Smith, Warner, Starc: 5 Players to Look Out For in the Aus Team

Take a look at the five players to watch out for in the Australian team ahead of the Test series against India.

The Indian Test team has been unstoppable since winning the Test series 2-1 in Sri Lanka in 2015. They have won five consecutive series – against South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, England and Bangladesh since then. And they didn’t only win but they have crushed all of their oppositions.

At a time of supreme dominance, the Australian team has made their way to India to play a four-match Test series, which begins on Thursday at Pune.

Michael Clarke’s side went through a horror series the last time the Australians were on Indian shores in 2013. India won four matches in a series for the first time in Test history.

The Australian team may have won the Ashes series and the World Cup in the last four years, but they have continued to struggle on sub-continental pitches.

After winning three back-to-back Test series, the Baggy Greens went down 3-0 in the Test series in Sri Lanka last year.

Steve Smith’s Australia will be certainly hoping to be competitive in the series and they will have to exploit every bit of their fire power to do so.

Here’s a look at the five players to watch out for in the Australian team.

1. Steve Smith

The Australian captain Steve Smith will be the key man to watch out for in the team. The 27-year-old has an excellent Test average of 60.15 and has notched 17 Test hundreds in 50 matches.

Smith scored a gritty 92 in his very first innings in India in 2013. Batting at number five, he successfully countered Ravichandran Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha and Ravindra Jadeja.

The skipper also scored a belligerent 119 against Sri Lanka at Colombo, but unfortunately Australia lost by 163 runs.

The right-hand batsman is well equipped to counter swing bowling and uses his crease brilliantly to place the spinners between gaps.

2. David Warner

If any team wants to be a dominant force, then they need an explosive batsman at the top. And there’s no better batsman than David Warner in the world. If Warner gets going, then he can single-handedly dismantle any bowling attack.

The 30-year-old, who has a Test batting average of 49.16, is coming into the Test series against India with two big ODI hundreds under his belt.

He smashed 130 off 119 balls and 179 off 128 balls in the fourth and fifth ODI against Pakistan respectively.

The biggest challenge here is being mentally fresh, you’ve got to have mental toughness. You’ve got to be willing to grind it out and bat time here ... we probably found out the hard way last time we came here, you can have an adrenaline rush. 

David Warner

3. Mitchell Starc

India’s opening pair has been in disarray throughout the season and the Australian team has to make it their first target in the series. An early wicket usually sends jitters down a batting side and from there, the Baggy Greens can make inroads into the famed Indian batting line-up.

And for getting the early wicket, Australia’s supreme speedster Mitchell Starc will be given the responsibility.

Starc, has grown tremendously as a fast bowler since the last time he toured India in 2013. He has a healthy bowling average of 28.29 and has picked up 143 wickets in 34 matches.

The 27-year-old also scalped three five-wicket hauls in Sri Lanka last year, which means, that Starc just needs a ball and not the pitch to beat batsmen.

4. Nathan Lyon

With Test matches being played in India, the spinners will be in the spotlight. The entire contest will be about the fierce batsmen against the feisty spinners.

Lyon has been the frontline spinner for Australia for quite a few years, but he hasn’t rocked any series in the sub-continent yet.

He was the third highest wicket-taker in Australia’s last tour of India with 15 wickets, but he recorded a poor bowling average of 37.33.

However, if the 29-year-old sticks to the basics of off-spin bowling and uses the Indian pitches to his advantage, he can be the partner, Starc will be looking for in the middle.

5. Steve O'Keefe

Steve O'Keefe has been a veteran spinner in the first-class arena for a very long time. Even after having an excellent bowling average of 23.81 in 66 first-class matches, the 32-year-old has played only four Test matches.

The left-arm orthodox spinner has a lot of variations in his skill set, which he can certainly use in spin friendly conditions. He can loop the ball well and also use the bounce of the pitch to his advantage.

The Malaysian-born cricketer picked up only three wickets in the Test match he played in Sri Lanka last year, but if the team management trust him with more matches, then O'Keefe could be the match-winner for Australia in this series.