Team India Have Been Spot On With Their Tactics To Control Steve Smith And Marnus Labuschagne: Andrew McDonald

Australian assistant coach Andrew McDonald had admitted that star Aussie duo of Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne are struggling to counter the leg-side tactics employed by the Indian bowlers in the ongoing Test series.

Indian bowlers have choked the superstar Aussie duo with their leg-stump ploy in both the first two Tests. While Steve Smith was dismissed by Ashwin and Bumrah in Melbourne Test with the ploy, Marnus Labuschagne was undone by debutant Mohammed Siraj in the first innings.

The duo was back in the nets to counter the theory on what would have been the fifth day of the Test match. McDonald is, however, hopeful that Smith and Labuschagne will counter the tactics in the upcoming Test matches.

“I wouldn’t be too quick to judge Steve Smith in the middle. Yeah, he hasn’t got going yet in this series. In the first four balls he faced in the first innings of the Boxing Day Test, he looked pretty solid, has looked good at the nets too. and Marnus too,” Andrew McDonald said in the virtual press-conference.

”We are working on it at the nets. We were back in the nets on what should have been the fifth day of the Test. That conversation has been going on. It won’t be anyone thing in particular. The game ebbs and flows. Their tactics change suddenly. Sometimes they go out with two men out, sometimes they out with leg gully, sometimes they go with box mid-wicket, the bat-pad moves around with the angle. We are back Smith and Labuschagne to read that,” added McDonald.

McDonald admitted that the Australians have been left befuddled by the change in fielding tactics employed by the Indians. He, however, added that the duo are technically in good space but they need to find a way to score runs and combat the tactics employed by the visitors.

”The question for me at the moment is the tactical way India have prepared and have been able to control those two players especially with a sort of leg-side theory so to speak. So I suppose those two players will have to come out with a better method. I don’t think it has to do anything technically. They are technically in a good space but it is the method to score runs and how they are going to combat these tactics from India bowlers and captains, that has been discussed in our conversation,” added McDonald.

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