Darren Lehmann Former Australia cricket coach and player, Darren Lehmann, has revealed his strategy for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against India, which starts on February 9th.
The series will be crucial for both teams as it will determine which team finishes at the top of the ICC World Test Championship standings and earns the chance to play in the one-off decider at The Oval in June.
Australia currently holds a healthy lead over India in the standings, but Sri Lanka and South Africa also have an outside chance of making it to the final.
One of the key elements of Lehmann’s strategy is his choice of the second spinner to partner Nathan Lyon. Lehmann has chosen Ashton Agar to be the second spinner, instead of Mitchell Swepson or uncapped Todd Murphy.
Lehmann’s Belief
This choice reflects Lehmann’s belief that the conditions in India would be more favorable for finger spinners. He cites Steve O’Keefe’s success as a finger spinner in the 2017 Test series in India as an example of the effectiveness of this approach.
Lehmann believes that finger spinners tend to get through the air quicker and have more skid than leg spinners, making them more effective in Indian conditions.
Read More:- ILT20 2023: Shimron Hetmyer Smashes Three Sixes in a Row Against Wanindu Hasaranga
He said, “It just gets through the air quicker and some spin and some don’t. The leg-spinners sometimes spin it too much, if that makes sense… (for finger spinners) some skid on and you get beaten on the inside and you get an LBW.”
Lehmann’s strategy also includes the use of a batsman who can also bowl as a second spinner. He said, “That’s probably why they’re looking at a finger spinner. We certainly did that four years ago (2017) and Steve O’Keefe bowled India out basically on his own in one of the last Test matches to win there.
Lehmann’s Strategy
“That’s why I’d be looking at someone like an Agar, bat a little bit, bowl as that second spinner,” added Lehmann. Agar has played only five Tests so far in his career and was last seen against South Africa in Sydney where he went wicketless.
Another important aspect of Lehmann’s strategy is the team’s preparation for the Indian conditions. The former coach believes that playing practice or tour games before the series could have a significant impact on the outcome.
He said, “You need to bat in the best possible conditions (in India) because after that, if you haven’t grown up playing in those conditions, man it’s extremely difficult to start your innings.”
Despite his concerns, current Australia head coach, Andrew McDonald, has stated that the team has played quite a few series of late without a tour game being part of the itinerary.
