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This is the weakest Australian side: Yuvraj
Yuvraj Singh believes Ricky Ponting has arrived here with the weakest squad even though he warns India against complacence in the Test series against them.
- Press Trust of India
- Updated: October 09, 2008 05:38 PM IST
Read Time:3 min
Hyderabad:
Under Yuvraj, the Board President's XI dominated the four-day warm-up match against Australia with the visitors barely managing to escape follow-on.
Australia's thin spin resource were also exposed in the match, which convinces Yuvraj that for a change, Australia would no longer start the series as the overwhelming favourites.
"Obviously (this is the weakest side in recent past)," Yuvraj said.
"You see, last time they had Shane Warne in the side but this time their spin attack is not good enough. In such a situation, the fast bowlers have a tough job at hand. I think they would start the series pretty even," Yuvraj said.
"They have a good pace attack but you cannot say the same for their spin department. It's going to be hard work for them on the tracks here," he said.
Yuvraj himself was harsh on Australia's lone specialist spinner Jason Krejza, hitting him all over the park en route to his scintillating 113 which had seven towering sixes in it.
"They have got a good pace attack and hence I had to target some other bowlers. In such a situation, you have to see where you get the runs from and so I went after him," Yuvraj said nonchalantly.
The warm-up match also exposed Australia's clear discomfort against spin bowling with Piyush Chawla and Pragyan Ojha making life difficult for the visitors. Yuvraj believes things would be even tougher when Australian batsmen face Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh in the Test series.
"Last time also, our spinners did a great job against them. Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh have troubled batsmen anywhere in the world and it's going to be a tough challenge for Australia," Yuvraj predicted.
Australia's spin problem notwithstanding, Yuvraj has not lost respect for the opponents and he said India just could not afford to be complacent.
"India cannot afford to underestimate them. They always come up with a certain plan," he warned,
The match was personally satisfying as well for the left-hander who said he was gaining his confidence back to push himself in the Test reckoning again.
"I'm happy with the knock. The thing is that I had lost my confidence but I'm now getting it back. Once I scored the first 30-35 runs, it started coming back. The morning session against Brett Lee was challenging and I wanted to hang around till lunch," said the dashing left-hander.
"I wanted to prove a point to myself and I'm pretty satisfied with the way I batted," he added.
Asked if he expected a call-up for the last two Test matches against Australia, Yuvraj said, "Selection is not my job, my job is to just go out there and play."
Yuvraj Singh believes with no quality spinner in the ranks, Ricky Ponting has arrived here with the weakest Australian squad in recent times even though he warns India against complacence in the forthcoming Test series against them.Under Yuvraj, the Board President's XI dominated the four-day warm-up match against Australia with the visitors barely managing to escape follow-on.
Australia's thin spin resource were also exposed in the match, which convinces Yuvraj that for a change, Australia would no longer start the series as the overwhelming favourites.
"Obviously (this is the weakest side in recent past)," Yuvraj said.
"You see, last time they had Shane Warne in the side but this time their spin attack is not good enough. In such a situation, the fast bowlers have a tough job at hand. I think they would start the series pretty even," Yuvraj said.
"They have a good pace attack but you cannot say the same for their spin department. It's going to be hard work for them on the tracks here," he said.
Yuvraj himself was harsh on Australia's lone specialist spinner Jason Krejza, hitting him all over the park en route to his scintillating 113 which had seven towering sixes in it.
"They have got a good pace attack and hence I had to target some other bowlers. In such a situation, you have to see where you get the runs from and so I went after him," Yuvraj said nonchalantly.
The warm-up match also exposed Australia's clear discomfort against spin bowling with Piyush Chawla and Pragyan Ojha making life difficult for the visitors. Yuvraj believes things would be even tougher when Australian batsmen face Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh in the Test series.
"Last time also, our spinners did a great job against them. Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh have troubled batsmen anywhere in the world and it's going to be a tough challenge for Australia," Yuvraj predicted.
Australia's spin problem notwithstanding, Yuvraj has not lost respect for the opponents and he said India just could not afford to be complacent.
"India cannot afford to underestimate them. They always come up with a certain plan," he warned,
The match was personally satisfying as well for the left-hander who said he was gaining his confidence back to push himself in the Test reckoning again.
"I'm happy with the knock. The thing is that I had lost my confidence but I'm now getting it back. Once I scored the first 30-35 runs, it started coming back. The morning session against Brett Lee was challenging and I wanted to hang around till lunch," said the dashing left-hander.
"I wanted to prove a point to myself and I'm pretty satisfied with the way I batted," he added.
Asked if he expected a call-up for the last two Test matches against Australia, Yuvraj said, "Selection is not my job, my job is to just go out there and play."
Topics mentioned in this article
Cricket Anil Kumble Yuvraj Singh Gary Kirsten
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