Travis Head, Steven Smith, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood on clockwise direction. (FILE Photo)
Australia have not won a Test series against India since 2014/15. For the past decade, India has been a dominant force both in home conditions and Down Under.
However, this Indian team has flown to Australia after a home whitewash against New Zealand. The Australian side has players who can exploit the weaknesses of this Indian team in transition.
Five Australian players to watch out for
Travis Head
The left-hander has hurt India on a few big occasions before. He has an aggressive nature and the ability to turn the game around in a session’s span. With uncertainty over Mohammed Shami’s arrival, the Indian team lacks an experienced pace option besides Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. Pressure from Head on those inexperienced options might force the Indian skipper to bring back his strike weapons again and again resulting in tiring them down.
Steven Smith
Smith’s batting position has been widely debated. Finally, he has been pushed to the number four slot where he piled on a lot of runs in his career. Though similar to Virat Kohli, his batting powers might be waning. But occasionally he has shown glimpses of his prime version with knocks in Adelaide earlier this year against West Indies and a ton in the 2023 World Test Championship against India.
Pat Cummins
The Australian skipper is one of the most lethal bowlers in world cricket. With his side not winning a series for nearly a decade he would want to make things straight this time. Not only is he a lethal bowler with his pace and accuracy but also a smart cricket mind and a captain who can come up with tactics to trouble the Indian team.
Josh Hazlewood
Though Hazlewood might not have the pace of Mitchell Starc and the aura of Cummins, his numbers are right up there. One thing the 33-year-old will keep testing apart from the technique and judgment of batters is their patience. With his immaculate ability to keep pitching the ball in one area throughout the day, the onus is upon batters to survive against him.
Nathan Lyon
One of the key members of the Australian bowling lineup. India’s success in the last couple of tours has come mainly because of the side negating the his threat of Lyon. However, this time India has a lot more left-handers in the top order who are facing Lyon for the first time in Australia which is a different prospect altogether with the extra bounce he gets on these surfaces.
