Border-Gavaskar Trophy: 3 player battles to watch out for

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy series will start on February 9 and fans are anticipating a cracker of a series between the two sides who are hot favorites to make it into the finals of the World Test Championship.

India currently hold the prestigious Border-Gavaskar Trophy thanks to their historic 2-1 series win in Australia, where they emerged victorious even without some of their biggest stars.

In what promises to be a mouth-watering contest between the top teams, there will be certain battles between players who will grab people's eyeballs in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and their clashes will be ones for the ages.

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3 player battles to watch out for in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy

#1 Virat Kohli vs Pat Cummins

Virat Kohli's lean patch is a thing of the past now, and the batsman has been making up for lost time by scoring centuries for fun.

Although he has been prolific in white-ball cricket in recent times, his red-ball form still has some question marks.

But we all know what Kohli is capable of, as he demonstrated when he roared back into form. We should expect nothing short of exemplary performances from the former Indian captain, who will be more than eager to stamp his authority on the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Pat Cummins, on the other hand, hasn't played any competitive cricket since the South Africa series and will be hoping to regain his form as soon as possible. The premier pacer and Australian captain bowls consistently around 140–145 kph. However, his accuracy and consistency are his biggest assets. He can swing the ball both ways and can get seam movement off the deck as well.

In their head-to-head record against each other, Kohli has managed to score 82 runs in 247 deliveries against Cummins, and averages just 16.4, with the bowler getting him out five times.

It will make for an entertaining watch when two of the best in the business clash in the upcoming edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Cummins acknowledged the challenge of bowling to an in-form Kohli but is relishing the prospect of facing the Indian batting ace.

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#2 Cheteshwar Pujara vs Nathan Lyon

What's one of the main reasons behind India's victories in the 2017, 2018, and 2021 editions of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy? Cheteshwar Pujara.

Pujara's ability to grind the Australian bowlers down was one of the main reasons that allowed the other batsmen to play their natural game.

Just look at the overs bowled by Australian bowlers in 2018's four Test matches: Mitchell Starc - 138.5 overs, Josh Hazlewood - 152.1 overs, and Pat Cummins - 145 overs.

So it wasn't a surprise when Nathan Lyon, who himself bowled 242.1 overs in the 2018 tour of India, revealed that their pre-series focus was largely on Pujara.

Pujara is one of the few players who can play spin bowling without much trouble. His main strength while playing spin is that he uses his crease very well. That's why he has mostly dominated Lyon in his test career so far.

He has scored 521 runs against the Australian spinner in 1,158 deliveries. Lyon did manage to scalp him 10 times, but with a strike rate of 45.00 and an average of 52.1, it's safe to say that Pujara has the upper hand for now.

One of Pujara's tactics is to come down the track and blunt Lyon's deliveries. Lyon also tried to counter him by bowling wide on the off-side to check his scoring options.

He also tries to bowl at different speeds and lines, expecting Pujara to step down at every second ball, countering his game plan.

There's always a cat and mouse game going on between the two, and it would be interesting to see who wins the mental game between these two in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

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#3 Steve Smith vs Ravindra Jadeja

If you look at this battle closely, it will give you the feeling of a paradox.

Steve Smith was once supposed to be the next Shane Warne when he made his Test debut as a leg-spinner against Pakistan and batted at No. 8. He is now considered one of the greatest Australian batters in Test cricket.

Ravindra Jadeja's Test debut came on the back of his triple century in first-class cricket. He is now touted as one of the best all-rounders who can run through the opposition with his left-arm spin and provide great depth to the batting with his ever-improving skills.

Both started their Test journeys on different paths, but then succeeded in opposing disciplines in the game.

Now, if we talk about them facing each other in red-ball cricket, it's quite finely balanced. Smith has managed to score 181 runs against Jadeja in 534 balls at an average of 45.2 but at a below-par strike rate of 33.9, with the southpaw scalping him four times.

It is pretty clear from those stats that Smith has been able to score runs against the left-arm spinner, but he has had to grind hard for his runs.

With Jadeja returning from an injury and Smith coming in with consecutive twin centuries in the BBL, it will be interesting to see who will have the bragging rights after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.