Australian cricket team lands in Mumbai ahead of Test series; forced to board own luggage onto bus

What’s the story?

The Australian cricket team landed in Mumbai on Monday as they prepare to take on India in a four-match Test series which begins on February 23^rd in Pune. However, they had to deal with a strange situation upon their arrival at the Chhatrapati Sivaji International Airport yesterday.

Instead of baggage handlers taking care of their bags, the cricketers themselves were seen loading their bags onto the team bus which was responsible for transporting their kits to the hotel.

In case you didn’t know...

Australia last toured India in 2012-13 where they got hammered 4-0. India are in sublime form at the moment as they have not lost their previous 19 Tests and just recently defeated Bangladesh by 208 runs in a one-off Test which was held at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium in Hyderabad.

Extra Cover: Most consecutive Test matches without defeat

Meanwhile, Australia have had a lot of ups and downs over the past few months. After losing to South Africa at home in a three-match Test series back in November 2016, they bounced back and defeated Pakistan 3-0 in the Test series at home.

The heart of the matter

Former Indian cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi was appalled at the matter and vented out his feeling on social media platform, Twitter. However, the BCCI responded to the matter by saying that it was not their job to ensure the loading of the baggage, but it was in fact the job of the support staff members and not the hosting cricket board.

What’s next?

Having been whitewashed the last time they visited India, the Kangaroos will be looking to put on a better show this time around. They have struggled against spinners in the recent past and with Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja leading the spin bowling attack, the Aussies will surely have their task cut-out. Meanwhile, Kohli and his men will be looking to further improve their unbeaten streak and look to inflict another whitewash on the Australians.

The first Test will take place in Pune from February 23t to 27th after which the teams will travel to Bangalore for the second Test which begins on March 4^th. The final two Tests. meanwhile, are scheduled to take place in Ranchi and Dharamsala.

Sportskeeda’s take

The Australian cricket team might have got some good exercise while boarding their own bags onto the team bus, but the incident was unfortunate and sufficient arrangements should have been made by the required teams to ensure proper management of the bags.

It will be extremely interesting to see whether India would be able to continue their home dominance against the Kangaroos. They have been on a role off late and Steve Smith’s side would have to come up with an inspired performance in order to dent India’s hopes for another series win.