Christmas festivities put on hold for huffing Englishmen
AFP
24 December 1998
MELBOURNE, Australia, Dec 24 (AFP) - England's embattled
cricketers will forsake the Christmas tree Friday to spend the
morning as they have for most of the past two months: chasing
leather.
England will be sweating through fielding training with
temperatures forecast to reach 37 Celsius (98F) at the Melbourne
Cricket Ground in preparation for the Boxing Day Test against
Australia.
Christmas Day is just another day on the touring calendar for
England, although morale has been lifted by the arrival of wives
and girlfriends for the festive season.
But it is also the eve of one of cricket's biggest days, the
opening of the Boxing Day Test -- the fourth in the series which
Australia lead 2-0.
More than 70,000 people are expected to follow tradition and
crowd Australian cricket's oldest Test venue on Saturday even
though Australia have already retained the Ashes after three
Tests. The first was drawn.
Australia's Test squad will gather at the team hotel Friday
before a low-key training session in the afternoon to run off the
Christmas lunch.
One man certain not to over-indulge is pace spearhead Glenn
McGrath, who must prove his fitness after missing training
Thursday with a virus.
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