Australia vs India 2020-21: There Are No Favourites Going Into The Series - Zaheer Khan

Former India pacer, Zaheer Khan has opined that there are no favourites between India and Australia as both teams are ladened with quality match-winners. He also feels that it would take the bowlers who would dictate the outcome of the series.

Australia will host India for six white-ball games and four Test matches. The 3 ODI series commences on 27th November followed by 3 T20Is.  The high-profile Border-Gavaskar Test series will begin on 17th December with a pink-ball 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.

Bowlers will decide the outcome of all three series: Zaheer Khan

While talking to the broadcasters, Zaheer Khan shed light on the Australian conditions saying that the pitches have always had true bounce and offer pace. He believes that it would be the bowling attack of both the team which will decide the fate of any game or the series. The 42-year-old puts the onus on the bowlers to restrict the opposition on a low total.

The former left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan observed that both the teams have the finest pace bowlers in the world. Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood- all could be seen together in the same match.

Speaking to Sony Pictures Sports Network, Zaheer Khan said, “The Australian pitches have always had good bounce and pace, so I think the area which will decide the ODIs, T20Is and Tests will be the bowlers and how well the team bowls as a unit to restrict the opponent to a lower total on the scoreboard.

“When someone talks about the top line bowlers in the world right now, the names of the players that come to our mind will all be on the pitch in this series.”

The Mumbai Indians’ Director of Cricket Operations emphasized the fact that the return of Steve Smith and David Warner has bolstered the Australian batting. He said that the Virat Kohli-led side would face a relatively heavy challenge than what they did in their Test series victory a couple of years ago.

The 2011 World Cup-winning pacer found it difficult to pick a favourite between India and Australia as both teams possess high-quality batsmen and bowlers, which will make the tour very interesting and competitive.

“Now with the return of Steve Smith and David Warner to the Australian side, the Indian team is definitely going to face a stiffer competition than their previous tour Down Under.

“There are no favorites going into the series as both the sides have quality batting and bowling line-up in their squad and that is what will make the upcoming tour interesting and exciting to watch,” Zaheer Khan said.

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