Australians stumble against spin on opening day

[rkt.india]

The Australians lost nine wickets to spin on the first day of their opening tour game in Chennai, but though they were dismissed for 241 their opener and top-scorer Ed Cowan said the team was satisfied with the workout. Jammu & Kashmir offspinner Parvez Rassol, who turns 24 tomorrow, took 7 for 45 for the Board President's XI on a pitch that offered the slow bowlers assistance. Wicketkeeper Matthew Wade, the Australians' acting captain, had spoken about the importance of batting long in order to adapt to the local conditions, and everyone got the chance to have time in the middle after he won the toss. Only 11 of the 17-member squad had arrived in India and so Usman Khawaja opened with Cowan, adding 77 for the first wicket before he was caught behind off legspinner Sarabjit Ladda. Cowan was the next to fall, caught behind to become the first of Rassol's seven wickets. Wade and Steven Smith added 58 for the third wicket but Wade's dismissal triggered a slide during which the Australians lost eight wickets for 74 runs. "It was a pretty good day. Everyone had a good hit at the top of the order," Cowan said after the day's play. "The wicket was turning, so it was good practice against some really talented spin bowlers. The wicket was a bit two-paced. The ball reversed pretty quickly. So it was hard to score but it is a small ground, so a decent score for a first hit out. "It's easy to call it a practice game, but it is more than that for a lot of us - to come over early, to get the conditions, to get our plans in place against the spinners. It was nice to spend some time in the middle but at the end of the day it's about scoring some runs, so it was nice to get a few runs as well."

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india-v-australia-2013/content/current/story/604628.html

[Dumbbells]

Parvez rasool seems to be really talented. What a lovely addition he could be in indian team. A fitting reply to lot of pakis and he could be an inspiartion for kashmiris

[Chandan]

A better and more detailed report is this: LINK Rassol seven leaves Australians in tatters Wisden India staff ŽÂ· Feb 12, 2013 ŽÂ· Scorecard: Board President's XI vs Australia XI Parvez Rassol gave the Australians a hard welcome in the tour-opening practice match at Guru Nanak College Ground on Tuesday (February 12), his 7 for 45 helping Board President's XI bundle out the Australians for 241 on the first day of the two-day match. Ed Cowan scored a half-century while most of the other Australian batsmen did have decent knocks in the middle, but it was Rassol who claimed the limelight. Rassol bowled well throughout the day, varying the pace of his deliveries and extracting ample bounce, giving the Australians a taste of the spin-friendly Indian conditions. Matthew Wade, the Australians captain, should be satisfied for the most part though. Speaking on Monday, Wade had spoken of the importance of the batsmen getting some time out in the middle in a match situation. They managed to do that, with only Glenn Maxwell among the top five batsmen lasting less than 100 minutes. Having opted to bat, Cowan and Usman Khawaja, the openers, batted for most of the morning session, putting up 77 runs between them, with the runs coming mainly through the leg-side. Shami Ahmed and Parvinder Awana, the BP XI pacemen, weren't too effective. Shami, in fact, went for 21 runs in his first spell of five overs despite having started with a couple of miserly ones. On one occasion, Khawaja pulled Shami to the square-leg boundary twice in two balls, and Shami had to be replaced by Stuart Binny, the Karnataka allrounder, shortly after that. At the other end, Awana didn't go for too many runs, but didn't look like taking a wicket either. With not much happening, Abhinav Mukund, the BP XI captain, rung in the changes. He brought Shami back at the other end for Awana and brought spin into the attack by replacing Binny with Rassol, the Jammu and Kashmir offspinner. All the while, Cowan and Khawaja kept the scoreboard ticking, mainly through singles and doubles with the occasional boundary thrown in. They eased the total past the 50-run mark and through to 75, largely untroubled. With minutes left before lunch, Sarabjit Ladda replaced Shami and the move reaped immediate dividends. Khawaja (32) attempted a needless slog-sweep but could only top-edge it straight to Kedar Jadhav at deep midwicket. Things were slow after lunch, with only singles keeping the scoreboard from becoming stagnant. However, things picked up not too long thereafter. Cowan, having gone to lunch for 42, completed his half-century with a double off Rassol. In the next over, he punished Ladda's full toss, lifting it over long-on. He didn't last long, though, with Rassol picking up his first wicket. Rassol pitched one outside off, Cowan (58) attempted to slap it through the covers but edged it instead and Parthiv Patel took a neat catch behind the stumps. However, the scoring quickened after that with Wade slamming back-to-back sixes off Ladda, the first over long-on and the next slog-swept over deep midwicket. With Steve Smith at the other end, the two put on a quick 58 runs for the third wicket, sometimes with powerful drives and pulls, and with a slog at other times. It was with one such attempted slog that Wade fell. Having made 35, he came down the wicket and tried to lift Rassol but couldn't connect well, giving Kamlesh Makwana a comfortable catch at mid-off. Glenn Maxwell, coming in at No. 5, departed for nought after Binny induced an edge. Resuming after tea at 170 for four, the Australians crumbled, losing six wickets in the session, with Rassol claiming four more. Moises Henriques, having made 16, was the first to fall in the final session when he tried to drive Rassol and was caught at short cover by Robin Uthappa. Smith, who was dropped by Shami earlier when on 35, followed suit when he attempted to attack Rassol but holed out to Mandeep Singh. With the Australians short on batsmen, Peter Siddle and James Pattinson came out and resisted for a while, putting up 30 runs for the seventh wicket. But it was only a matter of time before they ran out of steam, with Rassol sending back the tail.

