India Has The Team To Beat Australia In Australia Even With David Warner And Steve Smith: Harbhajan Singh

Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has joined the bandwagon and the list of cricketers, backing India to defend the Border-Gavaskar Trophy successfully. India and Australia will battle it out in a blockbuster four-Test series next month with the hosts looking to return the favour on this occasion. Harbhajan Singh believes that Virat Kohli is a significant loss; however, it has the goods to beat the opposition.

Indian captain Virat Kohli will leave the land down under after the first Test in Adelaide to be with his wife, who is expecting their first child in January. While Kohli would be present for the white-ball leg, the Test series remains the primary focus for both the teams. The Indian team will undoubtedly miss the 32-year old’s aggressive mindset and experience -both of which were vital to their first series victory in Australia in 2018-19.

Harbhajan Singh backs the Indian team to defend the coveted trophy, underlining that Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara were brilliant when India won the last time. The 103-Test veteran labelled Pujara as the unsung hero and is confident that the tourists could beat Australia, considering their batting and bowling, which could take 20 wickets.

“This team has got enough power to retain the trophy. They played brilliant cricket last time they were in Australia, Virat Kohli was absolutely brilliant and so was Pujara. We hardly hear his name because he is always under the shadow of the big players but Pujara’s contribution was big. It’s going to be a big challenge without Virat Kohli, but I still feel the Indian team has got that kind of a batting lineup and also the bowling, which has been a key factor for them; they can get those 20 wickets,” Harbhajan Singh stated as quoted by India Today.

Harbhajan Singh hands an edge to India over Australia:

The 41-year old reckons that the presence of Steve Smith and David Warner should not matter much, handing India the edge due to their outstanding team which could beat any team in their backyard.

“They have got the team to beat Australia in Australia even with David Warner and Steve Smith. The series will start from even but I would give the edge to India because they have got the team to play in any condition, be it in Australia or England, they have got the mindset,” the Punjab-born off-spinner added.

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