The Indian pace attack is getting much attention Down Under, with Varun Aaron being singled out for special praise by Australian cricketers, who feel the youngster’s biggest assets – pace and bounce – are things that had troubled the visitors on their previous tours.
Ahead of the first Test in the four-match series, the performance that caught the eye most was that of Aaron who worked up lively pace on day one of the first warm-up game and the fact that along with Bhuvneswar Kumar and Mohammad Shami, he looked the part of India’s first-choice bowler for this tour.
“Aaron bowled some pretty quick bumpers,” said opener Ryan Carters, who top-scored for Cricket Australia XI with 58 runs in the warm-up game.
“He did a little bit of damage. Pace and bounce, the same issues that have troubled so many Indian batsmen on past Australian tours are Aaron’s biggest assets. On a fast wicket, he will definitely be a handful. You could definitely expect some short stuff from him,” he added of the 25-year-old.
About Kumar, Carters said, “He isn’t the quickest Indian bowlers out there but he definitely is the most accurate. He keeps pegging at one particular length and it becomes a challenge to play that when there is help for him from the pitch and the conditions.”
There is not a shred of doubt that the focus is solely resting on the Indian bowling attack at the moment. It is a jam-packed Australian summer of cricket for the visiting team, with the four Tests followed by an ODI series and the World Cup thereafter.
