'We don't struggle against pace anymore,' Ashwin's huge claim after Australia announce Perth as first test venue

Ashwin has been part of two famous test series victories in Australia in 2018-19 and 2020-21.

Veteran Indian off-spinner Ravi Ashwin has made a huge remark after Cricket Australia (CA) announced the schedule and venues for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with Perth’s Optus Stadium hosting the first test on November 22.

Australia generally choose either Adelaide or Brisbane as the venue for the opener, but this time they have switched to Perth to welcome the visitors with some fiery short bowling, as Perth traditionally offers good pace and bounce to seamers.

The Indian cricket team have emerged victorious in their last two test series in Australia (2018-19 and 2020-21) and since 2017 India hold the prestigious trophy with them. Now, Ashwin feels that the days of India being haunted by pace is a thing of the past.

“Perth on Day 1 generally tends to start off slow and that’s why Australia always win the toss and bat first. I think they do that all the time. But, what doesn’t change is that people are not really struggling for pace. You will not find an Indian travelling side that is coming to Australia and struggling against pace,” Ashwin said on the Club Prairie Fire podcast.

“They might take a couple of hits on the helmet because the wicket quickens up on Day 2 and 3, but I think gone are those times when people are surprised. The cricketers that I am seeing coming through over the last decade or two are those who want to get hit on the head and take it on. That’s why you see that the Indian teams who travel abroad have produced results,” Ashwin added.

Ravi Ashwin backs young Indian players ahead of mighty Australia test challenge

Ahead of the five-match test series against the Aussies, the senior off-spinner backed young Indian players, who first leveled the away South Africa series (1-1) and then hammered England at home in the five-match test series (4-1). 

“We literally had half the experience that South Africa had when we played that test match in Centurion. So many guys were playing in SA for the first time. We got hammered in Centurion, but in Cape Town we were able to pull things back. It’s the belief and the ability and also not taking a backward step. These guys have it and make no mistake that the kind of test cricket we have played over the last decade and the kind of things that we have said, has definitely had a bearing on them,” Ashwin said.

India’s tour of Australia 2024-25 fixtures:

1st Test- November 22-26: Perth Stadium, Perth (D)

2nd Test- December 6-10: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (D/N)

3rd Test- December 14-18: The Gabba, Brisbane (D)

4th Test- December 26-30: MCG, Melbourne (D)

5th Test- January 3-7: SCG, Sydney (D)

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