Historically, Indian teams have struggled overseas because of lack of wherewithal in the pace bowling department. But unless the batting comes good, it will be tough to win, irrespective of Smith and Warner’s absence. However, Smith and Warner’s absence does not mitigate the importance of the second factor – India’s pace attack — why Kohli’s team would be starting as favourites in the series. India’s hopes were pinned on spinners, for whom conditions would usually be difficult. Hypothetically, even if these two stalwarts were playing, India would start on even terms, if not favourites.What prompts Smith and Thomson to believe India can break through this time?There are two major factors, in my opinion. This lofty position would have been destroyed by pardoning the two batsmen apart, of course, from sending out a signal to other Australian players that cheating would not entail harsh punishment after all. China Rubber Products and Kashmir4941126 Kerala4583384 Punjab3087217 Haryana2871913 Bihar251452 Odisha100341 Jharkhand6783 Uttarakhand48260 Himachal Pradesh40232 Chhatisgarh37320 Assam36191 Chandigarh28150 Meghalaya1201 Puducherry840 Goa770 Manipur220 Tripura220 Mizoram100 Arunachal Pradesh110 Sports, Cricket Can India do it down under? THE ASIAN AGE. Ironically, what was supposed to be India’s strength has turned out to be the bane.In his Jagmohan Dalmiya Memorial Lecture, Graeme Smith, former South Africa captain, said that if India have learnt their lessons well this year, they could put Australia under very serious pressure. Nov 5, 2018, 12:12 am IST Jeff Thomson, dreaded former Australian fast bowler never known to pull his punches was even more emphatic. One, the absence of Steve Smith and David Warner who are still serving out their one-year ban for ball tampering earlier this year against South Africa, and second India’s quality pace attack.This was supposed to be the year when Indian cricket would come of age, show off its strength by winning overseas.

The decision to ban these two was based not just on the laws of the game, though that became the actionable point. A string of players — old and new — have been tried out, but the results have been far from gratifying. This is one frontier that still remains unconquered.The series against Australia offers scope for redemption. Barring the brilliant Kohli, none of the other batsman has done justice to his high reputation, or the demands of the team. The series’s against South Africa and England, in the context, were disappointing.Smith and Warner have been Australia best batsmen and most prolific run getters in the past 5-6 years and their not playing is a big blow, as is evident from how the team has suffered in the past 8-9 months.This was resisted by Cricket Australia, and rightly so. On Australian pitches, with their pace and bounce, it is reasonable to expect that India’s pace bowlers will be able to replicate the form and success they showed in South Africa and England.This should be music to Indian cricket fans, and also lift the spirit of Kohli & Co. In the three Tests against South Africa at the start of the year, India’s bowlers claimed all 60 wickets, the bulk of them to pace bowlers. That has changed remarkably in the past 6-7 years.

Smith and Warner for moral debasement of Australia’s culture and pride. In the 5 Tests against England, the bowling performance was no less impressive, though the home team wasn’t bowled out in all 10 innings. In Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav and Mhammed Shami, India now have arguably the best pace attack in the world: Or at least the firepower to quell the best batting line-ups in all conditions.Jeff Thomson, dreaded former Australian fast bowler never known to pull his punches was even more emphatic.In their absence, Australia’s batting has looked shallow and highly vulnerable. But thereafter arises the all-important rider: unless India’s batting plays to potential and provides enough runs to, howsoever sterling the performance of the bowlers, it will come to naught. Virat Kohli (Photo: AFP) Two legendary overseas cricketers on speaking assignments in India last week have predicted victory for Virat Kohli’s team in the impending series against Australia. It is instructive that of the eight Tests played overseas by India this year, 6 were lost, three of them from potentially winning positions: not because the bowlers didn’t deliver, but because despite their best efforts the batting flopped badly. He expects India to “steamroll’’ over his country in the four-Test rubber that starts in December. In 60 years of bilateral contests versus Australia, India have never won Test a series Down Under. As Australian cricket underwent a soul-searching review of its structure and culture in the past month, calls were made from some quarters that the ban on Smith and Warner, considering the team’s recent travails, should be reduced to allow them to play against India.