Show of hands: how many of you were actually aware that Sri Lanka and India are different countries? Be honest.
The selectors seem to be under the impression that the two countries are one, belonging to another country called ‘subcontinent’, and have picked a team for the subcontinent instead of one for India.
Certain people have been picked to hedge their bets, and unfortunately this is a demonstration of a complete lack of confidence in the players who have just steamrolled Pakistan.
The two players who suffer most are Usman Khawaja and Matt Renshaw. Neither deserve this treatment and it could cause more harm than good.
Shaun Marsh, it is widely assumed, has been picked to either replace Khawaja or Renshaw.
Does Marsh have form that warrants an immediate return to the team? No. Sadly, Marsh got injured at the wrong time and his replacement(s) have thrived. It’s unfortunate for Marsh, but cricket is a harsh mistress.
I haven’t the foggiest clue why people seem to think that because Marsh has a good record in Sri Lanka, where Khawaja’s record is poor, they are likely to carry that form to India. Neither have played a Test match in India. Marsh’s experience in India comes from flogging a white ball on batting tracks at night – hardly an ideal reference for Test cricket.
Furthermore, India and Sri Lanka are completely different countries with wildly different geographic conditions. Sri Lankan pitches are uniformly similar, with matches played in hot and humid conditions. India on the other hand, especially in February and March, has slightly different weather, and thus slightly different pitches the further north you go. Bangalore will be the only pitch similar to a Sri Lankan one.
The fourth Test will be played in the Himalayan foothills of Dharamsala in March. We are talking about a region that has a drier climate to the south, firmer pitches, and will be played in a far more hospitable climate. It may even be on the chilly side then.
If anything, India have erred by giving Australia welcome relief. They should have played in a furnace like Hyderabad. The pitches won’t be as traumatic as the ones in tropical India, so Khawaja should do okay.
Finally, the logic of replacing Khawaja or Renshaw for having a poor record in Asia, or potentially exposing a player to challenging conditions, is flawed. Khawaja’s not the first player to struggle in Asia, but just because he struggled in Sri Lanka does not mean he’ll struggle in India. Matthew Hayden absolutely dominated in India and was middling in Sri Lanka.
Ricky Ponting had the worst record in India you could imagine – I mean, he had three genuinely useless tours to India – but who would have dared drop him?
Provide Khawaja with the confidence that was afforded to Ponting – which is now being afforded to David Warner, who has failed in India before – then he might be in a position to relax and thrive.
Renshaw is going to have to play in India one day. The kid is in form and provides the stability that the opening partnership needs (Warner is quite frankly not to be trusted in India). Let him play.
Bottom line: Renshaw, Khawaja and Marsh have faced precisely zero Test match deliveries in India. Renshaw and Khawaja have played red-ball cricket in the past two months. Renshaw and Khawaja are in excellent form and deserve the opportunity to be the first choices for at least the opening two Tests. I’d pick both of these players before Warner if I’m honest.
qwetzen
Guest
"I would prefer the NSP was honest enough to say – “We have a quota of WA players that has to be filled each series." Which explains why half the squad have a Blue tinge.
david adolf
Guest
pitches in the mentioned venues are likely to favour australia, but still india would hammer them and win 4-0
Richie B
Guest
Different country, same result...
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
India has traditionally had plenty of pitches that are batting paradises with basically nothing for the bowlers and where both teams score 600+ in their first and possibly only innings. Then they get pitches that are absolute minefields and neither team can survive long and plenty in between. So having flat pitches good for batting is certainly not an unusual thing, for years the comment about India's batting lineup full of really high averages was followed with comments about the easy batting conditions they have at home where massive scores were really common. So maybe they are just going back to more what they used to have in the past. Still more in the pitches for the spinners than the pace bowlers, but not massive amounts for anyone meaning big scores are likely.
bilal choudhry
Guest
If the series against England is anything to go by the pitches are getting flatter.....Australia wont be facing many if any raging turners like the Saffers did India is catching onto the Australian drop in dead pitch strategy slowly but surely which may mean a draw or two is likely.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
It's easily accessible from all the hill towns nearby so that population will swell past a million or so when you take into account the people who live in the general area.
