David Warner, Steve Smith's Absence Will Weaken The Australian Side, Says Mohammed Shami

In the absence of banned cricketers David Warner and Steve Smith, Australia lost the recently concluded Test series 0-1 against Pakistan. Now as Australia's next assignment against India nears, Indian pacer Mohammed Shami believes that the absence of both the star batsmen will weaken the hosts in the series Down Under. He further said despite the status quo of the Australian cricket team, India will stick to their plans and focus on the strengths.

"If those two don't play (Steve Smith, David Warner), they will obviously be weakened. But in the end, you have to stick to your plan and work on your strengths," Shami said.

Asked about the team's preparation ahead of the Australia tour, Shami said the pace battery would look to work on their line and length.

"As a fast bowling unit, we did well in England. We are preparing for the Australia series and watching a lot of videos. The plan is to focus on the series as much as possible as the opponents are very strong. We will work on getting the line and lengths right," Shami said.

"We will always try to do our best. Winning or losing also depends on luck. We will give our 100%."

The four-Test series begins on December 6 at the Adelaide Oval.

In England, Shami did not fare all too well despite bowling well. The 28-year old took 16 wickets in five matches.

In white-ball cricket, the fast bowler got a chance to prove his mettle against the West Indies in the first two One dayers where first choice quicks Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were rested.

Shami had two average games leaking runs aplenty on each occasion and was subsequently dropped for the last three ODIs.

(With IANS inputs)

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Australia Cricket Team David Warner Steven Smith Cricket Australia vs India 2018/19