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'Sourav predicted 4-0...': Michael Clarke's reply to Ganguly's whitewash prediction in Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Reacting to Ganguly's statement, Clarke did say that he hopes the Australian side will make a comeback in the remaining two Tests of the series but he understood why Ganguly has put his weight behind the Rohit Sharma-led side for whitewashing the Aussies.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has predicted a 4-0 result in India's favour in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy and as surprising as it may sound, Australia 2015 World Cup-winning captain Michael Clarke hasn't quite disagreed with the former BCCI president.
"I think so. I don't know how Australia can stop it (a 4-0 whitewash)," Ganguly told PTI. "The problem is, we keep comparing this Australian team from the teams of the past and it's not the same. You don't have Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Steve and Mark Waugh, (Adam) Gilchrist, you name them. You don't have that quality.
"Steve Smith is a great player. (David) Warner hasn't got going, (Marnus) Labuschagne is a good player but these are tough conditions for him as well. "The mistake we make with Australian teams is that we think they are Steve Waugh's Australia but that's not the case. Different players get tested differently in different conditions," he added.
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Reacting to Ganguly's statement, Clarke did say that he hopes the Australian side will make a comeback in the remaining two Tests of the series but he understood why Ganguly has put his weight behind the Rohit Sharma-led side for whitewashing the Aussies.
"I hope Australia can bounce back. If they don't it will be hugely frustrating for every Australian cricket fan. At the same time, I understand why Sourav has predicted 4-0," Clarke said on Backstage with Boria show.
The former right-handed batter, who scored a century on his debut Test in Bengaluru in 2004, criticised the Australian think tank headed by head coach Andre McDonald, for not coming to India early and playing practice matches.
"I don't know what Andrew McDonald or anyone else will say but according to me, Australia should have gone to India earlier. The preparation was not up to the mark at all. If you couldn't go to India, you should have gone to the UAE at least to prepare for a tour like this. Also, you must play a tour game. To not play a tour game was a very wrong call. You can't train for an India tour by trying to replicate conditions in Australia. It isn't possible. To do so was a mistake. In England, you expect seam and movement, in Australia bounce and pace and in India spin. You can't say I will replicate the conditions at home and train and go on to win. It is not possible, " said the former Australia captain.
Australia's struggles against India's spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin have been one of the main reasons behind their sorry state in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy. They lost the first Test in Nagpur by an innings and 132 runs and went down by six wickets in the second Test in Delhi, despite having their noses ahead for the first two days. 31 of Australia's 40 wickets in the series so far have been taken by Jadeja and Ashwin. The way the Australian batters crumbled against Jadeja and Ashwin in the second innings of both the Tests has sent shockwaves among former Australia cricketers.
Clarke advised the team management to seek help from Matthew Hayden and Mark Waugh, who were in India as part of the commentary. While Waugh headed home after the first two Tests, Hayden is likely to stay back for the entire series.
Highlighting the poor execution of the sweep shot from the Australian batters, Clarke said there are very few better exponents of the sweep than Hayden, who achieved a lot of success playing that shot in the 2001 tour.
"Matthew Hayden and Mark Waugh are both there in India as commentators. If I was in the Australian camp, I would want both of these men to be with the team at the nets every single day. If they want money, give it to them. Even Hayden who used the sweep to perfection is saying on commentary that you can't just sweep every ball or play the reverse sweep every ball. He knows it. You can play these shots when you are not out 80, not when you are on 8. Why can't the management use these players? Why can't they draw on their experience?"
