As the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia looms, Royal Challengers Bangalore wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik speaks on the pressure Nathan Lyon will face as Australia’s key bowler. With 460 Test wickets to his name, Lyon is expected to put the Indian batters in trouble on the sub-continent pitches, but Karthik warns of the pressure the off-spinner will face.
“Lyon will be under a lot of pressure, knowing that he will be the key bowler for Australia to steer the ship in the right direction. One bad session on his part could mean the Test match is moving against Australia, and that’s a lot of pressure to handle,” said Karthik.
Despite India’s past struggles against off-spin, Karthik has faith in their ability to play spin, which has been a part of their heritage and lineage. He also spoke about Shreyas Iyer’s dominance against Lyon in a 2017 tour game. “Even though India hasn’t been playing off-spin well, these matches are going to be in India, and we have to trust our ability to play spin,” said Karthik.
Australia’s spin department will see Lyon as the only seasoned veteran with Mitchell Swepson, Ashton Agar, and Todd Murphy lacking strong Test records.