Ozibatla
Guest
Whether determining a pitch a raging turner or not, dont look at past few games and history. Soil content in indian wickets is quite dry by nature and even with moisture retained in them, still turn. Also dont overlook the propensity of groundsmen to under prepare wickets. Giving pitches very little water and leaving them exposed to days of sun will cause spinning conditions no matter where you play. Ive seen the WACA turn without much bounce before. Also remember ashes Trent Bridge in 2013, Graeme Swan took 10 in the game yet in 2015 it was a bright green seamer.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
Maybe there's a bit of tit for tat. Australia agrees to skip the WACA when India come here and play on drier, slower, flatter than usual pitches and in return India will schedule an Australian tour in conditions that won't be ridiculous, raging turners. The truth is that the almighty dollar might start to rule in India a bit like Australia. Sure we'd love to just thrash India over here, and produce conditions to cause that, but India are second only to England as a money spinner here, and possibly beat them when it comes to selling the broadcast rights. So those who run the game would prefer conditions that make for tighter contest and hopefully last 5 days to maximise revenue, rather than making pitches to dramatically favour the home side. If India are trying to improve crowds and income from tests, they may well look to do something similar and while having conditions in their favour, be careful not to produce the sort of pitches where tests will be over in no time. Will be interesting to see.
BrainsTrust
Guest
The population is listed as 50k, is there something more going on than meets the eye. Why would you build a large venue there and then take matches there. Its listed as having a large Tibetan population.
[Pope Paul VII
Guest
Bangalore has been a test venue since the 70s. Can be pacy.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
Good one spruce.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
E-Meter there are actually beautiful state of the art stadiums and grounds that have come up in the past few years because of the IPL and Pune Ranchi and Dharamsala are from that time. They are all beautiful cricket grounds with pretty flat pitches which certainly wont be big turners. The idea is to broad base the cricket watching public and bring more spectators into Test cricket, and this is an excellent plan for doing that. These cities (which are fairly large by the way, except Dharamsala) have significant cricket loving population who are happy to come in and pay to see Test cricket, which they haven't experienced before.
Anindya Dutta
Roar Guru
Brains - Its the dry season and its very unlikely you will have any rain. What you will have is dew which you would have in Calcutta as well, but since these will be day games, even that wont be a factor. Dharamsala is actually a lovely venue for cricket, and thus far the pitches have played well there.
[Pope Paul VII
Guest
Bangalore has hosted tests since the 70s. Traditionally not a hopeless cause for the pacemen as well..
jameswm
Roar Guru
Patience is the key, with our batting and bowling. Hazlewood and SOK are patient bowlers. Smith, Renshaw and Handscomb are patient batsmen. Starc doesn't have to be patient - use him in 4-5 over bursts to swing it around at pace. But the rest do.
E-Meter
Guest
Weird venues for the test series besides Bangalore. Pune, Ranchi and Dharamsala. Can't recall these venues ever being used for test cricket in India before.
Nick
Roar Guru
Apologies, re: Dharamsala being drier, as I wasn't clear explaining why. I meant from a humidity perspective. From that perspective, it is significantly drier in the winter/spring than southern India. The altitude takes quite the edge of the brutalness of the humidity.
BrainsTrust
Guest
When you said DHaramasala is drier how did you come to that conclusion? On the figures listed this is a very wet place, still 100m in the winter months, maybe this is part of some national drive into the Himalayan region. The monsoon is the big factor in Indian conditions, the closer to the monsoon you play ther more chance of getting something for the fast bowlers. This last test could be a huge spanner in the works for India.
bilal choudhry
Guest
Finally someone realises that the pitches will not be raging turners they will be relatively flat all Aus need to do is try and bat out a few matches 4 Nil is very unlikely.
Horrie
Guest
This is a good and well made point. Even with the use of drop-ins, Australian pitches and conditions vary from State to State. The NSP are intent on playing both over rated Marsh boys and will use any convenient excuse, hence M Marsh has shifted from being a batting to a bowling all rounder and S Marsh is a lock because of his two Lankan tons. I would prefer the NSP was honest enough to say - "We have a quota of WA players that has to be filled each series."