Former Australian captain Michael Clarke has warned Australia ahead of the Test tour of India in early 2027. Clarke said Australia’s batsmen have struggled against quality spin bowling in recent years and suggested India should prepare turning pitches to exploit that weakness.
Michael Clarke’s comments came after India’s victory over Afghanistan in the one-off Test at the Maharaja Yadvendra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh. India declared their first innings at 564/8 and bowled out Afghanistan for 152 and 112, winning by an innings and 300 runs inside three days.
Australia have gone backwards against spin – Michael Clarke warns ahead of India tour
Speaking to RevSportz, Michael Clarke expressed concerns over Australia’s ability to handle spin bowling ahead of the Test tour of India in 2027. The former Australia captain said India’s spin attack could be the biggest challenge for the visitors and urged the hosts to prepare turning pitches.
“I think three spinners are a big threat. If I were India, I would have these turning wickets; there’s no doubt about that,” Clarke told RevSportz.
“Australia have struggled to play spin bowling. If anything, I think we’ve gone backwards, not forwards, when it comes to facing spin bowling. We’ve just lost a one-day series in Pakistan – again, the spinners got us out.”
Michael Clarke further added, “Our luxury is that we have Nathan Lyon, who is an amazing bowler, a world-class bowler. So, hopefully Lyon will be fit. We will need him here. We also have to find some other spin-bowling options, which we have got, but they have to work out who is the best. But I think Australia will have to be prepared to face a lot of spin when we come to India.”
He has everything he needs to succeed at the highest level – Michael Clarke on human improvement
Michael Clarke was impressed by Manav Suthar’s performance on Test debut and praised the young spinner’s skill set. The former Australia captain said Suthar has the qualities required to succeed in international cricket, including flow, control and variation.
“Any Test debut like this – it doesn’t matter who you play against – is impressive. The way he bowls is fantastic. He’s got that shape out of his hands, he gets the ball to drift. His skill at different lines, lengths, variations of pace… I think he’s got what it takes to be successful at the highest level, and he’s also got the age.”
“I think your debut is about feeling like you’re ready to play at the highest level. But if you really go out and do that, it really gives a lot of self-belief and self-belief. It goes from ‘I think I can’ to ‘I know I can’. And he definitely showed that.”
Suthar enjoys memorable debut against Afghanistan in Mullanpur. The left-arm spinner finished with figures of 7/62 in the match, including an impressive 6/33 in the first innings.
Australia will face a tough challenge in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2027.
The 2027 Border-Gavaskar Trophy will feature a five-Test series in India from January 21 to March 3. This series will be an important test for the new India team without the experienced Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin.
BCCI has selected Nagpur, Chennai, Guwahati, Ranchi and Ahmedabad as host venues. Guwahati will host the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test for the first time, while traditional venues like Mumbai and Bengaluru have been left out.
Australia will qualify as defending champions after winning the 2024–25 series 3–1. However, they are still looking for their first Test series win in India since 2004. India will rely heavily on captain Shubman Gill and the spinners to achieve victory.