India's Tour is a Great Opportunity for Us - Nathan Lyon

Australia’s premier Test spinner Nathan Lyon believes the upcoming tour of India is a great opportunity for their young side. The Australian team will play two T20Is and five One Day Internationals against the Indian team. Thus, it would be a great opportunity for the Men in Yellow to prepare for the forthcoming ICC World Cup 2019.

Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon believes it would be a good test for the visitors to test themselves against the best in the business. India has been in fine form in the recent past and they are a force to reckon with while playing in their own conditions. In fact, India had recently beaten Australia by 2-1 in three-match ODI series.

Lyon will look to seal his World Cup berth.

“We get a great opportunity to play a lot of white-ball cricket before the World Cup so I think if we can go out and enjoy ourselves, make sure our preparation is right, then we can compete against the best in their conditions as well. It will be a great challenge for us, there’s no point shying away from that. It’s a great opportunity for a young side,” Lyon was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

Meanwhile, Nathan Lyon has not been able to impress in the white ball format. Lyon has done a great job in the red ball version. However, he hasn’t been able to repeat the same performance in the limited overs format.

Furthermore, Australia’s head coach Justin Langer has confirmed that Australia’s squad for the India tour is not a final one for the World Cup.

“Hopefully my World Cup campaign, my selection, will start on Sunday. I just need to keep putting in good performances with the ball and making sure I can play my role, whichever side I’m playing in whether that’s the Sixers or Australia,” Lyon said.

“I know my role in the Australian set-up with captain Aaron Finch, we just have to keep working on it and ensuring we are playing an exciting brand of cricket. There’s a massive couple of goals just around the corner for the Australian side,” he added.

On the other hand, Nathan Lyon will play for Sydney Sixers before jetting off to India. Lyon will look to seal his World Cup berth as he would need to turn the tables.

Meanwhile, the first T20I between India and Australia will take place on February 24.

Here is Australia’s squad for the India tour:

Aaron Finch (captain), Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Glenn Maxwell, Ashton Turner, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa, D’Arcy Short.