Speaking on the headline event of this year’s Test cricket calendar, the former Australian opening batter, Matthew Hayden is looking forward to seeing how both Virat Kohli and Steven Smith go about their game in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar trophy that is set to take place in Australia in November, later this year.
Both Kohli and Smith have been the top international batters across formats and the contest between the two will be one that fans and experts alike, will be keen to keep a close eye on as the two possibly enter the final stages of their international career.
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Kohli had announced his retirement from T20Is following the World Cup 2024 victory in Barbados. Smith on the other hand is keen on making a return to the T20I side, keeping in mind the LA 2028 Olympics as the target.
However, both men will be looking to best prepare for the four-match series Down Under as the contest boils down to two of the best sides in International Cricket. Australia is the defending World Test Championship (WTC) holders while India is defending the Border-Gavaskar title after beating the Aussies at their home ground in 2021 and in India during the 2022-23 series.
Hayden reckons that despite the two batting aces reaching the final stages of their respective careers, the two would be eager to put in their best foot forward and do what they do best; dominate the bowling attack.
“Cricket is a game of momentum and I’m sure those two players, coming now to the later pages of their cricketing careers, will be very keen to dominate the landscape through the summer,” Hayden said on the sidelines of the Ceat Cricket Rating Awards on Wednesday.
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“That’s their nature. They do it in very different ways, very different styles, but certainly, they really are the key to the Australian summer,” he added.
Smith has been struggling with the bat as per his standards. Since the start of 2023, he has averaged 39.37 which is far below his immense standards. Kohli on the other hand still maintains an average above 50 but has shown a weakness to spin, particularly in the recently concluded ODI series against Sri Lanka.
Currently, the Indian team will be preparing for the two-match Test series at home where they take on Bangladesh. This series would likely serve as the testing ground for the Indian management to try out different combinations to cement their final squad that will take the trip Down Under.
(with PTI Inputs)
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