[Chandan]

India has no preparation whatsoever for the series coming up against Australia. LINK Why Dhoni has Cause to Worry Anjali Doshi Ž· Feb 12, 2013 Twelve years ago, almost to the day, Steve Waugh led a team of 15 men into Mumbai to conquer the final frontier. Favourites, with 15 consecutive Test wins, the Australian juggernaut was on a mission to trigger IndiaÃÔ disintegration, under the watchful eye of John Buchanan, the coach. Directing the proceedings for the Indians was John Wright, who had recognised the urgent need to professionalise the teamÃÔ approach to preparation and practice. For 10 days straight, 25 players were put through the paces from 7 am to 7 pm in the cruel Chennai heat, at a camp organised by Wright, who had paid close attention to AustraliaÃÔ net sessions at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai. After two three-hour sessions every morning and afternoon, where the Indian players were banned from sitting on the training ground, the evenings were spent watching videos and formulating plots and plans to thwart WaughÃÔ Invincibles. Geoff Marsh was roped in as consultant to provide information on the opposition; Anil Kumble, arm still in a sling after shoulder surgery, was appointed technical advisor; Harbhajan Singh, instructed to land every delivery in a 20 cm wide-60 cm long box, defined in chalk outside off stump, was monitored hawk-like by Wright; and Harsha Bhogle was brought in to talk to the cricketers about their responsibility towards the people they represent. Unaccustomed to and unprepared for this intense, all-consuming approach, Javagal Srinath spoke on behalf of several teammates when he begged for some respite, Wright reveals in his book Indian Summers. The coach was, of course, unmoved. A lot has changed in 12 years. If that was the start of IndiaÃÔ greatest era in Test cricket, when the team put the match-fixing scandal behind them to emerge out of what Sachin Tendulkar called the ÅÅarkest phase? then December 2012 was its nadir. But with a captain who believed that the disappointment of the 2-1 loss to England at home was ÅÏot even close to the first-round exit at the 2007 World Cup, it would seem that India did not hurt enough to make drastic amends to its preparation for the forthcoming Tests against Australia. The first batch of Australians have arrived but there is no sign of Duncan Fletcher, IndiaÃÔ coach, who is expected to return from Cape Town only on the eve of the four-day camp starting February 15 in Bangalore. The first Test begins a week later in Chennai. India have a lot of ground to cover in four days. Apart from Tendulkar, who stands head and shoulders above his current teammates in discipline and work ethic, this team has quite a task on its hands to regroup, re-enter match mode and pump on the gas pedal right away. India's pace bowling attack is not only inexperienced, but short on practice as well. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is yet to play Test cricket. Ž© BCCI Of the 15-member squad, only Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, Pragyan Ojha, Shikhar Dhawan, and Murali Vijay, enter the series with match practice in the longer version. Virender Sehwag, who pulled out of the Irani Cup at the last minute, has played a few domestic one-day and Twenty20 matches after he was dropped from the one-day team. The rest MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma were given time off to recuperate after the one-day series against England ended three weeks ago. Why Bhuvneshwar and Ashok Dinda were not in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup, when they were clearly in the reckoning for Test spots and might have gained valuable practice bowling to Tendulkar and Wasim Jaffer, will remain a mystery. Cheteshwar Pujara, who could have represented Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy final, warmed the bench instead during the one-day series. Of utmost concern, though, will be IndiaÃÔ pace bowling attack that is not only inexperienced, in Zaheer KhanÃÔ absence, but short on practice as well. Ishant, currently shopping in Melbourne for insoles, will return soon but there are some concerns around his fitness. And Bhuvneshwar and Dinda are yet to play Test cricket. In the lead up to the Tests against