Live: Australia bats first against Bangladesh in historic Darwin Test

Pat Cummins wins the toss and elects to bat first, as Australia takes on Bangladesh in Darwin, the first of two Test matches held in the Top End.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:30amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:30amLive updates: Australia vs BangladeshThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:35amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:35am1st over - Taskin Ahmed to open the bowlingRight arm fast, starting around the wicket, and he bowls straight to Travis Head, who defends off his pads.FOUR! No ball too. Too full, floated towards the stumps and Travis Head crushes that thought point for a boundary.Outside off, left alone, bit better in terms of pace and zip there from Taskin.Left of length there from Taskin, Head leaving it well alone. There are three slips and a gully in place as Taskin looks to slant the ball across the face of the Allan Border Medallist.Defends off his pads next up, Taskin getting back into his groove after that poor second delivery.Rapped on the thigh pad, good ball from Taskin, just nipping back into Head a little bit. Head was sitting back in his crease there and just not quite on the right wavelength to a ball that's pitched there.Solid defence ends the first Test over in Darwin for 23 years.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:34amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:34amPlay more up here, I reckonGood morning Simon and Henry, looking forward to a competitive series if you can call 2 matches a series. The BOM reckons Darwin weather will be ideal over the five days of this test – no rain, max temps 31 to 33 C with overnight minimums in the low 20 s – ya gotta be happy with that… - MikeI am a staunch advocate for year-round cricket.I think Australia should play more games at this time of year and in the Top End.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:33amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:33amI think they'll be fine...G’day Simon /Henry . Feels a bit weird but good to be watching test cricket in August. Not sure the batting lineup is strong enough to play two all rounders (three if you count Cummins). Still really puts pressure on the specialist bats to perform.- PhillipI do fear for Bangladesh.With Nahid Rana and Shoriful Islam both missing, that's a big hole to fill from a fast bowling perspective.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:29amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:29amDay one session timesMorning session: 10am - 12pm ACST (10:30 - 12:30pm AEST, 8:30am - 10:30am AWST)Afternoon session: 12:40pm - 2:40pm ACST (1:10pm – 3:10pm AEST, 10:40am - 12:40pm AWST)Evening session: 3:00pm – 5:00pm (3:30pm – 5:30pm AEST, 1:30pm - 3:30pm AWST)But you can essentially guarantee that final session will be extended an extra half hour, given a 90-over day of Test cricket is a thing of the past.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:24amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:24amReminiscing on Dizzie's 201*Because I'm sure Jason Gillespie won't mention it on commentary for ABC Sport today, here's some footage of the great man reminscing on his famous 201 not out against Bangladesh in 2006.It remains the highest score by a nightwatchman in Test history.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:24amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:24amJason Gillespie delivers the series trophyAnd the two teams follow him onto the Darwin turf ahead of the anthem ceremony.The standing umpires are walking out too, Kumar Dharmasena and Richard Illingworth.James Parfitt is delivering the Welcome to Country on behalf of the Larrakia Nation.He finishes with a short rendition of "everywhere we go, you'll always take the weather with you," which was unexpected.Now it's time for the national anthems.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:23amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:23amTwo-day Test?Reckon the boys have a fishing charter booked for day 3?- ChrisA big score in the first innings and things could get ugly, based on what we've seen in the warm up match.However, despite how strong a team Australia has named, the hosts can't be complacent here.Bangladesh are more than capable of doing something in this Test, and have played a lot more red ball cricket this year than Australia has, albeit against much less accomplished opposition.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:18amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:18amNot an ideal lead-in for Bangladesh(Getty Images)Bangladesh began its tour of Australia with a foreboding innings loss to the Cricket Australia XI, in which the Tigers were bowled out for just 54 in their second dig.Couple that with injuries to exciting young fast bowlers Nahid Rana and Shoriful Islam, and it has been a far from ideal lead-in for the tourists.But wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das is a welcome return from injury for Bangladesh — he'll slot into an experienced middle order that also features 39-year-old mainstay Mushfiqur Rahim, spin-bowling allrounder and centurion from the warmup game Mehidy Hasan Miraz, as well as captain Najmul Hossain Shanto.(Getty Images)Shanto may well be the key for Bangladesh in the top end. He's averaged over 42 across the past two years with the bat, and is now his country's most successful Test captain, having won eight of his 19 games leading the team.While the middle order may be an area of strength, Bangladesh comes into the series with a distinct lack of stability up the top, having rotated through a number of openers in recent years.That has left No. 3 Mominul Haque — who has a very respectable Test batting average of 38 from his 78 matches — with plenty of work to do on plenty of occasions.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:15amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:15amHome-town hero's 'big moment' in Darwin(Getty Images)Australia opener Jake Weatherald will play a Test match in Darwin with a modified technique that he will unveil against Bangladesh in a series of vital importance on a personal front.The 31-year-old was born and raised in Darwin where his career kicked off after playing with Northern Territory Strike.Of all the batters in the Australian side ahead of the two-Test series, his position is the most precarious.Weatherald made his debut in last summer's Ashes series and scored just 201 runs at 22.33 in five Tests, with his only half-century a vital 72 in the second Test in Brisbane.Fox Cricket commentator Mark Waugh said of Weatherald that during the Ashes there were "a few worrying signs with his technique, falling over and getting hit on the pads a lot."I think he needs to rectify that, and I think he needs runs in these two Test matches to be picked for South Africa," Waugh said.