Australia to undergo training camp in Bengaluru ahead of first Test against India in Nagpur, claims report

Australia will have a four-day training camp in Bengaluru before they travel to Nagpur for the first of four Tests against India starting 9 February.

The Pat Cummins-led side will be undergoing a training camp at the KSCA Ground in Alur on the outskirts of Bengaluru, where they will be practicing in a controlled environment, according to a report on Fox Sports.

Australia have decided to skip practice games in the build-up to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, citing lessons learnt from the trip to Sri Lanka last year where they were served seaming wickets in the tour matches before the the two-Test series, which was dominated by spinners and ended in a 1-1 draw.

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The four-day stay in Bengaluru will be crucial to Australia’s preparation for the Test series, which will be Australia’s first on Indian soil in six years.

“You never get guarantees over those practice game surface you get… we feel as though we can control the surfaces here. We feel as though we get a bit more control in Bangalore to replicate what we’re going to come up against and then we go into Nagpur fresh,” Australia head coach Andrew McDonald was quoted as saying in the report.

Before arriving in India, the Australian team had undergone a pre-tour camp at the Bon Andrews Oval in North Sydney, where they simulated subcontinental conditions — from training in sticky and humid weather to bowling on a turning wicket complete with footmarks that one would normally witness on fourth and fifth day surfaces in the subcontinent.

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Additionally, spinners Ashton Agar, Todd Murphy and Mitchell Swepson — all of whom are in contention for a spot in the XI alongside senior spinner Nathan Lyon — were withdrawn from the Big Bash League and transferred to the camp, where they practised with SG balls instead of Kookaburra.

Australia are eyeing their first Test series win on Indian soil in nearly two decades, having last emerged triumphant under Adam Gilchrist’s captaincy during the 2004-05 tour.

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