England at home, I had written about the possibility of the lack of preparation, and their misplaced sense of complacency playing at home, really hurting this Indian team. Their focus lately seems more centred on hampering the opposition denying England practice against spin being one example than building positively on their own game through innovative ideas and relentless practice. Perhaps, inviting Kumble and Rahul Dravid to the camp in Bangalore, to pitch in with their cricketing nous and strategies, could be a step in that direction. During a conversation I had some time ago with MS Dhoni, he spoke of the role practice plays in performance. Ūf your success rate at a practice session is 9 out of 10, you can only hope it will be 7 out of 10 when youÃÓe on the field, he said. With the IPL adding 50 days to the cricket calendar, the arrival of one team before the departure of another, time spent on preparation has become less of a priority. India would do well to remember, though, that the best teams put a huge premium on intense physical and mental training. England arrived three weeks early for the Test series in India. Despite being denied practice against quality spinners, they played spin better than the Indians. For the 2010-11 Ashes, England reached Australia three weeks early as well and managed to beat Australia in Australia after 24 years. Diligent practice apart, England coach Andy Flower is a stickler for fitness. Samit Patel, warned for being a slouch, was dropped from the provisional squad for the 2011 World Cup and sent off to Australia to enroll in a rigorous fitness program. Many months later, and several kilos lighter, Patel found his way back into the team. Over the past week, the Australians have arrived in batches for this series in India. Their preparations may not be as meticulous as the English but there is no absence of thought. Whether it is the rotation policy, for which the team management has copped a fair degree of flak, or rehabilitating injured players, there seems to be a clear plan. Peter Siddle, returning from injury, decided not to play the Sheffield Shield but train on his own for the India tour after consulting with Cricket Australia he will play only Test cricket this year. Meanwhile, James Pattinson played a few Sheffield Shield games to get back into bowling rhythm for the Tests against India. For the recent Tests at home against South Africa, Australia prepared for Imran TahirÃÔ legspin by recruiting Fawad Ahmed, a Pakistani asylum seeker from the Melbourne University Cricket Club, because his action resembled TahirÃÔ. Meanwhile, the South Africans, deservedly No.1, have adopted a more mature approach under Gary Kirsten and Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach. Often, training sessions through a long tour are optional but there is plenty of behind-the-scenes work being put in. Optional practice sessions notwithstanding, South AfricaÃÔ impeccable work ethic means the coaches are yet to reprimand a single player in almost two years for showing up late, failing a fitness test or disrespecting the teamÃÔ code of conduct in any way. The sense of empowerment means players feel accountable to be present without a roll call. This is similar to the culture Kirsten and Upton inculcated in the Indian team between 2008 and 2011. And when they felt the Indians needed a psychological boost, during the 2010 Test series at home against South Africa and the 2011 the World Cup, they enlisted the help of Mike Horn, South African-born Swiss explorer and motivational speaker. When asked about the role of coaches recently, Suresh Raina provided telling insight on FletcherÃÔ contribution to the team, and his rapport with the players, after nearly two years in the hot seat. Ũary was the most important person in my life, Raina told the Indian Express. Å©e raised the bar of my game and made me a humble person. Duncan is getting used to the team. I do talk to him about my game. I hope to spend more time with him in the future. An unwittingly revealing statement on a coach and a Test team that lost direction in England in July 2011, and are still struggling to find their way back.

[urbestfriend]

Rasool and Ladda should've been selected in test team, rather selectors go back to Bhajji :headshake:

[kubrickian]

