Well, the Nagpur test showed us why India are the toughest teams to beat in India. They were all over the Aussies right from the first ball. And it was not just the spinners mind you. India have been playing some really good cricket and they have been performing to the best of their abilities. What’s even more amazing is that it is not just the spinners who have been playing really well, the pacers too have contributed and chipped in whenever it was needed.
India’s batting too has looked very sublime and what’s even more amazing is that most of these players are really in the form of their lives. So expect another very tough game for the Aussies.
The Aussies will be worried. After all the banter and a lot of talk about India and the conditions here, they did perform very poorly. The pitch was difficult to play on but it was not as difficult as they made it seem. Especially when you consider the fact that these players are now used to the subcontinental conditions.
A big boost for the Aussies will be the return of Mitchell Starc. He will add some much needed firepower to the Aussie bowling line up.
The Australians are known for their undying spirit and their huge egos. Will they make a comeback in the second test to make the 4 match test series even more interesting? Well, that remains to be seen.
India vs Australia 2nd Test Pitch Report
Delhi has always been a great hunting ground for the spinners. In the last 96 test wickets that have fallen here, 66 of them have been taken by the spinners. The pitch deteriorates as the game goes forward and assists the spinners even more. The average 1st innings score is pretty decent in the last three tests – 377. Expect the toss to play a very crucial factor – especially if Australia lose it. This should be a trial by spin.
India vs Australia 2nd Test Probable Playing XIs
Australia’s Probable Playing XI
Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Alex Carey (wk), Peter Handscomb/Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy.
India’s Probable Playing XI
Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav/Shreyas Iyer, Srikar Bharat (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj.
