Former India spinner Sridharan Sriram, who has received widespread praise from India and Australia for helping the visiting Australians romp to a 333-win in the first Test in Pune, revealed that Steve Smith’s side have been opened to suggestions, and were well-prepared for the series, reported PTI.
Sriram, who is Australia’s cureent spin consultant, opined that it was not the name of the player but what he brings to the table that matters, “I don’t think the name really matters, does it? How does a name matter? I mean, I come in and if I talk sense they listen to me, if I talk bull**** they don’t. It’s as simple as that,”
“I think it’s taken time... They have really been open. That’s the best thing about this Australian team. They have been open to listening first. And then obviously I made sense a little bit and they started listening and they started trying out things in the nets and saw that it worked for them and I think that’s how it’s gone,” Sriram was quoted as saying by PTI.
Sriram, who represented India in eight One-day Internationals, lauded Australia head coach Darren Lehmann’s efforts in integrating him to the setup, and the freedom he is handed in giving suggestions to players, which didn’t include the spinners.
“I have a chat with everyone, it is not just the spinners, that is the freedom I get from my head coach which is amazing so I can chat to anyone if I feel there is something they should do, I go up to them and suggest and it is up to them if they implement it or not, some say no some say yes, I am willing to try and prolong the conversation,” Sriram added.
The former Tamil Nadu stalwart was credited with being the mastermind behind left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe picking up a historical 12/70 in the first Test. Sriram, in turn, pinned the 32-year-old Australian tweaker’s success to his ability to adapt, “Not necessarily change, more I would use the word ‘adapt’. Because India is such a big country, there’s no one-stop solution. If you say ‘this will work’, it is not going to work. So you have just got to adapt on the go. You have got to see what works for you on that day.
“And so I think that’s where O’Keefe really scored, because he was well-prepared. He was prepared to experiment, he was prepared to sort of try different things in the nets. Which goes back to our time in Chennai in 2015,” he said. “So, I think he knew that he had to come with an open mind for every day of a Test match. What works on day one may not work on day three. He knows that. I think that’s his biggest strength,” Sriram added.