India has no preparation whatsoever for the series coming up against Australia. LINK Why Dhoni has Cause to Worry Anjali Doshi ŽÂ· Feb 12, 2013 Twelve years ago, almost to the day, Steve Waugh led a team of 15 men into Mumbai to conquer the final frontier. Favourites, with 15 consecutive Test wins, the Australian juggernaut was on a mission to trigger IndiaÃÔ disintegration, under the watchful eye of John Buchanan, the coach. Directing the proceedings for the Indians was John Wright, who had recognised the urgent need to professionalise the teamÃÔ approach to preparation and practice. For 10 days straight, 25 players were put through the paces from 7 am to 7 pm in the cruel Chennai heat, at a camp organised by Wright, who had paid close attention to AustraliaÃÔ net sessions at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai. After two three-hour sessions every morning and afternoon, where the Indian players were banned from sitting on the training ground, the evenings were spent watching videos and formulating plots and plans to thwart WaughÃÔ Invincibles. Geoff Marsh was roped in as consultant to provide information on the opposition; Anil Kumble, arm still in a sling after shoulder surgery, was appointed technical advisor; Harbhajan Singh, instructed to land every delivery in a 20 cm wide-60 cm long box, defined in chalk outside off stump, was monitored hawk-like by Wright; and Harsha Bhogle was brought in to talk to the cricketers about their responsibility towards the people they represent. Unaccustomed to and unprepared for this intense, all-consuming approach, Javagal Srinath spoke on behalf of several teammates when he begged for some respite, Wright reveals in his book Indian Summers. The coach was, of course, unmoved. A lot has changed in 12 years. If that was the start of IndiaÃÔ greatest era in Test cricket, when the team put the match-fixing scandal behind them to emerge out of what Sachin Tendulkar called the Ã…Ã…arkest phase? then December 2012 was its nadir. But with a captain who believed that the disappointment of the 2-1 loss to England at home was Ã…Ãot even close to the first-round exit at the 2007 World Cup, it would seem that India did not hurt enough to make drastic amends to its preparation for the forthcoming Tests against Australia. The first batch of Australians have arrived but there is no sign of Duncan Fletcher, IndiaÃÔ coach, who is expected to return from Cape Town only on the eve of the four-day camp starting February 15 in Bangalore. The first Test begins a week later in Chennai. India have a lot of ground to cover in four days. Apart from Tendulkar, who stands head and shoulders above his current teammates in discipline and work ethic, this team has quite a task on its hands to regroup, re-enter match mode and pump on the gas pedal right away. India's pace bowling attack is not only inexperienced, but short on practice as well. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is yet to play Test cricket. ŽÂ© BCCI Of the 15-member squad, only Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Ajinkya Rahane, Pragyan Ojha, Shikhar Dhawan, and Murali Vijay, enter the series with match practice in the longer version. Virender Sehwag, who pulled out of the Irani Cup at the last minute, has played a few domestic one-day and Twenty20 matches after he was dropped from the one-day team. The rest MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma were given time off to recuperate after the one-day series against England ended three weeks ago. Why Bhuvneshwar and Ashok Dinda were not in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup, when they were clearly in the reckoning for Test spots and might have gained valuable practice bowling to Tendulkar and Wasim Jaffer, will remain a mystery. Cheteshwar Pujara, who could have represented Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy final, warmed the bench instead during the one-day series. Of utmost concern, though, will be IndiaÃÔ pace bowling attack that is not only inexperienced, in Zaheer KhanÃÔ absence, but short on practice as well. Ishant, currently shopping in Melbourne for insoles, will return soon but there are some concerns around his fitness. And Bhuvneshwar and Dinda are yet to play Test cricket. In the lead up to the Tests against England at home, I had written about the possibility of the lack of preparation, and their misplaced sense of complacency playing at home, really hurting this Indian team. Their focus lately seems more centred on hampering the opposition denying England practice against spin being one example than building positively on their own game through innovative ideas and relentless practice. Perhaps, inviting Kumble and Rahul Dravid to the camp in Bangalore, to pitch in with their cricketing nous and strategies, could be a step in that direction. During a conversation I had some time ago with MS Dhoni, he spoke of the role practice plays in performance. Ūf your success rate at a practice session is 9 out of 10, you can only hope it will be 7 out of 10 when youÃÓe on the field, he said. With the IPL adding 50 days to the cricket calendar, the arrival of one team before the departure of another, time spent on preparation has become less of a priority. India would do well to remember, though, that the best teams put a huge premium on intense physical and mental training. England arrived three weeks early for the Test series in India. Despite being denied practice against quality spinners, they played spin better than the Indians. For the 2010-11 Ashes, England reached Australia three weeks early as well and managed to beat Australia in Australia after 24 years. Diligent practice apart, England coach Andy Flower is a stickler for fitness. Samit Patel, warned for being a slouch, was dropped from the provisional squad for the 2011 World Cup and sent off to Australia to enroll in a rigorous fitness program. Many months later, and several kilos lighter, Patel found his way back into the team. Over the past week, the Australians have arrived in batches for this series in India. Their preparations may not be as meticulous as the English but there is no absence of thought. Whether it is the rotation policy, for which the team management has copped a fair degree of flak, or rehabilitating injured players, there seems to be a clear plan. Peter Siddle, returning from injury, decided not to play the Sheffield Shield but train on his own for the India tour after consulting with Cricket Australia he will play only Test cricket this year. Meanwhile, James Pattinson played a few Sheffield Shield games to get back into bowling rhythm for the Tests against India. For the recent Tests at home against South Africa, Australia prepared for Imran TahirÃÔ legspin by recruiting Fawad Ahmed, a Pakistani asylum seeker from the Melbourne University Cricket Club, because his action resembled TahirÃÔ. Meanwhile, the South Africans, deservedly No.1, have adopted a more mature approach under Gary Kirsten and Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach. Often, training sessions through a long tour are optional but there is plenty of behind-the-scenes work being put in. Optional practice sessions notwithstanding, South AfricaÃÔ impeccable work ethic means the coaches are yet to reprimand a single player in almost two years for showing up late, failing a fitness test or disrespecting the teamÃÔ code of conduct in any way. The sense of empowerment means players feel accountable to be present without a roll call. This is similar to the culture Kirsten and Upton inculcated in the Indian team between 2008 and 2011. And when they felt the Indians needed a psychological boost, during the 2010 Test series at home against South Africa and the 2011 the World Cup, they enlisted the help of Mike Horn, South African-born Swiss explorer and motivational speaker. When asked about the role of coaches recently, Suresh Raina provided telling insight on FletcherÃÔ contribution to the team, and his rapport with the players, after nearly two years in the hot seat. Ũary was the most important person in my life, Raina told the Indian Express. Å©e raised the bar of my game and made me a humble person. Duncan is getting used to the team. I do talk to him about my game. I hope to spend more time with him in the future. An unwittingly revealing statement on a coach and a Test team that lost direction in England in July 2011, and are still struggling to find their way back.

