MS Dhoni will flinch his shoulder when he stands with his hands on his knees behind the stumps. Steve Smith will fidget with his arms Both of them will share a smile. They may even share a quick chat.
They have done it for two seasons of the IPL at the Pune Supergiant – more so last season, when Smith the captain had to chew on the leadership acumen of Dhoni.
But it will be with a difference this time. They won’t be in the jazzy purple of Pune. Dhoni will be draped in the sky blue of India and Smith will don the green and gold of Australia. They will not be playing for each other. But they will be playing against each other, and with more than just entertainment of a glitzy T20 league at stake.
They will be engaged in a battle to preserve the honour of their respective nations. The conversations they share will not open doors to too many of their respective team secrets. But what they will not be able to erase is the weaknesses of their teammates they would have spoken about over a drink during the IPL.
It well help India, but it will help Australia more. The tourists, after all, are in India with a squad packed with IPL regulars. It means India’s home advantage could be negated.
Dhoni and Smith may have spent hours over April and May in order to devise plans to ensure the giant at Royal Challengers Bangalore, Virat Kohli, is not awakened or to blunt the impact Umesh Yadav’s pace can have. Smith will have all those plans and strategies chalked out and calling out to be exercised on the Indians.
Similarly, Dhoni and Smith could have exchanged notes about the nature of the track at Chepauk, where the former India captain has been a regular in the Chennai Super Kings yellow for years and where India and Australia will clash in the first ODI on Sunday. And Australia will step out at the M Chidambaram Stadium with the confidence to stun the ruthless hosts.
(Image: AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Australia left the Indians with hastened heartbeats as they threatened to complete a heist in the Test series earlier in the year. Back then, in whites and with the red ball, not too many gave them a chance. But now, with coloured clothes, the white ball and another season of the IPL behind them, it would be foolish to not give them a chance.
Twelve of the 14 tourists have had extensive IPL experience – only Ashton Agar and Hilton Cartwright are yet to get a feel of the series. It could end up as a tour on which the Australians could rat their Indian friends from the IPL out.
In fact some of the Australian players know India almost like some of the Indian players do. The Indian squad has two IPL captains – Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The Australian team has three in Smith, David Warner and Glenn Maxwell.
“Personally, I have had a couple of IPLs and been over here. I haven’t played a great deal but have been around the conditions and have adapted to the style I guess. It’s not too dissimilar to how I play normally,” Travis Head, the visiting middle-order batsman, said, hoping that the time in the IPL is put to good use.
“And then it’s using the other guys, the guys who have played here a lot. Know the conditions really well and try to get a set game plan and get a feel as to how other guys go about it.”
And it is not just about Dhoni and Smith. Warner will be best prepared to douse the danger Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s swing possesses early on in the innings. The Indian pacer, after all, is Warner’s strike bowler at the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Similarly, Maxwell, Aaron Finch and Head will have a list of their favourite Indian bowlers ready, while the likes of Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Kane Richardson, Nathan Coulter-Nile and James Faulkner will come prepared with traps for various Indian batsmen.
Above all, the hours under the summer sun in the IPL would have turned the Australians immune to the heat that could be a constant companion on their current trip. It will allow the visitors to focus on the battle between the bat and ball without distractions from the duel with the weather.
It will ensure this is one of Australia’s best shot to halt the rampaging Indians in their own den.
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