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NEW DELHI : Australia captain Pat Cummins expects another trial by spin in the second test against India but finds himself grappling with selection dilemmas as he tries to lock in the playing XI for the match in New Delhi beginning on Friday.
Legendary Australian cricketer Allan Border is still at pains to understand why middle-order batter Travis Head was excluded from the side that suffered an innings and 132-run defeat against India in the opening Test at Nagpur. Head has been in sublime form since the 2021/22 Ashes series, where he was adjudged Player of the Series after Australia won the five-Test series 4-0. He was the joint second-highest run-getter during the three-Test series at home against South Africa recently, which Australia won 2-0.
Let-arm fast bowlers are rare commodities. Since Zaheer Khan's retirement, the Indian cricket team has given opportunities to a few left-arm pacers but no one has managed to cement his place so far. Arshdeep Singh is one left-arm seamer who is a fairly consistent player for the team but is yet to hit his true potential. Ahead of the start of the 2nd Test between India and Australia, head coach Rahul Dravid was asked about the lack of quality left-arm pacers in the team. As the journalist used the references of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mitchell Starc, Dravid gave an epic response.
An optimistic Mitchell Starc on Wednesday said he was hopeful of returning to the Australian playing XI for the second Test against India, starting in New Dehi on Friday. The pace ace missed the series opener, which Australia lost by an innings an 132 runs inside three days, due to a tendon damage to his left middle finger. He arrived in India on Saturday. "There's a few boxes to tick but it's on track ... I'd like to be a little further down the road (in the recovery)," Starc told reporters.
Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc is optimistic about his chances of returning to the side for the second Test against India in New Delhi, aiming to boost a beleaguered side that lost the opening match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur by an innings.
Starc, who got injured while fielding against South Africa in December has had his finger in a splint for weeks but despite the lingering effects of the injury, the 33-year-old is doing everything possible to be available for selection. After an embarrassing loss in the first Test, the Aussies parachuted left-armer Starc into the squad ahead of the second Test."I'd like to be a little further down the road," said Starc.
A slow turner awaits Aussies as coach inspects pitch ahead of second TestNEW DELHI: The Ferozeshah Kotla was a fortress on Tuesday. Three days before the second Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test match, cameras and media were a strict no-no. It was very difficult to get a glimpse of the practice area. All this just for one reason — to keep the nature of the pitch under wraps. Indian cricket board (BCCI) curators Ashish Bhowmik and Tapash Chatterjee are overseeing the preparation.India coach Rahul Dravid, in fact, reached Delhi a day before the team and has been regularly visiting the Kotla. "Dravid has been visiting the stadium for a couple of days. He is closely monitoring the square to be used for the Test," a BCCI source said. With a berth in the World Test Championship Final at stake, India are taking no chances. Dravid has taken the lead and has been drawing the team's plans keeping prevailing conditions in mind.
Uncapped Australia pacer Lance Morris, fresh from being the season's leading wicket-taker in the Sheffield Shield, believes he has the "best chance" to make his debut in the opening Test against India in Nagpur on February 9. The 24-year-old tearaway pacer, who has the ability to rack up deliveries at 150-plus kmph, has been included in Australia's 18-member squad for the first two Tests of the four-match marquee Border-Gavaskar series.