Exposing all your cards way before showdown is an act of the brave and the confident and that is exactly what makes Australia probably the bravest cricket team in the world, going by their habit of naming the team’s playing XI one day before the start of the match. It showed the boost of confidence the Australian team felt after that resounding win in Pune when they announced an unchanged team for the 2nd test starting on the 4th of March in Bengaluru.
The pitch at the M Chinnaswamy stadium will be quite a talking point after the raging turner laid out at the MCA stadium for the first test match. However, the pitch for the second match looks like a lot grassier, similar to the ones used for the England series, which will witness good bounce and carry and start spinning as the test match progresses into the third day. Both team captains conceded the fact that the wicket is going to play a lot differently than the first match. If such is the case, the first innings runs are going to be very crucial.
Moving away from the pitch, the team morale in the Australian camp would be soaring high owing to their first win in India after 4502 days. Australians are known to be ruthless after gaining an advantage on their opponents. However, it is very soon to say that about this inexperienced Australian side who will feel the need to push their case to return to being a dominant force in test cricket. The Indian side after a disappointing showing in the first match will be keen to bounce back in much better conditions which evidently suited the team’s batting order better in the England series. The team will be contemplating on tinkering with the team’s playing combination with bringing in Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Kuldeep Yadav replacing Ishant and Jayant Yadav who did not have a great last match, to say the least.
With Australia keen on taking an unassailable lead in the test series and India wanting to put the humiliating loss behind them the second test match is all set to be a cracking test match on the pitch that looks to provide a good contest between bat and ball.
