Australia vs India 2020-21: Australia Assistant Coach Andrew McDonald Backs Aaaron Finch, Steve Smith To Find Back Form

Assistant Coach of the Australian team, Andrew McDonald is confident that Aaron Finch and Steve Smtih will shrug off their IPL frailties and return to good form in the upcoming home ODI series against India.

Steve Smith had a decent season with the bat in IPL 2020 – although much more was expected from the Rajasthan Royals skipper. He scored 311 at an average of 25 and a strike rate of 131. After recording 2 two consecutive half-centuries at the start of the season, the right-hander’s form slumped and managed only one more fifty in the next 12 games as the Royals finished at the bottom of the points table.

While Royal Challengers Bangalore did have a relatively good season than their previous three years as Virat Kohli’s team qualified for the playoffs, however, Aaron Finch had a disappointing season and was outshined by his young opening partner, Devdutt Padikkal. Australia’s limited-overs skipper scored 268 runs at an average of 22 with a strike rate of 111, and just a solitary half-century.

Finch and Smith are ready to go for the summer: Andrew McDonald

Andrew McDonald has opined that though Finch didn’t have a great IPL season, he has got his game back in control. McDonald believes that the opener struggled for timing in the UAE and will have work to do. He said that Finch has to work on some technical aspects of his batting and just needs to rejig his mindset.

Andrew McDonald was quoted by thewest.com.au as saying, “Aaron didn’t have the IPL he would have liked. He definitely struggled a little bit during the IPL and I think he’s got his game back under control.

He probably wasn’t hitting the ball as well as what he would have liked and there’s some certain things he always works on and comes back to when he goes through those patches … little technical and mindset things.”

Talking about Steve Smith, McDonald said that people jump on the former skipper every time he has a slight dip in his form. McDonald, who was also the head coach of the Rajasthan Royals, reckons that he can’t tell exactly the reason behind Smith’s under-par performance in the IPL.

However, McDonald assured that the 31-year-old is fit, physically, and mentally. The assistant coach has seen Smith hit the balls well and feels that he is ready to unleash himself on the Indian bowling. In Test matches, Smtih averages a mammoth 84 against India.

McDonald said, “Any time he has a slight drop off then it comes under discussion and some criticism at times. I can’t put my finger on specifically why it was that he didn’t have the IPL he wanted or we at Rajasthan wanted.”

“Physically and mentally he’s in a good space … he’s ready to go for the summer, been hitting a lot of balls,” he added.

India will tour Australia for six limited-overs games and four Test matches. The 3-match ODI series commences on 27th November followed by 3 T20Is. The high-intensity Border-Gavaskar series will begin on 17th December with a day-night Test in Adelaide followed by the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, New Year’s Test in Sydney, and the last Test match in Australia’s fortress, Brisbane.

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