Cricket World Cup: Aussies to consider bowling first after Zampa and Maxwell struggle against India
India ran riot at home with their three spinners, but the Aussie tweakers had no impact in Chennai as the hosts cruised to victory, so is it time for a change of tactics from Pat Cummins’ side?
Australia will consider bowling first should it win the toss in future World Cup matches after spinners Adam Zampa and Glenn Maxwell had trouble gripping the ball because of dew during India’s successful run chase on Sunday night at Chepauk.
While Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav ran through the Aussies on Sunday afternoon to bowl Australia out for 199, neither Maxwell nor Zampa took a wicket as India overcame a nervous start to win by six wickets with more than eight overs to spare after losing the toss.
Steve Smith, who top-scored for Australia with 46, said the dew was a factor, but that it didn’t necessarily mean the Aussies would bowl first given the chance.
“The dew came in and it probably got a little bit easier and harder for our spinners to hold the ball,” Smith said.
“If it stays the same without the dew it’s probably game on.
“We’ll wait and see. It’s difficult to predict different places, whether the dew’s going to come in or not. Obviously it did tonight and it was quite challenging for our guys but sometimes it doesn’t come in and it’s really difficult to chase a total. You’ve got to weigh up all those things.”
The Aussies head to Lucknow on Monday for matches against South Africa and Sri Lanka. Like Chennai, Lucknow has a reputation for taking spin.
“I think we can learn a bit from this game, definitely. We’ve talked as a group about playing to the surface that we’re on,” Smith said.
“In tournament play you don’t want to be peaking too early.
“You‘ve got to do enough to make your way to the finals but play your best cricket at the end. Hopefully we can turn it around and beat South Africa in a few days’ time.”
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