Australia’s two-Test series of Bangladesh is only their second tour of the country since the latter gained Test status in 2000.
Though Bangladesh have improved a lot over the last few years, most of their successes have been in the limited overs format.
The Bangladesh team, in spite of their incredible win over England, are still finding their feet in Test cricket. The hosts rely heavily on their batting and have looked to play defensively to draw games in recent times.
Their record at home isn’t that flashy either, having won just five, lost 36 and drawn 12 of the 53 Tests played there.
Even though the home team is extremely confident after their test win against England, Australia would still be firm favourites to win the series 2-0 – weather permitting – even though they are coming off a huge break from Test cricket.
Steve Smith’s team showed character in the series loss against India, and their win in Pune on a turning track should give them confidence.
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David Warner and Matt Renshaw will open the batting, with Usman Khawaja coming in at number three. Warner will once again be under pressure, as Bangladesh are likely to use a spinner with the new ball, with Mustafizur Rahman likely to be the lone pacer. Of course, Warner struggled in India against spin. As for Renshaw, he was Australia’s best batsman in India, behind Smith, and will once again be crucial.
The middle order will consist of Smith, Peter Handscomb and Glenn Maxwell – the latter having scored a brilliant hundred in India.
Australia will miss Mitchell Starc and in his absence Josh Hazlewood will probably lead the pace attack, with Pat Cummins likely to share the new ball.
Nathan Lyon will lead the spin attack, with the second spinner’s spot a tossup between Mitchell Swepson and Ashton Agar.
The hosts will depend on their spinners and would be hoping to get tracks which suit their attack. Their batting is their strongest suit and would be hoping to put up some huge scores in the first innings, although they can collapse against disciplined bowling.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Okay thanks.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Warner averages 60 in Australian at a high SR. He most often comes good at home. His away performances are poor though. He averages 91 in SA though with 540 runs in 6 innings.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
14:00 AEST | 13:30 ACST | 12:00 AWST Spin bowlers in all probability will open the bowling. No point in bowling pacers against Warner on wickets does not have any swing or seam.
peter chrisp
Guest
GS either way i am looking forward to the 2 test series weather permitting once again as they are expecting rain. I would imagine their spin bowlers may open the bowling first? We all know Warner's batting against spin can definitely bring him down & Khawaja may struggle as they have done on odd occasions, just out of curiousity do you know the playing times in Australia?
George
Guest
Yet he didn't 'destroy' South Africa's bowling attack at home.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Sehwag for sure is a better opener than Warner in tests. I was just comparing their styles. Warner has struggled in majority of the away venues except for SA which is surprising. He has a good record in UAE but has been really poor in other countries he has played. His home record is phenomenal though. It will be interesting to see how he goes in BD.
Brasstax
Guest
Sehwag was a MUCH better all round batsman than Warner. Coming from the spin friendly Indian wickets he made hundreds in England, South Africa, Australia and NZ where conditions were vastly different with conditions in England and NZ aiding seam and swing and bounce in South Africa and Australia. In contrast Warner has just one century in spinnine conditions and that was in the UAE and that was hardly a raging turner. Sehwag was an all condition opening batsman with a stellar record and managed to score attacking hundreds in vastly different conditions than he was brought up on. Warner cannot bat unless the wicket offers predictable bounce at decent pace and the ball is bullet straight and doesn't spin, seam or swing... in other words a flat track bully.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Warner is a peculiar case, it is not like he does not have the skill. He scores loads of runs in the IPL every year. He just does not have the patience required to bat for longer periods in tests in subcontinent. Sometimes when you are playing the spinners in the subcontinent you have to trust your defensive technique and bat for longer periods of time. Warner every time tries to play a "get out of jail" shot and gets out. If he can apply himself a little he can score lots of runs. He probably needs to speak with Hayden? Hayden was aggressive but still scored loads of runs in the subcontinent. Hayden averages 50 in subcontinent with 4 hundreds in 19 tests. He was brilliant.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Batting first is always an advantage in the subcontinent as if you bat well, the opponent is just playing catch up game after that. I agree that batting last will be a challenge as England found in the second test loss. Australia should aim to finish games in 3 innings if possible or chase less than 100 in the 4th innings.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
The toss may not be that massive. Australia might hope that getting first use of the ball could give their fast bowlers a chance to roll Banga's for a relatively low total and then try to build a big score to only bat once. Batting last could be an issue, but the big aim if you bowl first has to be to roll the opposition as quick as possible and then build a big enough lead to not need a second innings if possible. (That's what India often do at home when they don't win the toss!)
