Australia spinner Nathan Lyon has talked about the track that would be provided for the first Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi.
“We’re actually training about three pitches over on the centre wicket (block) and it wasn’t spinning that much,” Lyon said on Wednesday (March 2). “I know we’ve got a little bit more grass on the wicket we’re training on compared to what looks like the match wicket. The (Test) surface looks similar to a UAE wicket at the moment. There’s not much grass on it, I daresay it’s going to be pretty shiny come day one. So I’m expecting it to be pretty nice to bat on for the first couple of days then look for it to hopefully spin, and reverse swing may come into it.”
“Both Mitch and Ash are bowling extremely well, and if you look at our top order we’ve got guys like Marnus (Labuschagne) and Smithy (Steve Smith) and Travis (Head) who can bowl spin as well.
“So we’re very lucky in that area, and it’s not just this tour we’re focused on. It’s a massive 12 months for the Australian cricket team and we’ve got a lot of subcontinent tours in Pakistan, Sri Lanka (later this year) and into India (early 2023) as well. “So there will be a lot of opportunity for not just myself and Sweppo to stand up, but other players as well.”
“We haven’t played an away Test since 2019 so it’s going to be a big challenge,” he said. “But it’s a very young, exciting Australian Test squad we’ve got here and we’re coming off a pretty spectacular summer at home that’s given the group a lot of confidence. We’re working hard, we’re training hard and I’m going into this Test series … to win three-nil, that’s purely just my mindset.”
