AUS vs IND: Visitors to carry on with their policy of not playing any tour matches ahead of away Test series

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald has made it clear that the team will not be playing any tour matches in India ahead of the four-match Test series starting February 9 as he reckons that the players do not need any practice matches to get into the groove while playing in the challenging Indian conditions.

Notably, the Aussies did not play any tour matches during their away Test series against Pakistan which they eventually went on to win 1-0 in March last year. Furthermore, McDonald has mentioned that Australia will be departing to India about a week before the first Test match gets underway.

No tour game is something we’ve done in the last few series: Andrew McDonald

"No tour game is something we’ve done in the last few series, before embarking on overseas tours. We feel as though we don’t need that match practice as such. We’re going to go to India about a week out from the first game. We didn’t want to press for too much longer, in terms of the preparation,” said Andrew McDonald as quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald.

“We feel as though seven days is ample time to get ready and to make sure we maintain freshness throughout the whole four Test match series,” McDonald said. We had some success doing that, going to Pakistan. We had a shortened period on the ground there,” he added.

"We can be creative in our own conditions. We’ve done it before with the Pakistan build-up in Melbourne. Dusting up wickets. Fit for purpose. Working with the local groundsmen who really help us in and around the country. We feel as though we can get as close to that as possible without necessarily having a practice game,” he further added.

Australia will be eyeing their first Test series victory in India after the 2004/05 season where they had sealed the four-match series 2-1 under Adam Gilchrist. The Aussies had a good opportunity during their last visit in the 2016/17 season after they comprehensively won the series opener in Pune. Nonetheless, a spirited Indian team staged a remarkable comeback to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-1 margin.