session might be a little bit longer than Adelaide.”
Curiously, West Indies captain Roston Chase said “I think the wicket will offer some spin as well.” The hosts also added spinner Jomel Warrican, whom they had left out at the second Test. The two camps might have read the conditions differently.
Seamers Jayden Seales (3-59), Shamar Joseph (4-33), and Justin Greaves (3-56) shared all ten wickets to help the West Indies bowl out Australia for 225. Seven Australians reached double figures, but none of them made it to fifty. Playing in his 100th Test match, Mitchell Starc bowled debutant Kevlon Anderson before stumps as the hosts finished on 16-1.
