When they arrived for practice on the eve of the Adelaide match the players were startled to discover that the famous Oval ground was out of bounds and that they were being shunted off to a neighbouring parks ground where a local grade, or club, side plays.
Both tour manager David Graveney and coach Mike Gatting were clearly unhappy at the decision by the South Australian Cricket Association.
Gatting said: ``It's a shame we aren't on the main ground.'' Graveney sent a fax to Lord's to ascertain whether the venue had been previously agreed.
Graveney said: ``The South Australians tell me this was always the arrangement to play the game on what they call the No 2 Oval and I am trying to discover what the agreement was between them and the Test and County Cricket Board.
``I can tell you that if anything the South Australian team are even more put out than us. I can't imagine what the fuss would have been if we had done the same to Australia A on their tour of England: told them they were playing at Lord's and then springing the news at the last moment that in fact they would be appearing on the Nursery End pitch.''
Meanwhile, David Boon, the former batsman, has defended the record of the Australian side who have had a disastrous tour of India.
Australia failed to register a victory on the trip from a practice match, one-off Test against India and five one-day games in the triangular series, which also involved South Africa.
``I think a lot of media in Australia have jumped on the bandwagon overnight,'' said Boon, who is captaining Tasmania. ``They've showed that they have very short memories. The Australian side has done extremely well over the last three or four years in one-day cricket and beat the West Indies only 18 months ago in a Test series in the Caribbean.
``All of a sudden that's out the window because we've gone to the subcontinent, which is extremely difficult, only playing one Test match and a series of one-dayers.''
``We'll be treating this game just like the first one''
Australian captain Mark Taylor was also adamant the dismal Indian record would not be a factor when Australia take on the West Indies in the first of five Tests starting in Brisbane on Nov 22.
Brian Lara will captain the West Indies for the first time in a day-night match against West Australia in Perth tomorrow. He takes over from tour captain Courtney Walsh, who will be rested for the second match of the tour.
India meet South Africa today in the final of the triangular series in Bombay. The South Africans hope to continue their excellent record in one-day cricket this year which has seen them win 14 out of 15 matches.
In this triangular series, South Africa defeated both India and Australia, registering six wins in a row in their march to the final.
Hansie Cronje, the captain, said coach Bob Woolmer's strategies had been a crucial part of the team's success. ``We'll be treating this game just like the first one. Our spinners, Nicky Boje and Pat Symcox, have made us a real force and they will also pay off in the Tests against India.''