AUS vs IND 2024-25: What are snake cracks? Perth curator does not expect it amid heavy rains

Snake cracks are extremely famous in Perth. The old ground at WACA used to be known for its pace and bounce, and the new Optus Stadium has been quite the same. In dry conditions, the cracks on the pitch open wide, leading to extra bounce and also bringing spinners into the fold. It can open to an extent of 5 mm at times and can trouble batters in the middle.

However, rain has been a constant part of the build-up of the first Test in Perth. The surface has been under the covers for a long time and it has forced head curator Issac McDonald to adapt to the conditions. Nevertheless, he expects good competition between bat and bowl in the series opener, which starts on November 22 and added that he expects the pitch to deteriorate but doesn’t expect big snake cracks that will trouble the batters.

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“It's been quite conditions-based. At the moment, we're leaning towards rolling it a bit more on top to get that firmness, and that happy medium between bat and ball. [It] would be nice if the sun pops out, but we're really comfortable as a curating team,” McDonald was quoted as saying by Business Standard.

“I don't think this weather is going to make this pitch fall apart. There'll be some deterioration. Grass will stand up during the game and offer that variable bounce. But in terms of big-snake WACA cracks, unfortunately, I don't think the weather's going to get us there,” he added.

India, in the meantime, are preparing to play three seamers and Nitish Kumar Reddy as the fourth option in the first Test. Jasprit Bumrah will pair with Mohammed Siraj and either of Prasidh Krishna or Harshit Rana is set to be the third seamer. Reddy is expected to make his Test debut and Devdutt Padikkal is currently the favourite to replace injured Shubman Gill in the playing XI.