Sydney Airport lounge, 11.30 am: With a long-haul flight ahead, there's plenty of time to think of what's in store for us in India. We will be pitting ourselves against two quality sides—India and New Zealand—both of whom somehow manage to reserve their best for Australia. We are fresh from a Test series against Zimbabwe, and while the two wins there are a bonus, we have not had much one-day cricket of late. The break has been a pretty extended one by modern standards, but we are professionals who generally make the transition from one form of the game to the other rather effortlessly. I'm sure the tri-series in India will be no exception.
But what has disappointed us is the spate of injuries that has hit our bowling line-up. Pigeon (Glenn McGrath), Dizzy (Jason Gillespie), Stuart MacGill and Bing (Brett Lee) have exited from the side in quick succession. Together they formed the backbone of our attack for many seasons now. Hopefully, most of them will be back when we take on India in the home series six weeks from now. However, the guys who've replaced them are also quality players. Nathan Bracken was in the one-day side when we came to India in 2001, Willo (Brad Williams) is an exciting prospect and Michael Kasprowicz has been to India twice before. There is also Bic (Andy Bichel), who has been a tremendous contributor with both bat and ball right through the year. Everybody will recall the way he stepped in when Dizzy got injured in the World Cup. He is the quintessential team man.
I have always felt that it is our bench strength that makes us such a quality side. Over the last one year, we have had our share of injury problems, but thanks to our bench strength, we have been able to keep the winning habit intact. All these guys have made the most of the opportunities that have come their way, and they've always proved that they are worthy of wearing the Baggy Green. All of them are good enough to be regulars in any other team in world cricket. The tour of India will be a huge challenge for them as they will be bowling against some of the best batsmen in the world on flat wickets.
Fortunately, none of our batsmen are on the injury list and we will be landing in India with a line-up that has proved itself in all conditions, against all sides. At the top of the order will be Haydos (Matt Hayden), who created history just a fortnight ago. His fondness for Indian conditions is well-known. And with the way he's hitting the ball right now, one can expect many big scores from him this season. The rest of us are also fresh, keen and hungry after our layoff from one-day cricket. What's more, the fact that we don't have our regular strike bowlers is not going to put any pressure on us because we intend to go and bat like we always do instead of thinking about who is or is not in the dressing room.
The Indians too have an injury problem in the form of Saurav Ganguly's absence. His presence will be missed in the opening games—he's an outstanding contributor in the limited overs version. He has the second highest number of centuries in one-day cricket, which places him just a notch below Sachin Tendulkar on that list. He is one of the leading batsmen in one-day cricket, and it is never easy to lose your captain to injury at the start of a series. But it would be unwise to underestimate the Indian batting line-up, because there are enough match-winners even in the absence of Ganguly. Besides, the man who takes over the reins in his absence, Rahul Dravid, is also an experienced customer.
The Indians would also like to prove a point or two because this will be our first encounter since the World Cup finals. Also, our opening match would be the first of a series of encounters through the next three months, so both sides will be eager to start on a winning note.
The Kiwis have always played well against us, and I'm sure they will be keen to resume the trans-Tasman rivalry in this tri-series. I've always rated them as a top one-day side, which boasts of some high-quality all-rounders. They are also fresh from a superb performance against India in the Mohali Test, so they will have their tails up. The Kiwis have always played well against us and have put the Indians under pressure as well, so the road to the finals is not going to be an easy one for any of the sides.
Coming to India is always special because of the following the game enjoys here. The crowds and the enthusiasm takes getting used to, but once you do that, it's a great place to play cricket. There will be plenty of zig-zagging around the country, so it is also a test of one's stamina and adaptability to go through a seven-match series in the span of less than three weeks. However, most of us have been there and done that, and when we land in New Delhi, we will be a fresh hungry bunch hopeful of going back with the trophy.