"You have almost got to be near perfect against India in India": Australia Head Coach
Mar 04, 2023
Indore (Madhya Pradesh)[India], March 4 : Australia showcased strong performance in the third Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Australia's head coach Andrew McDonald believes that the Indore Test serves as a reminder that there is a core group of players who will come back to the Asian continent with more experience and better equipped for the challenges.
"Usman Khawaja's performances here is probably tied back to his first experience in the subcontinent, Steve Smith as well," McDonald said.
"Everyone's journey starts at some point in time on the subcontinent, and I think there's a core group of players that will come back here more experienced and, in theory, better equipped for the challenges. We're talking about a series here where we've had certain conditions that probably aren't relatable to any other subcontinent tour over time, so it's always a different challenge when you do arrive here," he was quoted by ESPNCricinfo
Since 2013, India has played 45 matches in which they have won 36 matches, lost three and drawn six of them.
Mc Donald also talked about the preparations needed during India visit.
"You have almost got to be near perfect against India in India. I think this game besides that 6 for 11 was near perfect," McDonald said.
"We had a little bit of luck. Marnus getting bowled off a no-ball, how critical was that at that point in time, [and] that allowed a partnership to flourish. We took our opportunities as well. Usman's flying catch and then Smudge [Smith] winding back the clock with that one at leg slip. You compare that to the Delhi game where Smudge dropped one at first slip and then we dropped one at leg slip in Matthew Renshaw, and they were critical.
"We had one hour of chaos there and that cost us that Test match when we'd played pretty good cricket. We came here and doubled down on what we'd set out to achieve at the start of the tour," he said, according to ESPNCricinfo
Australia are unlikely to visit India to play a Test series for the next four years. They are scheduled to visit Sri Lanka in 2025.
The fourth and final Test of four-match series will start on March 9 in Ahmedabad.
