Almost 30 years ago the Australian team developed a motto on the Pakistan tour: “No whinge, no wine.”
During that 1994 series we couldn’t drink and we didn’t want any whingeing: an attitude I hope this Australian side takes into what shapes as a terrific Test series against India, beginning in Nagpur on Thursday.
No doubt there will be all sorts of stories being thrown about: conspiracy theories about the preparation of the Test pitch, the pitches Australia are training on and those the Indians are using.
Look at the summer we just had in Australia and the Gabba Test match, which finished inside two days. Can you imagine the touring side coming to Australia and seeing the Test match pitch that green? That would start the same sort of conspiracy theories for the South Africans as an Australian side going to India.
So, Australia have to block that out and say, “We’re playing on the same pitch as India over the next four or five days. We’ve got to make more runs.” That’s as simple as you’ve got to keep it.
Back in the 1980s there were a lot of bad stories about India: things were tough; the umpiring was against you.
In the ’90s, we started talking about actually winning in India and being more competitive.
Pat Cummins takes a look under the covers on Wednesday.Credit:Getty
We tried to bring a positive attitude, to stop finding excuses when things were tough and just concentrate on playing the best cricket we could. We didn’t win in Pakistan in 1994, but we played some really good cricket, and beat them there four years later.
While we lost 2-1 in India in 1998, we won the last Test, Australia’s first Test victory there for almost 30 years.
We started to learn how to win over there.
Firstly, you’ve got to put all the negatives behind you; stop looking for reasons why you don’t win. Forget about that.
And then, secondly, focus on just playing good cricket over long periods of time. That’s the only way you can be successful in the subcontinent.
Mentally you’ve got to stay in the game. When it gets hot over there, Virat Kohli hits a couple of fours and the crowd starts chanting, all of a sudden, the game can get away from you very quickly.
It’s a combination of getting things right technically but being mentally tough to stay in the contest for longer than India do. That’s going to be the ultimate challenge.
With Indian pitches, you have to attack the stumps as much as you can because lbw and bowled are more likely outcomes than caught at third slip.
Australia should resist the urge to play Todd Murphy in the first Test.Credit:Getty
The Indians generally attack the stumps.
Ravi Ashwin doesn’t spin the ball massively, but he’s got the carrom ball that goes the other way a bit. He’s got one that turns and one that goes straight on. He’s attacking the stumps all the time. So is Ravi Jadeja, and so is Axar Patel. They’re looking for lbw, bowled and bat pad catches.
And that’s my worry with the Australian side. Nathan Lyon is a different sort of bowler. He bowls wider of the stumps and tends to turn the ball more. The problem for Lyono is getting bowleds and lbws? He doesn’t get a lot of lbws to right-handers.
I haven’t seen much of Todd Murphy, but from what I have seen he looks a fine young bowler. However, it worries me that Australia may try and squeeze him into the Test team.
It’s a blow not having Josh Hazlewood, and Cameron Green as a potential third seamer, given the likelihood of reverse swing, but I can’t see why Australia would want to pick a third off-spinner in Murphy, particularly when Travis Head had a useful year with the ball and will bowl his share of overs.
Australia can’t get carried away believing that spin is the only answer. Reverse swing also plays a part. The quicks have to take their fair share of wickets to win.
Our Test victory in ’98 wasn’t built around spin, even though we had Shane Warne. Michael Kasprowicz got the ball to reverse swing and became unplayable, claiming five wickets as India collapsed.