(Getty Images)Weatherald said that it was "a challenge, especially when people you respect say things about your batting", but added the scrutiny was part and parcel of Test cricket."I think you are required to make runs anywhere you go," Weatherald said."When someone like Mark Waugh says that, he is probably just stating the obvious, isn't he? I have a good opportunity to play two games hopefully and make runs. If I don't do that I put fate in someone else's hands."Weatherald played county cricket for Leicestershire in a six-game stint in April and May when he made 483 runs at an average of 60.37. The highlight was an unbeaten 103 against Glamorgan.It was a good opportunity to make tweaks to his technique against bowlers who used the English conditions to bowl fuller and target his stumps."The conditions there were very conducive to improving my technique. That was a great learning curve for me," he said.(Getty Images)Since last summer Weatherald said he had made "a few tinkerings" to his technique and approach, while not forsaking the strengths that came to the fore in the Ashes."It was great to have a prolonged time to work on things I can get better at," he said,."I have come back feeling ready and not feeling I have changed too much."The opportunity to score runs in Darwin is one that excites not just Weatherald but also the many Territorians who admire him."I am excited to get out there and put on a bit of a show, which I always try to do, and enjoy it as well," he said."It is just a big moment for the Territory, being a Territorian player."I know how big of a deal it is for NT cricket and all the boys and girls come up and say what a big deal it is for them. It is not just for me, but for everyone else."AAPThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:12amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:12amBangladesh teamHere's the Bangladesh line up.(@BCBtigers)Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:08amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:08am'Nowhere to hide' for Australia's under-fire battersThe pressure is on for Australia's underperforming batters, says former Test opener and ABC Sport contributor Ed Cowan.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:05amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:05amAustralia embraces 'unknowns' on Darwin's split-pitch(Getty Images)Marrara Stadium curator Jake Pavlich is rightly proud of the drop-in split-pitch Australia and Bangladesh will play on today, as Darwin prepares to host its first Test match in 23 years.The narrow centre square will provide different challenges for the batters in particular, but the split in the middle is nothing for players to fear."It won't affect the play. It is just a bit of aesthetics," Pavlich explained."There will be a visible line but it is flat."The split-pitch was first used in Australia in Darwin when Bangladesh was also the visiting Test side in 2003.(Getty Images)The pitch is prepared in metal trays in a compound and consists of two 12 metre sections. This is necessary because of the infrastructure underneath the pitch area which Pavlich said consists of "a concrete slab with sand over it"."When it goes into the compound we make sure it is perfectly together so we prepare it as a full-length pitch," Pavlich said."You do this work for 10 months on a full-length pitch and then you cut it in half and take it out there."The Marrara surface received rave reviews when Australia played South Africa in T20 internationals last year.But the last time a Test was played at the venue was in 2004 against Sri Lanka, when Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie and Glenn McGrath were heading Australia's attack, with Justin Langer and Matthew Hayden opening the batting.Australian allrounder Beau Webster said the team would embrace the "unknowns"."It is a small square, a two-wicket square. Runs square of the wicket are going to be tough when it is digging in to the spongy outfield," Webster said."We have spoken about running between the wickets where it is a little bit different when you have got a 10-wicket block and the ball races off square of the wicket, so just to be mindful of things like that."In terms of the surface it is a bit of an unknown to both teams. It is going to be critical on day one to sum it up as quick as we can, and if we are bowling to get the lengths right, and if we are batting feed the information back to the batters."AAPThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:03amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:03amAustralian team: The big four back together as Boland misses out(cricket.com.au)Australia’s big four will play together for the first time since last winter’s tour of the West Indies, with Josh Hazlewood set for his first international cricket since last October.That means Scott Boland, despite his Herculean effort in last summer’s Ashes, moves out of the side.Jake Weatherald, the first Australian Test cricketer from the NT gets a crack on familiar soil after a disappointing debut series against England, while recently crowed Allan Border Medallist Travis Head continues his reinvention as a swashbuckling opener.It’s dual seam-bowling allrounders in the middle order, with Beau Webster and Cam Green at five and seven, allowing for Alex Carey to slot in at No. 5.Steve Smith at No, 4, naturally.Here's captain Pat Cummins explaining his reasoning to ABC Sport.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:02amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 10:02amAustralia wins the toss, will bat firstPat Cummins tossed the coin up, Najmul Hossain Shanto called heads, it came down tails, and Cummins said his team will have a bat first."We've been buzzing, [we've been] waiting for this for a long time," Cummins says.There's 4mm of grass on the pitch, which looks pretty good with an even covering across it.Looks a good pitch to bat first on and, with the short coverage of grass and the sunny hot conditions, it's prime to turn a bit later on.Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 9:59amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 9:59amWhat time is the first ball in Darwin?Darwin's first Test match in over two decades begins at 10am local time, which is:10:30am AEST (NSW, QLD, TAS, ACT)10am ACST (NT, SA)8:30am AWST (WA)Thu 13 Aug 2026 at 9:55amThu 13 Aug 2026 at 9:55amWelcome to cricket!(Getty Images)Hello and welcome to the winter of cricket!No, you don't need to adjust your calendars. It is still August; you haven't missed footy finals or Bathurst, and down south the footy posts are still up on the ovals.But in the tropical north, we're getting ready for the first cricket Test of the season, with the Australians taking on Bangladesh in Darwin and, next week, in Mackay.My name is Simon Smale, Henry Hanson is here with me and we will be bringing you this very early-season cricket Test to you across the next few days.So, if you're in the southern states, ignore the wind and rain howling outside your windows and live vicariously through the Top End dry season and settle yourself into the first Test of what is going to be a 20-plus Test 12 months for Australia's men's team.