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‘Bit like Ashes’: Australian Test captain’s huge comment on rivalry with India
India beat Australia 2-1 in a four match series. But that was an Australian team minus Steve Smith and David Warner. The two teams are scheduled to meet again with India travelling Down Under
Australian Test captain Tim Paine has made a huge comment about the rivalry with Team India. Paine, who was in charge when Australia lost their first ever home series to India in 2018/19, compared the rivalry between the two teams to the Ashes.
“It’s two high quality teams, a really anticipated series, purely because of the quality of cricket, not for what’s happened before. India and Australia as a rivalry, it’s a series a bit like the Ashes that we all look forward to,” Paine said, according to a report in Wisden.
India beat Australia 2-1 in a four match series. But that was an Australian team minus Steve Smith and David Warner. The two teams are scheduled to meet again with India travelling Down Under, but Paine doesn’t want to look at it fromt he point of view of a revenge series.
“It’s not so much about looking back and trying to get them back for what happened last time,” Paine said in a video press conference.
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Australia had an inexperienced batting line up and India went there with their best ever pace bowling attack and that proved top be the difference between the two teams. But with Warner and Smith back and Marnus Labuschagne showing great promise, Paine believes this will be a sterner test for the Indians.
“You put in 15,000 Test runs with two guys alone, Steve Smith and David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne’s come on in leaps and bounds and he’s now a top three or four batsman in the world himself.”
“You put that amount of runs into a cricket side, last time we didn’t have … we know how good India’s bowling line-up is and last time we just weren’t quite good enough, if we’re totally honest, against that attack, whereas this time, I think we’ll be a different kettle of fish. We’ve got three of the best batsmen in the world in our top six,” the Australian captain added.
