After suffering a heavy defeat against India in the second Test at Melbourne, Aussie opener Joe Burns has been left out of the squad for the third and fourth Tests. With scores of 8, 51*, 0, and 4 in the first two matches, the 31-year-old has definitely not lived up to the expectations of the hosts.
However, in what can be considered as a confidence booster for the Australian team, star batsman David Warner and Will Pucovski have made it to the squad for the last two Tests against India. Warner is still recovering from a groin injury which he picked up during the second ODI of the series while Pucovski was ruled out from making his Test debut in Adelaide after suffering a concussion.
The Aussie batsmen have struggled to tackle an in-form Indian bowling attack so far in the Test series. Skipper Steve Smith, who was declared the Test player of the decade on Monday, has seen just 10 runs coming from his willow. Speaking about the lack of form in the Australian batting order, speedster Pat Cummins said that he is confident about the batters regaining their touch.
“Absolutely no stress,” Cummins said. “They’ll come good.”
“Steve’s been champion for a dozen years or so, so absolutely no stress at all. Every batter, every player, goes through ups and downs and the great ones find a way to get back, so yeah absolutely no stress that they’ll come good, I’m sure.”
While Australia crushed India in the first encounter at Adelaide, India bounced back brilliantly in Melbourne to level the series. The visitors managed to dismiss Australia cheaply in both innings even with a depleted bowling attack.
The third Test is scheduled to start on January 7 and will be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground despite a recent Covid-19 outbreak in the city.