Australia gear up for pitch battle with spin again looming as king in India

ndia. Spin city. You know the drill. A visiting team rocks up, especially one from outside Asia, and gets greeted by tracks that turn as viciously as King Lear’s kids. The rule of thumb says that’s fair enough – teams are free to play in the conditions that suit them most, like Australia’s bouncy pitches or England’s seamers.

Leading the way for the home team will be one of the great spin pairings. Ravichandran Ashwin is one wicket shy of 450 in Tests, and is already second on India’s all-time list. Ravindra Jadeja is eight short of 250. Right-arm and left-arm finger spinners of wildly varying styles, Ashwin loops the ball to tease players before foxing them with a huge bag of tricks, while Jadeja spears it through in overs that typically take 70 seconds apiece and relies on natural variation.

For the visitors, only Nathan Lyon can match the standard of any of India’s four. The Australian off-spinner has learned his trade in Asia since his debut in Sri Lanka all the way back in 2011, and cracked the code in India in 2017 with his career-best 8-50 that should have been rewarded with a win in Bengaluru. Currently 11 wickets ahead of Ashwin on 460, the premier pair could be locked in a series-long battle for eighth spot on the all-time list.

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