Australia gearing up well for India tour, says Renshaw

Australia opener Matt Renshaw has said his team is preparing as well as it can in the turning pitches at the ICC academy in Dubai for the upcoming tour of India.

Matt Renshaw has played four Tests in his fledgling international career so far.

Australia opener Matthew Renshaw feels his team is preparing as well as it can for the upcoming tour of India by batting on turning and slow wickets here at the ICC academy. Australia is training here for the tour, which begins in Pune on February 23. It will leave for Mumbai on February 13.

“The pitches here in ICC academy have been great since we have arrived. There have been turning wickets and some slow ones for the seamers. It is the best preparation we could get before going over to India, without going over to India, and having a good couple of weeks over here,” said 20-year-old Renshaw, who averages 63 in the four Tests he has played so far.

Renshaw has taken the advice of erstwhile opener Matthew Hayden, who scored tons of runs in India. “I have had couple of conversations with him (Hayden) over the phone. He has just told me to embrace it over there and get as much experience as I can. I am 20 years old and going over to play in one of the hardest places in the world. So I will just try to embrace it and enjoy the challenge,” he said.

Sweep the go-to shot

“I hear certain things from certain players but you never know until you get over there. So looking forward to the challenge.”

Renshaw believes his height will help him tackle the Indian spinners. “I think sweep shot will be a big one for me. I will just try to stay low and use my reach. As a tall bloke, I probably got that advantage over some of the other guys but they have got some more advantage than me in different parts. (With the height) I can get to the turning balls faster than short guys without moving my feet too much,” said Renshaw, who has also consulted former England batsman and now Australia batting coach Graeme Hick.

Has he studied the Indian spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja? “I watched a bit of the England series. But we also need to focus on their quick bowlers. They can reverse in those conditions,” Renshaw added.