Nathan Lyon develops “mystery ball” for Tests, opens up on his approach against India
Nathan Lyon loves playing against India. The off-spinner finished as the joint highest wicket-taker with 21 wickets in Tests when India toured Australia in 2018-19.
Ahead of the India Australia 2020 test series, Lyon opened up about how he approaches playing against India. He also hinted at a “mystery ball” for the Indian batsmen.
"I don’t change my approach against India."
Speaking to ANI ahead of the India vs Australia 2020 Test series, Nathan Lyon called India an attacking side and admitted that he loves playing against them. However, instead of worrying about the opposition, he focuses on what captain Tim Paine asks him to do.
“I don’t approach my bowling differently just because we’re playing against India. I think, especially over the last five years, my bowling has gone to a new level. I’m fairly confident with where my bowling is at the moment. So, that’s exciting. They’re a very attacking side. They always want to attack spinners which is fantastic"
Expressing confidence in his bowling, Nathan Lyon said he does not change it just because it is India.
A “mystery ball”
The off-spinner may have not played a Test match for almost one year. But he revealed how he worked on a mystery ball that he will debut against India. The 33-year-old said that he was excited about bowling it at Adelaide during the first Test match.
"I’ve always enjoyed playing against India. They’re obviously some of the best players (batsmen) in the world, especially playing spin. So it’s always a big challenge, and I want to challenge myself against the best players of spin bowling"
Lyon conceded that he hasn’t come up with a name for the mystery ball yet, but said that he is in the process for that. He hopes to have a name for it before the first Test scheduled to begin on December 17.
Nathan Lyon’s impressive record against India
Mystery ball or not, Lyon is one of the world's best spinners in the last five years, and has a stellar record against India. Nathan Lyon has picked up 85 wickets against India, including seven five-wicket hauls over 18 Tests. What is more impressive is the off-spinner’s proficiency with the pink ball as well. Notably, the first India Australia 2020 Test is set to be a pink-ball Test, and Indian batsman will surely be wary of the threat posed by Nathan Lyon.
The bowler has picked up 28 wickets in pink-ball Tests at an average of 25.96, which is much lower than his career average of 31.58. If the Indian batsmen want to perform well in the Australian conditions, they will surely need to have an answer for every play Nathan Lyon comes up with during the series.