The highly-anticipated Test series between India and Australia is all set to get underway on Thursday (February 9) in Nagpur.
Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, there have been a lot of talks over the pitches that will be served in the four-match series.
Last week, former Australia wicketkeeper Ian Healy created quite a stir by claiming how the BCCI doesn’t prepare proper playing wickets for visiting teams. He further said that if given ‘fair conditions’ to play, the Pat Cummins-led Australian side might win the Test series in India.
However, legendary Australian skipper Ian Chappell doesn’t agree with the viewpoint of Healy.
“What Ian Healy said that Australia will have the advantage… a lot of that is based on what Australia has done at home. They’re not playing at home. They’re playing in India. Why anyone would think that India don’t start with an advantage, I don’t know,” Chappell said in a virtual press conference facilitated by Star Sports.
“There’s a lot of crap spoken about pitches. I believe no one other than the curator should have a say on what wickets are produced. I don’t think it should be up to the players, the manager, the coach, anybody! You just produce a good pitch. Surely a curator has been a player and wants to produce a good pitch.”
Meanwhile, former India coach Ravi Shastri wants to see the ball turning from the opening day.
“I want the ball to turn from Day 1! If you lose the toss, so be it. You want to see the ball turning a bit. Or something there for the bowlers on offer from Day 1. It’s your strength. You’re playing at home. Capitalise on it,” Shastri said.
Australia may not have won a Test series on Indian soil since 2004 but they are coming with the tag of world’s No. 1 team this time around, having won games in all conditions this season.
Chappell though firmly believes that India will have the advantage while playing at home.
“Those comments coming from Australia are based on how they have performed at home. Playing well in Australia is a hell of a lot different than playing well in India. They have some players who are talented enough to do well in India. But the thing is you can go to India with a lot of confidence, but if they suddenly get you out cheaply, how long can you maintain that confidence in India. That’s crucial. Anyone giving Australia the advantage is talking through their hat! India have got to start as the favourites. But that shouldn’t bother the Australians. They should be going to India thinking they can win the series,” he said.
India scripted history by winning back-to-back Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under in 2018-19 and 202-21 under Ravi Shastri’s coaching.
“We went to Australia to beat them. That’s what changed. You went there with no excuses whatsoever when it came to the conditions, the pitches we played on. Very early in that series I had said we’re going to take the pitch out of the equation. This thing about playing at home and playing overseas… to hell with that. You’re playing cricket on a 22-yard strip which is the same for both sides. Our endeavor was to take 20 wickets before they could take 20 wickets. And we did that,” Shastri stated.
When asked if India versus Australia was the greatest rivalry in modern-day cricket, Shastri replied: “No question. It’s not just the cricket on the field. The buzz that an India-Australia series creates is second to none in world cricket. India is one of the teams that has really competed against Australia. That’s what has got everybody to watch the series. More than anything else, credit must be given to the Indian players for making that happen. Australia always had a reputation: of playing in a certain fashion and dismantling sides. For India to step up and play them at their own game speaks volumes for the way the Indian players have performed over the last few years."
