<img title="Kim Hughes. Pic/AFP" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jan/18-kim-hughes.jpg" alt="Kim Hughes. Pic/AFP" /> Kim Hughes. Pic/AFP
For Kim Hughes, the signs are ominous for Steve Smith&rsquo;s Australian side who compete in a four-Test series in India next month. Hughes, who led Australia on their six-Test tour of India in 1979-80, reckoned India will prove to be too good for his countrymen in the series that kicks off in Pune on February 23.&nbsp;
&ldquo;India have a very balanced team. They have the best batting side in the world; they&rsquo;ve got depth in pace and spin bowling and R Ashwin is in a different league altogether. His ability is breathtaking and Ravindra Jadeja does a great job in keeping it tight. Plus, they are a good fielding unit,&rdquo; Hughes (62) told mid-day from Perth on Monday.
In fact, he said, &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t seen a stronger Indian team than this one. I watched the India vs England series on TV and I think Virat Kohli did an inspirational job as captain and his batting was absolutely sublime.&rdquo; Hughes played three Test series against India &ndash; 1977-78, 1980-81 in Australia and 1979-80 on Indian soil.
He carved a 100 in the very first Test of the 1979-80 series in Chennai where both teams played out a draw. Hughes hoped the current Australian team could prevent India from winning the first Test at Pune. &ldquo;You are on a hiding to nothing and could lose all four Tests if you don&rsquo;t get off to a good start,&rdquo; said Hughes. He reasoned that there are no tour games like in previous years to help players get back in form.
&ldquo;You can bat in the nets, but that&rsquo;s not the same as playing a side game and the tour could be over even before it&rsquo;s begun,&rdquo; he said, recalling the tour of 1979-80 when his players had two warm-up games before the series and several tour games in between the Tests.
Hughes did not point to any blatant omissions in the India-bound squad, but felt that the large amount of left-handed batsmen would be fodder for off-spinner Ashwin. &ldquo;We have six to seven left-handers and that will create an issue with Ashwin coming around the wicket and bowling into the rough,&rdquo; he said.
On the bowling front, Hughes was confident rookie leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson will give a good account of himself. &ldquo;Swepson turns it, but he&rsquo;s not going to get too many games. The Indians play spin very well and they&rsquo;ll get after Glenn Maxwell and Nathan Lyon,&rdquo; Hughes said.
The 1979-80 series saw Hughes scoring 594 runs at 59-40 with one century and 50-plus scores of 86, 50, 92, 64, and 80. He takes pride in the fact that India could beat his &ldquo;very young and inexperienced team&rdquo; only twice and the most important takeaway from a personal point of view was that he became better at playing spin. &ldquo;I was a very good player of spin in Australia, but I was a lot, lot better player of spin after I toured India. Generally, you came away from an India tour not only a better cricketer, but also a better person. I loved touring India and I recommend anyone to go there.&rdquo;
Recalling his century in Chennai during the 1979-80 tour, Hughes said: &ldquo;Madras is the hottest I&rsquo;ve played cricket in. I remember the Indian players being affected more by the heat because they had just returned from their 1979 tour of England. I also remember the saying we put up - &lsquo;To lose patience is to lose the battle.&rsquo; &rdquo;

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Former Australian skipper Kim Hughes reckons Team India led by Virat Kohli will prove that they are too good for Steve Smith &amp; Co in next month's four-match Test series

Haven't seen a stronger Indian team than this one: Ex-Aussie skipper Kim Hughes

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Home / Sports / Cricket / Article / Haven't seen a stronger Indian team than this one: Ex-Aussie skipper Kim Hughes

Haven't seen a stronger Indian team than this one: Ex-Aussie skipper Kim Hughes

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