Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara is worried about India’s bowling strength as they head into the IND vs AUS Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. India is set to play their fourth Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Melbourne, having drawn their last match at the Gabba. In a discussion on Star Sports, Pujara expressed concerns about the depth of India’s bowling. So far, only Jasprit Bumrah has consistently performed well, making an impact with each of his bowling spells.
Batting and bowling analysis
Pujara reviewed the team’s performance before the fourth Test. He mentioned that while the batting seemed to improve, especially with lower-order contributions at the Gabba, the bowling showed signs of weakness.
“My first biggest question and slight reason for concern is that the Indian bowling is looking slightly weak. The batting has improved a little. The top five have not batted well but the middle order and lower-middle order have done that,” Cheteshwar Pujara said on Star Sports.
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Line-up changes and challanges
India changed its lineup in the first three Test matches, particularly in the spin bowling position. With R Ashwin retiring after the Gabba Test, it is likely that India will stick with the current team for the MCG match unless an injury requires adjustments. The team has backup options with Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna ready for fast bowling, while Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel are on standby in the batting department.
Indian bowlers performance in IND vs AUS series so far
| Player | Mat | Inns | Wkts | BBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JJ Bumrah | 3 | 6 | 21 | 6/76 |
| Mohammed Siraj | 3 | 6 | 13 | 4/98 |
| Harshit Rana | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3/48 |
| Akash Deep | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2/28 |
| K Nitish Kumar Reddy | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1/21 |
