India vs Australia: Cricket is insignificant when it comes to matters like bushfires - Aaron Finch

Australia will face India in their first ODI encounter on January 14 and Aaron Finch hopes that they will be able to give the people back home ‘something to smile about’.

Australia skipper Aaron Finch believes that cricket is insignificant when it comes to matters like bushfires which has ravaged Australia in the past few weeks. The bushfire crisis in Australia has left at least 26 people dead and destroyed more than 2,000 homes. Blazes across the country have torched about eight million hectares (80,000 square kilometres) of land, sending air pollution soaring. Australia will face India in their first ODI encounter on January 14 and Finch hopes that they will be able to give the people back home ‘something to smile about’.

Australia's captain Aaron Finch during warm up. (AP)

“Cricket is insignificant when it comes to matters like bushfires,” Finch said when asked whether the country will celebrate if they win the upcoming three-match ODI series against India.

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“Obviously it is unfortunate as to what is happening in Australia, our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected by the bushfires. At the end of the day, cricket is very insignificant when it comes to this, the loss of life taking place,” Finch told reporters on Friday ahead of the series against India.

“As players, we can only hope of showcasing good performances for our side, and hopefully it gives the people something to smile about,” he added.

Finch was also asked about the return of India’s top fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah in the ongoin T20I series against Sri Lanka but the Aussie skipper was quick to point out that they should not overplay his impact.

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“I think, more and more guys face him, the more exposure you get, the more you start to understand how he bowls. So it is important that we don’t overplay that too much,” Finch said.

“It is more about focusing on what we are as a batting unit against that and each player has different strengths and weaknesses. So (we are doing) what we have to do for mentally being prepared for that challenge,” he added.

(With agency inputs)