<img title="Australia captain Steven Smith inspects the third Test track support staff members look on in Ranchi yesterday. LEFT: India captain Virat Kohli during a practice session" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/mar/Ranchipitch16.jpg" alt="Australia captain Steven Smith inspects the third Test track support staff members look on in Ranchi yesterday. LEFT: India captain Virat Kohli during a practice session" />Australia captain Steven Smith inspects the third Test track support staff members look on in Ranchi yesterday. LEFT: India captain Virat Kohli during a practice session. Pics/PTI
From the time the Australians saw the dry track for the first Test in Pune, invariably all discussions have revolved around the 22-yard strip. Before the Aussies kicked off their tour, India played nine Test matches at home this season &mdash; five against England, three against New Zealand and one against Bangladesh &mdash; but talk of the pitch never reached such decibels.
On the other hand, India never complained about the wicket despite suffering their solitary loss at home this season. As a matter of fact, skipper Virat Kohli refused to even look at the track on match eve here and preferred to focus on his methods. But like on all previous occasions, the entire Australian entourage, led by their skipper Steven Smith, spent a lot of time inspecting the wicket here too. There was plenty of touching and finger- pointing happening next to the pitch. The inspection went on for close to 15 minutes before the groundsmen were finally advised to cover it.
<img title="Virat Kohli" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/mar/Kohli16.jpg" alt="Virat Kohli" />Virat Kohli
"When we came to India we knew we would confront some difficult pitches. The wickets in the first two Tests were tough but we adopted some good plans and it will be the same here" said Smith.
With the amount of preparation the Australians have done prior to the series and given that they pulled off a remarkable win at Pune, it is difficult to understand all the fuss about the wicket. When asked if Australia can just ignore the look of the wicket and get on with the game, Smith said, "I don&rsquo;t think forgetting the wicket is the right way of looking at it. You need to know what to expect and plan accordingly."

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