Fresh from a shock home defeat by New Zealand, India begin Australia tour with question marks over Virat Kohli’s form.
Stand-in skipper Jasprit Bumrah has warned hosts Australia that star batsman Virat Kohli was looking “ominous” ahead of the first Test, which starts in Perth on Friday.
India head into the five-Test Border-Gavaskar series on the back of the Test whitewash by New Zealand – their first home series loss in 12 years.
Pace bowler Bumrah, who will captain the side after Rohit Sharma stayed home following the birth of his second child, has backed the team to bounce back and, in particular, Kohli, with the 36-year-old batter under increasing scrutiny after managing only two Test centuries in the last five years – and averaging just 15 against New Zealand.
“He is one of the greats of the game,” Bumrah said of Kohli, who averages 54.08 in Australia. “He’s the utmost professional that we have in our team. He’s got a lot of success.
“OK, one or two series here and there can go up and down, but the confidence that he has at this moment, I have no doubts. He’s looking to contribute. And the way I’ve seen him at training … the signs are ominous.”
All change for India as they land in Australia
The signs looked far from great for India as they succumbed to the Kiwis’ first series win in India – the first two defeats of the three-match series were substantial and the future of some of the country’s biggest names have come into question for the first time. Besides that, the nature of the side is also troubled by availability.
With Rohit out, KL Rahul or Abhimanyu Easwaran are in line to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal, while there are doubts over number three Shubman Gill who has hurt his thumb.
Their bowling lineup is also unclear, but Bumrah said India had settled on who would partner him in the attack, although fans, and Australia, will have to wait until the toss for all to be revealed.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding form and selection, Bumrah fully believes the squad will quickly recover from the defeat by New Zealand.
“The beauty about cricket is even if you win, you start from zero, and even if you lose you start from zero,” he told reporters. “So that’s how I look at the game.
“Obviously, yes, we were disappointed and we were down that we had a tough series (against New Zealand). But we are not carrying any baggage. We come with a fresh mindset, different opposition and you learn from the changes that have happened in our team.”
With Bumrah taking the armband, the first Test will have two fast bowlers captaining their teams, with Pat Cummins in charge of Australia. Bumrah said he was determined to do the job his way.
“I love responsibility. I wanted to do the tough job since I was a child,” he said. “I’ve never followed a copybook plan … I’ve never followed a model and I go with my instincts and that’s how I’ve always played my cricket.
“I have a lot of faith in my instincts and gut,” he added.