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
I don't think they'll be taking this series lightly, but they haven't exactly had a great preparation for it, and there's always the risk of having the Ashes in the back of their mind and not being 100% focused on the task at hand if they aren't careful.
AREH
Roar Guru
Exactly, you take out that century in the UAE and his sub-continent statistics look majorly concerning. Lots of good starts in the Sri Lanka and Indian series but didn't dig deep and carry on with big scores - needs to do this here, must have a big series because surely his position in the XI when touring in the sub-continent comes under question as a result, if it hasn't already.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Warner has always struggled in the subcontinent except for that one series against Pakistan in UAE where he scored a hundred. He is an asset in home conditions. He will destroy English bowling attack later this year irrespective of his performance in Bangladesh. He is a bit like Sehwag in that case. His vice Captaincy though is a different question, possibly Handscomb can take it over? If Warner fails in BD, Australia should seriously consider dropping him for tests in the sub continent.
AGordon
Guest
I agree with all your comments Giri except your last sentence about Khawaja. IF he has an ordinary series in Bangladesh and does not perform in the early Shield games, I question whether he should be picked for the First Test. I would hope the selectors would bite the bullet and pick form players. Hopefully this scenario does not happen because I agree he is a class player. I also question what happens with Warner if he has a poor series in Bangladesh? Should he remain as VC? He might be a great one day or T20 skipper, but can you have him in a side if he isn't making runs. Maybe if his name was "Bradman" or "Tendulkar" you would, but otherwise......
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
Australia have few issues with the batting as you pointed out and again will rely on Steven Smith and Renshaw to provide them the runs. Warner needs to contribute at the top of the order and unfortunately he would not be getting too much pace on the ball. Maxwell is one of the better players of spin in the team but he is inconsistent. Wade also need to bat well as his position is crucial. Agar is the unknown in the team. I have lots of hopes of Handscomb as I feel he is really talented and I expect him to do well in Bangladesh. Khawaja's case is interesting, he had a horror series in SL but again is talented, this series probably is a make or break for him. He still will be picked for Ashes though.
AGordon
Guest
There are more than a few players who quite rightly are under scrutiny in the Australian side, because their position should not be a lock; Warner - he really needs to get his head together and decide to bat way more cautiously. He get's very good 20's & 30's in Asian conditions then generally gets out to a rank shot Khawaja - has a very poor record against spin, especially in Asia. Did little to dispel this in Darwin and needs to score runs to cement his place at 3. Handscomb - made a terrific 70 odd not out but did little else in India. Must get runs Maxwell - best "hit and miss" cricketer in the past 20 years; Australia's answer to Afridi. Jury's still out on whether the century was a fluke or whether he is a genuine number 6. Wade - his keeping and batting have both improved to a degree but he must be feeling the pressure to perform after an ordinary series in India. Agar - second Test for a guy who averages over 40 with bat and ball? He can talk a good game but must get wickets The Aussies must get a good start in the batting and must be patient with their bowling. If they are, they should win this series, though I wouldn't be surprised if Bangladesh really puts the frightners up us!
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
I think the biggest weapon for the Aussies is their fast bowlers. The one thing the Bangladesh can be suspect against is pace bowling. I Cummins and Hazlewood can give good starts with the new ball, BD will feel the pressure. Lyon and Agar/Swepson can then take over.
Giri Subramanian
Roar Guru
I think the Australian team will not be taking this series lightly. They would have seen what happened to England in the second test and would play hard. They should win this series unless the weather interrupts.
AREH
Roar Guru
If Australia have learnt anything, they should scrape a series win. However, I'd have it at 50/50 right now. If Australia can lift their batting, I think they will be good enough, but gone are the days are underestimating Bangladesh - they are a legitimate force on the International scene, and cannot be taken with a shred of ease. I wonder whether the last few months will have had an unsettling impact on the Australian setup, or whether they will just be wanting to go out there and play a strong brand of cricket from the start. Winning the tosses looms absolutely crucial either way in both matches.
Ben Sewell
Roar Pro
If we play to our strengths and respect their top order/spinners, we should win 2-0. Would not surprise me at all however if we rock up expecting to win and get pumped in the first test.