AUS vs IND: Cheteshwar Pujara expresses concerns about India's bowling attack ahead of MCG Test

Cheteshwar Pujara seemed a little twitchy about the Indian bowling attack and its ability to dismiss Australia twice ahead of the upcoming fourth Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT 2024-25), starting on Thursday, December 26. Pujara said that India's batting looks better than the bowling as there have been contributions from the middle and lower order to compensate for the struggles of the top-order batters.

However, the Saurashtra batter seemingly wasn't too confident about India's chances to pick up 20 Australian wickets in a Test match. He praised the fast-bowling troika of Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Deep, and Mohammed Siraj. But wasn't too happy with the performances of all rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Ravindra Jadeja.

“My biggest question and the reason for a little bit of concern is that the Indian bowling is looking a little weak. Batting is a little better, like the top five didn't do well, but the middle order and lower middle order, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitesh, and even tail enders, Bumrah and Akash Deep contributed with the bat. Now, there is a weakness in the bowling, so what will you feed the team? That is the biggest question, because you can't drop Nitish, you can't drop Jadeja, so what will be the team combination? Ashwin has taken retirement, so two spinners, I don't think they will play in Melbourne," Pujara said while speaking exclusively to Star Sports.

"So, how will you strengthen the bowling? Because the three seamers are very good, but their supporting role, fourth and fifth seamer, Nitesh Kumar is the fourth seamer and Ravindra Jadeja is the fifth bowler. If you add both of them together, the bowling is not that good. We will have to think about that, because if you want to win a test match, then you have to take 20 wickets, and the ability to take 20 wickets is not that good, the supporting role of the other bowlers is not good, so we will have to improve that as soon as possible, and how that will be, I don't know, but that is a big question," he added.

BGT 2024-25 series evenly poised at 1-1 ahead of Boxing Day Test

Meanwhile, speaking of the BGT 2024-25, the five-match series is intriguingly poised at 1-1. While Team India emerged victorious in Perth, Australia restored parity in Adelaide. The third Test in Brisbane turned out to be a draw to set things up nicely for the last two matches. Notably, the upcoming fourth test will be a 'Boxing Day' special event.

Also Read: AUS vs IND: MCG Curator backs Bumrah-friendly pitch, issues clarification on India practice pitch controversy

In the last two visits on the Australian shores, the Indian side tasted victory over Australia at the iconic venue. Hence the Indian team will look for a hattrick of wins in Melbourne, while the Australian side will look to restore their pride with their name etched against the win column in the upcoming fixture.