India vs Australia Test series: Less than a week's time is left for the high-octane India vs Australia Border-Gavaskar Trophy, set to kickoff in Nagpur from February 9. India are a force to reckon with in Tests in their own backyard as they hold the enviable record streak of winning 15 consecutive Test series at home, since 2012. Australia, on the other hand, have a forgettable record in India as they are yet to win a series here since 2004.
Sharing his opinion on Australia's chances in the Border-Gavaskar series, ex-Aussie player, cricketer-turned-broadcaster Ian Healy took a cheeky dig at India for the pitches produced in the 2016-17 series, adding that Australia would win if India offers a 'fair pitch', without the ball "jumping ridiculously and sliding down low from day one".
Reacting to Healey's statement, 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 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."
Meanwhile, to prepare for the 'spin threat', the Australian cricket team is practicing on 'worn pitch' and batting against Ashwin's 'duplicate' Mahesh Pithiya -- a net bowler who has a similar action to that of Ashwin.