Australia turn to Bedi

Krejza and Bedi consult

The Australian manager requested me to come and have a chat with the bowlers and that's why I'm here. We discussed spin, flight and guiles that a spinner must have in his armoury.

Bishen Singh Bedi
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Australia have been taking some lessons in spin bowling from legendary Indian spinner Bishen Singh Bedi, as they prepare for the third Test in Delhi.

The tourists trail the home side 1-0 in the four-Test Border-Gavaskar series after they were thumped by 320 runs in the second Test in Mohali.

Australia's batsmen failed to come to terms with India's combination of spin and swing and the bowlers also struggled, conceding 469 runs in the first innings and 314 in the second.

In a bid to turn the corner, the tourists have turned to Bedi for assistance.

Rookie leg-spinner Cameron White, who has four wickets in the series so far, was spotted chatting with Bedi in the nets on Sunday.

Off-spinner Jason Krejza, yet to play in the series after going wicket-less in a warm-up game, also took tips from Bedi, who claimed 266 wickets from 66 Tests with his deadly left-arm spin.

"The Australian manager (Steve Bernard) requested me to come and have a chat with the bowlers and that's why I'm here," Bedi said.

"We discussed spin, flight and guiles that a spinner must have in his armoury."

Bedi said the Aussies must consider playing Krejza as New Delhi's Feroz Shah Kotla track would assist finger spinners.

"I think they will have to play Jason. They need a finger spinner.

Commitment

"After (Shane) Warne there is a big void, there is no doubt about that, but I think some of these youngsters can take responsibility with a bit of commitment."

Whilst Australia's spin options may be limited, the home side have the opposite problem, grappling with an abundance of riches after debutant Amit Mishra's seven-wicket haul in the Mohali game.

Mishra, who played only because leg-spin veteran Anil Kumble pulled out on the morning of the game with a shoulder injury, will have to wait to know his fate as Kumble, 36, has declared his fitness and willingness to play.

Kumble's record at the ground - he has 55 wickets at a rate of just 15.41 in six Tests including 10 in a single innings against Pakistan in 1999 -- could turn the scales in his favour.

Groundsman Radhey Shyam Sharma has promised a pitch that will suit Kumble's style of bowling.

"I've always made wickets that suit Kumble, and this time it won't be any different," said the 73-year-old Sharma.

Assistance

"This wicket will give some assistance to seamers initially but the spinners can come into play as early as on the third morning.

"There will be no dust on the wicket but the ball will tend to grip the pitch and get more turn. There will be a bit of uneven bounce with the wear and tear," he said.

If the pitch behaves as predicted, the Indians, who have won their past six Tests in Dehli, look to have a good chance of adding to their tally.

The first Test of the series, in Bangalore, was drawn.