Another turner? Daniel Vettori says bring it on

Ahmedabad, March 6

Australian assistant coach Daniel Vettori said he does not mind the spin-friendly pitches on offer in their series in India as they have challenged the batsmen and brought their skill and perseverance into play.

I don’t mind the surfaces because I feel it’s the same for everyone. I think that allows some skill to come into it, some perseverance and some fortitude around the things that you have to do. Daniel Vettori, Australian assistant coach

India thumped Australia in Nagpur and New Delhi to grab a 2-0 lead in the four-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy with their spinners ruling the roost in both matches, before Australia flipped the script in Indore to seal a nine-wicket win last week.

The first three games have all ended inside three days and the hosts are expected to roll out another turning track for the final match in Ahmedabad starting on Thursday.

“I don’t mind the surfaces because I feel it’s the same for everyone,” New Zealander Vettori said. “It doesn’t feel like the toss is the key ingredient… you almost know what to expect. You turn up and you can see that it’s going to be this type of wicket and you can prepare for it. I think that allows some skill to come into it, some perseverance and some fortitude around the things that you have to do.”

Lower-order woes

Unlike India’s lower-order batters who have contributed hugely in the first two Tests, Australia’s No. 8 to No. 11 have added around five runs per innings so far in the series.

Captain Pat Cummins’ 33 in the second Test and Nathan Lyon’s 10 first-innings runs in the same match are the only double-digit scores the Australian tail has been able to make. With Cummins returning home to be with his ailing mother, their lower-order looks more vulnerable.

“I think Pat (Cummins) did that (batting) exceptionally well in the first innings in Delhi, and I think the lower four have got an understanding of how to do it and how they want to do it. It’s just having the courage to actually take it out there,” he said. “We’ve got to push our lower four to actually take the game on.” — Agencies

Shakib spoils England’s party

Chattogram: Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan delivered with bat and ball as they beat England by 50 runs in the third One-day international to earn a consolation win and deny the tourists a clean sweep here today. After top scoring with 75 runs to help Bangladesh post 246, he returned to finish with figures of 4/35 as the 35-year-old became the first Bangladesh player to take 300 ODI wickets. “We have been very good in the last five to seven years at home and unfortunately we lost this series, but we can take a lot from what we’ve shown in this series,” Shakib said. Reuters