This is where Gary Kirsten also made a big difference. It was in the preparation and practice before a test series. Even though BCCI never organized tours where Indian team could go in advance and play 3 tour games and get used to the conditions, they still got into the groove by 2nd test because of Kirsten's approach. Compare this to Fletcher's tenure during the overseas England, Aussie tours where the team clearly looked rusty, unmotivated and looked short of preparation and practice. Even in the home series against England, most of the team just got back from Champions League T20 from SA and started playing tests without playing any 4 day games while England team landed here 3 weeks before and played couple of 4 day games.

[Crookbond]

This is where Gary Kirsten also made a big difference. It was in the preparation and practice before a test series. Even though BCCI never organized tours where Indian team could go in advance and play 3 tour games and get used to the conditions, they still got into the groove by 2nd test because of Kirsten's approach. Compare this to Fletcher's tenure during the overseas England, Aussie tours where the team clearly looked rusty, unmotivated and looked short of preparation and practice. Even in the home series against England, most of the team just got back from Champions League T20 from SA and started playing tests without playing any 4 day games while England team landed here 3 weeks before and played couple of 4 day games.

We did have 2 tour games before the Australia Test series - we were simply not good enough with our skills.

[kubrickian]

We did have 2 tour games before the Australia Test series - we were simply not good enough with our skills.

Its not just playing tour games. Its the preparation, practice, approach to a big test series and playing tour games with purpose. Aus, Eng, SA prepare very well for any test series while SC teams usually have very poor preparation. But I'm surprised at the lack of proper preparation for Australia in our test series. They may not get used to the conditions by the time they play first test. They usually have this covered. Maybe this is why Shane Warne was pissed off at CA recently. :P

[Crookbond]

Its not just playing tour games. Its the preparation' date= practice, approach to a big test series and playing tour games with purpose. Aus, Eng, SA prepare very well for any test series while SC teams usually have very poor preparation. But I'm surprised at the lack of proper preparation for Australia in our test series. They may not get used to the conditions by the time they play first test. They usually have this covered. Maybe this is why Shane Warne was pissed off at CA recently. :P

It was the same during Kirsten as well - the only time we landed well advance was in the SA series where Kirsten requested "Test special players" to reach SA earlier. Once again this was not due to Kirsten's emphasis for preparation but to acclimatize Test only players who were out of cricket for some time. Kirsten is not a great believer in rigorous practice. He was recently criticized in England for the same after South Africa had an average opening day of the 1st Test match.

