The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is one of the most eagerly awaited Test series in history. The Indian national team has built a passionate rivalry with Australia over the years, and every time the two sides meet, it is a sight to see.
The first Test is set to begin on February 9 in Nagpur, and the Indian squad has already begun its preparations. Australia has failed to defeat India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the previous three years, and they will be trying to rectify that this time.
Australian batter Steve Smith recently spoke out about his squad not playing any tour matches before the series. Smith believes that training alone would improve Australia greater than playing tour games on meaningless Indian surfaces. Ravichandran Ashwin took note of the Australian batter’s words and labelled them as mind games, something the Australians are notorious for.
According to Steve Smith, they practised on a green top in 2017, but the match was played on a rank changer. The right-handed hitter believes that playing tour matches is pointless since the pitches vary from those used in practice.
Smith’s words, according to Ashwin, are the kind of cricket and mind games that the Australian side loves to play before a series. He also said that the Indian squad had previously avoided playing warm-up matches owing to its hectic schedule.
“‘We had a green wicket in Brabourne and a totally opposite one in the first Test,’ Smith said (during the 2017 series). To be honest, it was a crowd-pleaser in Pune. We could have given them the green route, but nobody prepares for everything. Nonetheless, Australia is infamous for its pre-series mind games and sledges. They like doing so. It’s their kind of cricket “When previewing the Border-Gavaskar Cup on his YouTube channel, Ashwin stated.
