3-1 Australia Shock prediction for India tour as Smith tipped to shine: Ultimate Guide

3-1 Australia Shock prediction for India tour as Smith tipped to shine: Ultimate Guide

The two top-ranked Test teams in the world face off as Australia’s hotly anticipated four-Test tour of India begins this Thursday.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy is up for grabs, as is a place in the World Test Championship final in June – with Australia needing only to avoid a series whitewash to confirm their spot.

For Australia, a red-ball team in red-hot form, the tour is a chance to claim a series victory on Indian soil for the first time since Adam Gilchrist’s men in 2004. It would also fill Pat Cummins’ side with confidence ahead of their Ashes Tour of England in June-July.

But there’s set to be plenty of twists and turns (we’re not just talking about the pitches!) along the way. Three of the four venues weren’t used last time Australia travelled to India for a Test tour (2017) – and as always, spin is likely to be heavily favoured across the four grounds.

Nonetheless, only one of eight Fox Cricket experts we surveyed believe India will come out on top on their home soil, with three tipping a 2-2 series draw, three tipping a 2-1 Aussie series win, and one predicting a stunning 3-1 Australian demolition.

But there’s plenty of split opinions from our experts over who will top the charts in terms of runs, wickets – and which player will pick up the player of the series award.

Here’s everything you need to know.

Watch Australia’s Tour of India. Every Test & ODI live & ad-break free during play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

Steve Smith and David Warner of Australia check the pitch during a training session at Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground in Nagpur, India. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

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FIXTURES

February 9-13: First Test, Nagpur, 3pm AEDT

February 17-21: Second Test, Delhi, 3pm AEDT

March 1-5: Third Test, Dharamsala, 3pm AEDT

March 9-13: Fourth Test, Ahmedabad, 3pm AEDT

The venues came as something of a surprise when first announced, given Dharamsala is the only one of the four venues that Australia also played at in the last tour back in 2017. It’s also the venue Australia’s seamers will be most eagerly looking forward to visiting – while Steve Smith also hands fond memories, after bagging a ton here in that 2017 tour.

Australia last visited Nagpur back in 2008, when Aussie Jason Krejza wrote his name into the history books with 12 wickets on debut (although he did concede a world record 358 runs on the way). Australia has won in Nagpur – in the famous 2004 series – but that came at the old Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium, which was replaced in 2008 by a much more spin-friendly pitch.

After Nagpur is Delhi, where Nathan Lyon picked up 7-94 in the first innings back in 2013. But that tour is one the Aussies will mostly hope to forget, after a disastrous 4-0 whitewash. In fact, the Australians haven’t won in Delhi in 64 long years (when Richie Benaud’s side battered the hosts by an innings).

The incredibly picturesque Dharamsala is third on the schedule, before the teams travel to Ahmedabad and the Narendra Modi Stadium for the finale.

Australia has never played at the massive and recently-renovated stadium, which has hosted just two Tests so far – with 37 of India’s 40 wickets in those matches coming via spin.

The ground hosted a staggering 101,566 fans for the 2022 IPL Final but has a stated capacity of 132,000. A world record could well be broken if the series goes down to the wire.

Steve Smith in 2016 at the stunning beautiful Dharamsala.Source: Getty Images

SESSION TIMES (AEDT)

It’s prime time viewing for Aussie fans, with play between 3pm and 10pm AEDT, or 12pm to 7pm for WA fans.

Coin toss (day one): 2.30pm

First session: 3pm-5pm

Lunch: 5pm-5.40pm

Second session: 5.40pm-7.40pm

Tea: 7.40pm-8pm

Third session: 8pm-10pm

HOW TO WATCH

Watch every ball live on Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports – with Kayo also providing coverage in Hindi this series!

Watch Australia’s Tour of India. Every Test & ODI live & ad-break free during play on Kayo. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

SQUADS

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Lance Morris, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner.

India squad (first two Tests): Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul (vc), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KS Bharat, Ishan Kishan, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Suryakumar Yadav.

Will Hazlewood be fit for India Test? | 03:30

FOX SPORTS’ PREDICTIONS

Allan Border

Series result: Australia 2-1

Most runs: Steve Smith

Most wickets: Kuldeep Yadav

Player of the series: Steve Smith

Mark Howard

Series result: 2-2

Most runs: Steve Smith

Most wickets: Ravichandran Ashwin

Player of the series: Steve Smith

Adam Gilchrist

Series result: Australia 2-1

Most runs: Usman Khawaja

Most wickets: Pat Cummins

Player of the series: Pat Cummins

Kerry O’Keeffe

Series result: Australia 2-1

Most runs: Cheteshwar Pujara

Most wickets: Nathan Lyon

Player of the series: Nathan Lyon

Mark Waugh

Series result: 2-2

Most runs: Virat Kohli

Most wickets: Nathan Lyon

Player of the series: Virat Kohli

Green a chance of playing 1st test | 02:44

Michael Hussey

Series result: 2-2

Most runs: KL Rahul

Most wickets: Nathan Lyon

Player of the series: KL Rahul

Isa Guha

Series result: India 2-1

Most runs: Steve Smith

Most wickets: Axar Patel

Player of the series: Virat Kohli

Ian Smith

Series result: Australia 3-1

Most runs: Steve Smith

Most wickets: Nathan Lyon

Player of the series: Steve Smith