[kubrickian]

It was the same during Kirsten as well - the only time we landed well advance was in the SA series where Kirsten requested "Test special players" to reach SA earlier. Once again this was not due to Kirsten's emphasis for preparation but to acclimatize Test only players who were out of cricket for some time. Kirsten is not a great believer in rigorous practice. He was recently criticized in England for the same after South Africa had an average opening day of the 1st Test match.

He may not be rigorous but he knew the right way to prepare the team for a test series. He made sure all Indian batsmen had 3,000 hits at the nets before SA tests and the method obviously worked because Indian team which usually faced white washes did pretty well there for a change. This is the difference that good preparation makes. http://www.sunday-guardian.com/analysis/kirsten-provided-key-support-in-recent-indian-success-story

[Crookbond]

He may not be rigorous but he knew the right way to prepare the team for a test series. He made sure all Indian batsmen had 3' date=000 hits at the nets before SA tests and the method obviously worked because Indian team which usually faced white washes did pretty well there for a change. This is the difference that good preparation makes. http://www.sunday-guardian.com/analysis/kirsten-provided-key-support-in-recent-indian-success-story

I'm not sure where you got that figure from - let me accept that for a moment. Kirsten's method worked doesn't mean that it was his method which helped and changed the team. In our previous tour of SA, we came quite close to winning a series - we won the first Test match of the series, something which we don't do quite often and really bad at. So does it mean Chappell was a better coach at preparation? We still lost the first Test match and were in bad shape until we arrived in Durban (which for some reason SA keep on losing Tests there!). If the preparation was that great during Kirsten's tenure, why did we not perform in the first Test match? In this case, you are justifying the ends by the means. Sure - Kirsten may go on to be a better coach than Fletcher but it doesn't mean anything. The recent England series at home should show that it isn't the pitch, preparation or anything other external factor which leads to India losing. The most important factor is the skills and I don't think we have enough players to deliver on the stage.

[kubrickian]

I'm not sure where you got that figure from - let me accept that for a moment. Kirsten's method worked doesn't mean that it was his method which helped and changed the team. In our previous tour of SA' date=' we came quite close to winning a series - we won the first Test match of the series, something which we don't do quite often and really bad at. So does it mean Chappell was a better coach at preparation? We still lost the first Test match and were in bad shape until we arrived in Durban (which for some reason SA keep on losing Tests there!). If the preparation was that great during Kirsten's tenure, why did we not perform in the first Test match? In this case, you are justifying the ends by the means. Sure - Kirsten may go on to be a better coach than Fletcher but it doesn't mean anything. [b']The recent England series at home should show that it isn't the pitch, preparation or anything other external factor which leads to India losing. The most important factor is the skills and I don't think we have enough players to deliver on the stage.

Playing World T20 Cup, Champions League T20 in SA then coming back to India and playing tests within a week without playing any 4 day games is very poor preparation however you look at it. England on the other hand arrived here 3 weeks prior to the first test, played couple of tour games and they were clearly better prepared. Let's just leave aside whether India or England were a better side. Eng, SA and Aus on most occasions never prepare so poorly for a big test series.

[Crookbond]

Not denying what you say about preparation just pointing out that anyone in Fletcher's position would have also washed their hands.

[Pagalpanti]

Our players lack skills? Didn't these same guys thrash every team (at home at least) and were competitive away barring newbies like Pujara and Kohli? Australia will have had 2 practice games in Chennai ahead of the test while Indian team will assemble for just a 5 day camp which I'm of course will be 'optional' as we've seen in past. Our pre-series preparations have always been a shambles, iirc we used to be known as slow-starters even at home.

[Chandan]

Australia will have had 2 practice games in Chennai ahead of the test while Indian team will assemble for just a 5 day camp which I'm of course will be 'optional' as we've seen in past.

3 day camp.

[Chandan]

Australian XI v Board President's XI highlights day 1

Iframe: Open in new window

[f.b.m]

Australian XI v Board President's XI highlights day 1

Rasool has a good action.

[rkt.india]

Rasool has a good action.

:agree:

[Pagalpanti]

He was flighting the ball very well. Except for the yorker all the deliveries foxed the batsman into playing a false shot.

[SLICKR392]

Australian XI v Board President's XI highlights day 1

Iframe: Open in new window

TFS and yes he has a pretty nice action.