Australian veteran spinner Nathan Lyon has predicted his team’s victory in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against India.
Nathan Lyon was confident that Pat Cummins-led Australia would complete a 5-0 romp to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Australia have not beaten India in a Test series since 2014 and have even lost two home series to them. Most cricket experts and fans are expecting a competitive series later this year.
India and Australia are at the top of the World Test Championship rankings and BGT 2024-25 could affect the table.
I’ve had my eye on this series for a long time now – Nathan Lyon
Nathan Lyon is confident that Australia will play ruthlessly against India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Lyon said he had been watching the teams closely and was looking forward to Australia’s dominant 5-0 win.
“It’s been 10 years since we won the Sarhad-Gavaskar trophy. When England were in India, I started thinking about this series and started watching it. I love the game and I’ll watch a decent test match, but I won. I’ve been watching this series for a long time now, my prediction is Australia 5- It’s 0,” Lyon told Alyssa Healy on the Willow Talk podcast.
Australia last completed a whitewash over India in a Test series during the 2011 tour. The last four test series between the teams ended 2-1 in favor of India. Team India secured their first Test series win in Australia in the 2018-2019 tour and repeated the feat in the 2020-2021 tour as well.
Had a really good chat with Tom Hartley – Nathan Lyon
Lyon recently picked Yashasvi Jaiswal as a future star for India. The veteran off-spinner said that he discussed Jaiswal with English spinner Tom Hartley, who had success against Jaiswal in Hyderabad. Lyon also added that India have a strong team with stars like Sarfaraz Khan and KL Rahul.
“I had a really good chat with Tom Hartley, as Jaiswal was chasing him. That’s something I took from him. Will Sarfaraz come here or Rahul? They have a side full of superstars,” Lyon added.
Yashasvi Jaiswal smashed Tom Hartley for a couple of sixes in their first encounter. However, Hartley ended as England’s best wicket-taker in the series.
This tour will be Jaiswal’s first series in Australia. It should be noted that the left-handed batsman had a disappointing performance in the tour of South Africa.
We need big runs – Nathan Lyon
During the same interaction, the 36-year-old spinner urged Australian batsmen including Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head to play marathon innings to put pressure on India’s powerful bowling attack.
“We need big runs. We need guys talented enough to score hundreds. Guys like Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head are all at the top. I don’t want 101 or 107, I want 180 and 200,” Lyon said.
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 will begin in Perth on November 22 with the first Test of the five-match series.
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