New Delhi, Sep 1, 2024
Legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar has predicted a 3-1 win for India over Australia in this year’s highly-awaited Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India have won the last two editions of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy held in Australia in 2018/19 and 2020/21 respectively.
The 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy will see India and Australia squaring off in the all-important five-match series at Perth, Adelaide (pink-ball game), Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, respectively.
“It’s going to be an exciting series for sure with the talent that is there on both sides and it will also show why Test match cricket is the ultimate format of our beloved game. Oh, and my prediction is a 3-1 win for India,” wrote Gavaskar in his column for Sunday Mid-day.
He also feels Australia will miss the services of left-handed opener David Warner, who retired from international cricket earlier this year. Since then, Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja have opened the innings for Australia in Tests, but they have averaged just 21.3 in seven innings.
“With their opening batting problems exacerbated after the retirement of David Warner and the middle-order also a bit dodgy, the Aussies are ripe for the taking once again. India being usual slow starters in an overseas series in SENA countries the first Test will be crucial.”
“That they aren’t playing proper first class games before that as well as in the week long gaps between some Test matches could work against them. That said, it is how schedules are nowadays for most touring sides,” added Gavaskar.
With a few already predicting Australia as early favourites to win the trophy, Gavaskar offered some advice on the mind games played ahead of the series starting on November 22, which will also be the first five-match Test series between the two teams since 1991/92.
“The five Test matches that India play (at home) before they go to Australia will be good for the mental tuning that is required for a tough tour like that. Already the mind games have begun with Australian players, both current and former, airing their views about what the result would be.”
“While they (Australia) are not making Glenn McGrath-like statements of a clean sweep they are still suggesting that Australia will prevail. Sadly, apart from Ravi Shastri, no other former or current player has seen to counter the mind games which the Aussies are so good at.”
“Maybe Ravichandran Ashwin should start telling us about a special delivery that he is developing for Steve Smith, that is, of course, if he continues to open the batting and can survive Jasprit Bumrah,” he concluded.(Agency)
