Australia vs India 2018: Australia Bowling is Strong But We Are Favorites - Ajinkya Rahane

India’s Test deputy Ajinkya Rahane believes Australia bowling is strong but India is going to be favorites for the upcoming Australia tour. The absence of Steven Smith and David Warner is going to leave a big void in the Australian team. Thus, India is going to hold the advantage baton. However, it is not going to be a cakewalk as Australia has world-class fast bowlers.

Meanwhile, Australia recent form is a cause of concern. They haven’t had a consistent run and their performances have been bleak in the recent past. In fact, Australia has gone on to lose their last 16 ODIs in the last 18 matches. They also find themselves staring at their 17th loss as South Africa are cruising to the target of 153 in the first ODI.

India should come up with a collective batting effort.

“The Australian team is definitely unpredictable, even with the absence of Warner and Smith. I think we are favorites for the Australia tour but when a team plays at home they know the conditions well. Australia’s bowling is very strong and it will be a good tour,” Ajinkya Rahane said at the Ekamra Sports Literary Festival.

In fact, BCCI and team management didn’t pay heed to play warm-up matches on South Africa and England tour. They played a solitary practice match in England. Thus, learning from their mistakes, India has asked for more practice matches.

“In South Africa, we hardly got any time. As a team, we feel we need 10 to 15 days before the start of the series and in Australia, we are getting that time and playing a 4-day match,” Rahane said.

India is at the pinnacle of the ICC Test rankings and has come up with good performances. However, India was not able to savor success in overseas conditions. Rahane said it is good for the game the young players are watching the game.

“The way Indian team has played Test cricket in the last two years, people have been coming to watch us. I think school children should be brought in and made to interact with players and give them refreshments. That will help create awareness about cricket. Like in England and Australia kids are brought to the ground and made to play interactive games, we should do that here. Also, create contests and winners should be allowed to meet players. Need to win over the young and new fans for Test cricket to survive and flourish,” India’s Test vice-captain assessed.

India will have a perfect opportunity to win on the Australian soil. The absence of Steven Smith and David Warner is a big void for the team. However, India will have to come up with a collective batting effort as Virat Kohli was the lone warrior on England tour.