Australia tour will still be challenging despite the absence of Steve Smith and David Warner, says Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Despite the absence of big guns like Steve Smith and David Warner, the tour of Australia is going to be a challenging one, reckons India fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

“I cannot say that we will overcome them. They don’t have the two batsmen (Smith and Warner), who have done well over the years. (But) there are other batsmen in their place and it is not that they aren’t good.”

“It’s their home conditions. For us, if the two (Smith and Warner) were there, it is a challenge, now they are not there, it will still be a challenge,” he said, as quoted by the Press Trust of India on Monday.

“If it would have been easy, we would have always won the series (in the past). It won’t be easy. Our preparation in the practise matches there will matter.”
Australia will play without Smith and Warner after the duo along with batsman Cameron Bancroft were handed suspensions by Cricket Australia (CA) for engaging in ball-tampering earlier this year.

When asked if the Australian tour would be a challenging one, the Uttar Pradesh speedster said, “It (the Australian tour) will be challenging, no tour is easy. But Australia will be challenging because when you play outside your home (country) you need to adapt to certain conditions. It won’t be easy for bowlers as there is hardly any movement these days.”

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India is set to compete in a four-match Test series–the first of which begins in Adelaide on December 6.

He further spoke on the rotation policy of the team management which gives everyone a chance and also much-needed breaks.
“The way fast bowlers are managed, the rotation policy is in a way good, as we get a break and others get a chance and the body remains fresh,” he said.

On the need to have breaks, Bhuvneshwar further added, ” Breaks are needed after you play a long tour. You are mentally tired, like Jasprit (Bumrah) said when you return you are fresh and are rearing to go. Hence breaks are needed, as your body gets tired.”

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