Australia have roped in Maheesh Pithiya, a 21-year-old spinner with uncanny resemblance to Ravichandran Ashwin, to coach on spin-friendly tracks as a part of their preparation for the upcoming Test sequence towards India.
Off-spinner Ashwin could show to be a significant risk for Australia, who haven’t gained a Test sequence in India since 2004.
Expecting spin to play a significant function within the four-Test sequence, the guests have opted for tailored pitches and have availed the providers of Pithiya to get accustomed to the motion of Ashwin.
The four-Test sequence begins in Nagpur on February 9.
“Of all the stops Australia have pulled out to prepare for their trip to India, the most noticeable at their Test tour’s first training session was the presence of a Ravichandran Ashwin duplicate,” a report in cricket.com.au stated.
“With facing spin the major focus on Thursday, Pithiya was the standout among the local ‘netties’, bowling tirelessly and virtually without break through the day as he troubled the likes of Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head, who all had long batting sessions.” Pithiya, curiously, didn’t see Ashwin bowl till the age of 11. Growing up in Junagadh, Gujarat he didn’t have entry to TV and when he lastly watched the India ace in motion towards the West Indies in 2013, he began idolising him.
The teen, who made his first-class debut in December for Baroda, was flown in for the four-day coaching camp on the KSCA Ground in close by Alur by Australia after seeing his footages in social media.
It was Pritesh Joshi — one of many bowlers giving throw downs to the Australian batters with the ‘side-arm’ support — who first introduced Pithiya to the eye of assistant coach Andre Borovec.
He additionally organized for Mehrotra Shashank, a left-arm spinner who performed first-class cricket for Hyderabad, to attend the camp.
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“While no spinner in the world can perfectly mimic the challenge Ashwin will pose in this series, facing Pithiya over the coming days will at least help the Australians come to terms with the visual cues of the world’s top-ranked Test spin bowler,” the report stated.
“The Aussie batters were also tested out by a self-described throwdown specialist Khaleel Shariff, who has worked with numerous Indian Premier League teams and was known to coach Andrew McDonald and Vettori from their time at Royal Challengers Bangalore.” The different Tests will likely be performed in New Delhi (February 17-21), Dharamsala (March 1-5) and Ahmedabad (March 9-13).
Source: sportstar.thehindu.com