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Australia's premier paceman Mitchell Starc torched the Indian batters with an outstanding spell of swing bowling in the second ODI in Visakhapatnam on March 19 (Sunday). The left-arm pacer bagged a fantastic five-wicket haul and in the process exploited Indian batters' vulnerability against the left-arm pacer for the umpteenth time. Starc had also bagged four wickets in the first ODI in Mumbai. With ball seaming around, Starc unleashed hell on India's famed batting line-up, just like Pakistan's Mohammad Amit, Australia's Mitchell Johnson and New Zealand's Trent Boult have done in the past.
In an exclusive chat with Sports Tak, former Pakistan captain and legendary left-arm pacer, Wasim Akram reflected on Indian batters' struggle against left-arm fast bowlers. Akram credited Starc for his outstanding effort with the ball and underlined that when a left-arm pacer gets the ball to come into the right-handed batters, it becomes extremely challenging. The former Pakistan pacer expects Indian batters to figure out to tackle Starc for the final ODI game.
"There are great players in the Indian team be it Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and even KL Rahul, who won India the game in Mumbai. Not just the Indian batters but others also tend to struggle against left-arm pacers because of the angle and the ball swinging into the batter," Akram opined.
"To me, it seemed like the match was being played in Australia (because of the conditions and assistance on offer from the Vizag pitch). It had rained before the game and the ground was lush green. I thought the match is being played in New Zealand. Credit to the organisers for maintaining the ground in top condition.
It's alright that the match ended quickly. Australia played well and made the series interesting now. The ball was seaming around quite a lot. The Indian team has great batters and they know how to adjust. Sometimes, it is just the bowler's day. Congratulations to Mitchell Starc who bowled a brilliant spell. He is one of the best bowlers in the world and it was his day," the legendary Pakistan speedster added.
With the series tied at 1-1, India and Australia will now lock horns in the third and final ODI on March 22 (Wednesday) in Chennai.
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