INDIA CRICKET TOUR
Australia are still Ajinkya Rahane’s favourites to beat India
Many pundits have tipped India to end their 70-year wait for a first Test series triumph in Australia
Sydney — Australia are still favourites to win the four-Test series against India even without Steve Smith and David Warner due to their strong bowling attack, Ajinkya Rahane said on Tuesday. Many pundits have tipped India to end their 70-year wait for a first Test series triumph in Australia after top Australian batsmen Smith and Warner were banned for a year in the aftermath of March’s ball-tampering scandal in SA. Rahane, however, was keen to throw the pressure of expectation back on the hosts when the much-anticipated series gets under way in Adelaide on Thursday, and scoffed when he was asked whether Australia would be ripe for the picking. “Not really,” the India vice-captain said. “I feel any team that plays at home, they feel really good, and I feel that Australia are still the favourites to win the series. “We are not going to take them lightly at all. Yes, they [will] miss Steve Smith and David Warner but I don’t think they are vulnerable …. They ’ve got a really good bowl...
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