Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin stated that the series needed “this spark” in response to Ian Healy’s contentious remarks over the impending Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Healy had predicted that Australia would prevail if India provided a “decent pitch” with constant spin rather than having the ball “jump crazily and slide down low from day one.” The ex-Australian wicketkeeper-batter continued by saying that if an “unfair surface” is provided, India would do better than the host team under those circumstances.
Commenting on the same Ashwin, on his YouTube channel said: “Anyway, an Australian broadcaster and former player Ian Healy has given a few gems before the BGT (Border Gavaskar Trophy). He has given a few statements that say ‘India will make sure the Australians feel uncomfortable in India. I don’t believe that they will give us wickets that will look even slightly closer to what we will actually get during a game. So he has said that Australia’s approach is only correct. The support staff might have given their opinion, but Ian Healy’s quote has set a spark with this take. It’s the Border-Gavaskar Trophy guys. So we need this spark, right? (The) banters will keep coming from the Australian camp for sure. We saw what Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja had to say. Even Marnus Labuschagne and Matt Renshaw have said some controversial things.”
The opening match of the Test series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia will take place at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur on February 9. The visitors are making every effort to be as ready as they can be to meet the task while being wary of the possibility of spin against India. In preparation for the four-match Test series against India, the Australian squad is practicing on worn-out fields. Mahesh Pithiya, Ravichandran Ashwin’s “double,” was sent to Bengaluru by the visiting team as a net bowler to counteract the threat of the Indian off-spinner, and Australian batsmen have been preparing against him.