Former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer felt Australia was out of the Border-Gavaskar after the conclusion of the first two Test matches. India won the first Test match at Nagpur by an innings and 132 runs whereas the hosts won the second Test at Delhi by six wickets.
However, the visitors bounced back in style in the third Test match at Indore by nine wickets. Australia looked down and out after the first two Test matches but they were able to come up with a collective show in Indore.
Matthew Kuhnemann, Usman Khawaja, and Nathan Lyon were the stars of the show for the tourists as they came up with brilliant performances.
Meanwhile, the Indore track came under the scanner as it was spinning viciously from the opening session.
When Jaffer was asked what kind of a pitch he would want to see at Ahmedabad, he told ESPN Cricinfo Timeout: “It’s a tricky question. It felt like Australia are out of the series after two Tests, given the way they batted and India’s lower order rescuing them. Australia surprised us in the third Test. Their bowlers did well and bowling India out in the first session was massive. The way Nathan Lyon bowled and their approach while batting was a visible change.”
“It was a wake-up call for the Indian team. So, they might be thinking it can backfire if they give a turning pitch. It’s important to produce a reasonable track. Ideally, it should play well for two days and start spinning from day three.”
In fact, the Indian batters have struggled to get going on challenging pitches at home in the ongoing series. India could only manage scores of 109 and 163 in the Indore Test.
“The Indian batters are not as good against spin as we think and if the opposition has one good spinner, as we saw against New Zealand when Ajaz Patel took plenty of wickets, while Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar have also done well.”
Jaffer reckons a turning track can backfire for the home team as Australia have good spinners in their squad.
“Australia also has two good bowlers in Kuhnemann and Lyon, with Todd Murphy as a support bowler. There is also Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green. Hence, a turning track can backfire again. I expect a better pitch and Indian batters must do better.
“If they bat poorly, a WTC final spot could be on the line. It’s a must-win clash for them.”
India will aim to bounce back stronger at Ahmedabad in order to confirm their WTC final berth.
