"Just hype by the media and their former cricketers"- Former Indian cricketer on current Australian team versus the one in 2001
Former Indian wicketkeeper and selector Saba Karim feels the current Australian team is nowhere near the one that toured India in 2001. He feels that team had a number of superstars, while there are some in the current team who are battling for their place in the playing XI.
There are a number of big names in the current team like Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith and David Warner. However, Karim shed light on how not many of them are in top form at the moment.
Speaking to India news, here's what he had to say about Australia's current squad:
"Comparing this Australian team to the one that toured in 2001 is just hype by the media and their former cricketers to put pressure on India. That was a team of champions, while there are some here who are struggling for form. Except for Steve Smith and Travis Head, they don't have many who are in top form. Warner is short of runs."
Saba Karim also spoke about the visitors' spin options and feels that although they have four in the squad, only Nathan Lyon has the desired quality. He added:
"I agree Australia have a strong pace attack, but they have just one quality spinner in Nathan Lyon. Just bringing a whole bunch of spinners in India doesn't get the job done. You need to have the ability to bowl long spells and create that penetration. I don't see that quality in this attack."
Australia will have come well-prepared: Rajkumar Sharma
Former Delhi cricketer and Virat Kohli's coach Rajkumar Sharma was also present on the panel and even weighed in on the comparison between the two Australian teams.
While he agreed that the current team doesn't have as many big names as the one in 2001, he feels they have enough talent and intelligence to come well-prepared for the series in Indian conditions. On this, Rajkumar stated:
"The 2001 team was very well-balanced and has a number of superstars in it. This team has a good bowling attack, while there's a bit of inexperience in the batting. However, I feel they will have come well-prepared and will have definitely done their homework on how to perform in these conditions, thanks to their participation in the IPL. So you definitely can't take them lightly."
The Aussies have opted against playing a warm-up game and have decided to practice on their own ahead of the first Test against India next week.