No guarantee spinners are going to make an impact: Buchanan

Australia might have taken five spinners to India to tackle the dust-bowl tracks but former coach John Buchanan feels it is the seamers who are likely to make a difference in the four-Test series starting February 22 in Chennai.

Australia might have taken five spinners to India to tackle the dust-bowl tracks but former coach John Buchanan feels it is the seamers who are likely to make a difference in the four-Test series starting February 22 in Chennai.

HT Image

"You don't take spinners just for the sake of taking a spinner. Indians are so used to playing spin bowling, there is no guarantee they are going to make an impact in a series," Buchanan was quoted as saying by 'Sydney Morning Herald'.

The 59-year-old former cricketer feels Australia has a good bowling unit but they need to adjust to the conditions in the sub-continent.

"I do think it's a good pace attack; it depends how it adapts to the conditions it's about to face," Buchanan said.

"They're going into India now in February/March. That makes a difference as well because some of the wickets still provide a little bit of bounce and pace at the start of the summer, whereas potentially by this time of their season wickets have been subjected to plenty of heat and plenty of wear and possibly the ability for pace bowlers to extract good pace and bounce are limited.

"It really means that the pace bowlers have really got to look at their strategies with an old ball and what they can do with that," added the current New Zealand director of cricket.

Buchanan was head coach during Australia's historic 2-1 triumph on the subcontinent under the leadership of Adam Gilchrist.

The opening Test between India and Australia starts on Friday in Chennai.