India’s biggest series defeat in Test cricket came recently when the team suffered a 0-3 loss to New Zealand at home. The disappointing performances by the Indian batters on spin-friendly pitches raised questions about their adaptability. Additionally, concerns emerged about the future of captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. While Kohli accumulated only 93 runs across six innings, Rohit managed 91 runs and struggled significantly against quality spin.
However, former Australia international Michael Hussey remains confident in both Rohit and Kohli for the upcoming five-match Test series against Australia, which begins in Perth on November 22.
“Write them off at your peril,” he told Sportstar in an interview ahead of the highly anticipated series.
The build-up to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been far from perfect for India as it lost a home series against New Zealand. Do you think that gives Australia a huge mental boost ahead of a major series?
Well, it depends on how you look at it. You could say they are low on confidence after losing to New Zealand. However, if you look at it another way, they have won their last two series in Australia, which should give them confidence coming into this series. The conditions in India are very different from those in Australia, but I’m sure they will put the series against New Zealand behind them. They have several players who have experienced success in Australia before, so I’m confident they will prepare well and take some confidence into the first Test.
The series will begin in Perth, where the conditions could be more challenging compared to the other venues because of the extra pace and bounce on offer. Does that give Australia an advantage?
I don’t think so. The Indian team has several players who can handle good fast bowling and perform well in bouncy conditions. They have done well in Australia before.
There’s Virat Kohli and Rohit, who are good players of fast bowling on bouncy pitches. Then there’s KL Rahul. You can pretty much list everyone in the top order.
They need to adapt to Australian conditions as quickly as possible, get to Perth, prepare really well, and they’ll be fine for the first Test.
The Aussies have prepared well, too. They know the conditions a little bit better. There might be a small advantage there, but I think it should be a fantastic start to the series.
A lot has been said about the poor form of Rohit and Kohli. Having gone through a similar phase in your career, how do you think they should approach the series?
One thing that I have learnt over many years of watching cricket is that you should never, ever write off a champion, and India has some genuine champion players there. Virat and Rohit are champion players, and they have been around for a long period of time.
They are proud players. I’m sure there will be critics out there and doubters, but I’m certainly not one of them. They are wonderful players and will perform well again, as they have done for so many years. Every player can miss out now and then, but write them off at your peril.
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Is there a particular area that Rohit or Kohli needs to work on ahead of the Australia series?
They will be moving on pretty quickly. Of course, you’d look at things that maybe you could do better, but they’re experienced players, and they know their own game so well. They would probably try not to listen to any external noise and focus on what they need to do to prepare well, and then go out and trust their game.
That’s probably what most players will do in that situation if you have a down series.
Virat and Rohit are champion players and they have been around for a long period of time, says Hussey. | Photo Credit: PTI
Do you think this is perhaps Australia’s best chance to take revenge for the previous two series defeats, or do you believe a wounded Indian team would be far more dangerous?
(Laughs) I don’t know, and that’s what fascinates me. That’s why I think it’s going to be an awesome series, as it would be interesting to see how India is going to react.
They have won the last two series here in Australia, so they will take a lot of confidence from that. Their pride would have been hurt a little bit after the New Zealand series, so they will be looking to bounce back and bounce back really hard.
But in the same breath, the Australians are going to be determined to win this series as well after losing the last two against India in Australia. Look, it might be the last time for some of the Australian champion players — like (Usman) Khawaja, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. They have been playing for a long time, and I know they’d love to beat India in a series on home soil.
India has travelled to Australia without its fast bowling ace, Mohammed Shami, and there’s still no clarity on whether he will eventually be able to make it to the squad. How much of a challenge will it be for the Jasprit Bumrah-led Indian fast bowling unit to deliver in the challenging conditions?
Well, there’s a lot of quality there. We have seen a little bit in snippets at the IPL and Test matches, and they proved it the last time they came to Australia.
Shami’s absence is a huge loss. He’s a world-class bowler, but the last time the Indian team was here, they had the same problem. Shami got injured and missed much of the series and it was the emergence of (Mohammed) Siraj. He came in and performed so well. So, there are a lot of players, hoping for an opportunity and once they get it they can show the world how good they are.
It would be a big loss if Shami can’t make it, but it doesn’t mean India is going to lose the series for that because there’s a lot of depth there.
What are your thoughts on Rishabh Pant?
I’m just so happy that he’s back playing and playing good cricket after what he went through a couple of years ago with that terrible car accident.
I feared that he’d never play again. But just to be able to get back onto the park is just an amazing achievement in itself. Then to also be playing such high-quality cricket again through the IPL and Test cricket is remarkable. It’s just an amazing story and I want him to do well. I love watching him play. All credit to him.
Following India’s defeat against New Zealand, there’s a buzz about the transition period. How should India handle this phase?
There are a lot of experienced people around the team. You’ve got Rohit as captain, and he’s a very calm, measured person. Then you’ve got Gautam (Gambhir) as the coach; he’s a fighter, but he backs his players a hundred per cent. So, there are some good leaders there. Virat is around the team, as is Bumrah, who is also a very calm and measured character. So I don’t think there will be any panic whatsoever.
India will be ready to go and will be determined. I think they will try to keep it pretty stable because they’ve got high-quality players. You lose one series. You have to give a lot of credit to New Zealand as they played fantastic cricket, but India will move on and they’ll move on quickly.
Is there any particular area you think India and Australia need to work on?
Not really. Both are pretty complete teams. The Australian team is still trying to find an opener to replace David Warner. That’s one area they are still trying to figure out, but other than that, the Australian team looks strong and well-prepared.
They have several quality players, and it’s the same with India. I hope both teams can play to their strengths and play their best possible cricket. If they can, then it’s going to be a titanic tussle.
That’s what I’m looking forward to — watching two great teams just go head-to-head as hard as they can. Hopefully, the best team will come out on top.
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