Australian legend Steve Waugh believes Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah will hold a key for India in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Team India are due to travel to Australia for five Test matches. The marquee series is slated to get underway on November 22 in Perth.
Kohli loves the rivalry against Australia and has played some of his best Test knocks Down Under. The star batter has played 25 Test innings on Australian soil, amassing 1352 runs at an average of 54.08 with six hundreds and four half-centuries.
On the other hand, Bumrah has been a chief architect of India’s last two Test series wins in Australia. He has played seven Tests there, picking up 32 scalps at a remarkable average of 21.25, including one five-wicket haul.
"It'll be a good series with two very good teams, equally matched. India has a good chance to win in Australia because they have a very strong bowling attack. With Bumrah, Siraj, and Shami, they have an excellent pace attack, and they also have many good spinners, such as Jadeja, Ashwin, and Kuldeep but the key will be Jasprit Bumrah's performance with the ball and Virat Kohli's performance with the bat. Bumrah is an excellent bowler, the more he takes wickets, the higher the chances of India winning the series gets high," Waugh told IANS.
"We have seen Virat's performance in away conditions. The Indian batting depends on him, so he will be at the helm. However, Australia has a very good team as well, with a strong bowling attack. So, with two high-quality teams, I expect it to be an excellent series," he added.
India have won the last two Test series on Australian soil, while they have held onto the coveted Border-Gavaskar Trophy since March 2017.
The team that wins the forthcoming series could be well poised to earn a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s next year. India are currently heading the points table, followed by the defending champions Australia.
After the first Test in Perth, the action will shift to Adelaide (December 6-10), where both teams will face each other in a Day-Night Test. The last three Tests are set to take place in Brisbane (December 14-18), Melbourne (December 26-30), and Sydney (January 3-7).
