The Indian cricket team will be touring Australia for a 2.5 month(!!) 4 test match, 2 T20 matches and a Triangular series involving Sri Lanka. A mouth-watering prospect for me. Former test players like Adam Gilchrist opine that this might be India's best chance to register their first test series triumph down under. Australia is not the force they once were and they are in the process of rebuilding.
Key bats including Tendulkar and Laxman have already left for Australia to give themselves a better chance to acclimatize themselves to the bouncy tracks there. Don't remember anything like this happening in the recent past. If not anything else, this tells me that the Indian team management also recognizes that this could be their best chance to take a test series in Australia.
It's been a roller-coaster ride for India since their World cup win. They lost miserably to England in England and then returned the favour at home. They have now beat West Indies comfortably. So they have not exactly been consistent. That's the exact opposite of what they need to be in order to do well in Australia. The bowling department will be weak and inexperienced without Zaheer Khan. His inclusion is in doubt. That's added pressure on the fab four - Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman and Sehwag. So Dhoni has his task cut out.
For sure, it will be keenly contested. I suspect Australia's relative inexperience combined with their home advantage makes them equals against an Indian team packed with batting superstars some of whom are suspect against pace.
