Handscomb's plan for spin trial

Australia are expected to face a trial by spin in the UAE on the forthcoming Test tour against Pakistan and middle-order batsman Peter Handscomb is confident he has the game to conquer that challenge.

Handscomb is in India as part of Australia A’s one-day squad, which is set to play its first match tomorrow against India A after torrential rain washed out the early stages of the 50-over quad-series, causing it to be relocated to Bengaluru.

Following the one-day fixtures, Australia A face India A in two four-day matches – a pair of first-class games that will act as a selection trial for the Pakistan series to be played in October.

While runs in those matches will be worth their weight in gold, Handscomb already has some credits in the bank from his previous trips to the subcontinent in the Baggy Green.

On the 2017 tour of India, the Victorian made starts in all but one of his eight innings and his unbeaten 72 at Ranchi defied India’s dual spin threat of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for more than four hours.

His next visit to Asia was 12 months ago in Bangladesh, where again he made a start in every innings but passed 50 just once, a gusty knock of 82 in the grueling heat and humidity of Chittagong.

"I’ve had a bit of time in the subcontinent now and I feel like I’ve refined my game and my tactics to playing to spin over here," Handscomb said today.

"I took a lot of confidence (out of Bangladesh). I knew I could play spin relatively well, especially in Australia, but coming over to the subcontinent and actually be able to put a couple of knocks together and score some runs was a nice feeling personally.

"And it meant that I was able to have that confidence knowing my game is good enough to stand up against some of the best bowlers in the world in tough conditions."

A feature of Handscomb’s game against spin is his ability to use his feet to get to the pitch of the ball, as well as the full depth of his crease.

That approach, to dance down the wicket, is a product of hours spent in the nets with his father.

"My old man used to take me down to the nets and just throw balls and I had use my feet and find a way to deal with it," he said.

"It was pretty awesome to be able to do that with him.

"That started when I was about 10 to maybe 16 when I stopped having him as a coach and moved on to some other people."

He continued: "In terms of batting deep, that was something I worked on with a coach back in Victoria and that seemed to work for me for a while.

"But I know I’ve got to evolve as well and if that means I need to bat outside my crease or on my crease for certain periods and maybe go deep or forward again then I’ve got to be able to accept that and adapt."

In addition to using his feet and the depth of his crease, Handscomb has been practicing a shot Australians are not renowned for.

The sweep shot is an effective stroke to nullify spin bowling, one that was mastered by Test legend Matthew Hayden on the famous 2001 series in India where he could have been mistaken for using a broom and not a fine piece of English willow.

While Handscomb says the sweep shot is not for all conditions, it has been a focus of the Australians in recent times.

"With the bounce in Australia, I tend not to sweep too much there, just because it can tend to be a bit more dangerous and brings in some catching opportunities," he said.

"But with playing the sweep in the subcontinent, it’s something that we’ve trained.

"Before the (2017) Indian Test series we went to Dubai, had two weeks there, and really worked on finding ways to score runs and put the pressure back on the bowler.

"That was something we’ve found and we’ve done a lot of work with (spin consultant Sridharan Sriram) ‘Sri’, who’s a hell of a batter and bowler in his own right, so he knows what to look for and is really helping us all learn how to sweep, use our feet, play off the back foot, basically everything in the subcontinent."

Australia A Tour of India

Australia A one-day squad: Travis Head (c), Alex Carey (vc), Ashton Agar, Peter Handscomb, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Michael Neser, Joel Paris, Matthew Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, D'Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitch Swepson, Chris Tremain, Jack Wildermuth

Schedule

One-day fixtures

17 August v India A: Match abandoned

19 August v South Africa A: Match abandoned

21 August v India B: Match abandoned

23 August v India A

25 August v South Africa A

27 August v India B

29 August - Quad-Series Final

Australia A four-day squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Alex Carey (vc), Ashton Agar, Brendan Doggett, Peter Handscomb, Travis Head, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Michael Neser, Joel Paris, Kurtis Patterson, Matthew Renshaw, Mitch Swepson, Chris Tremain

Four-day fixtures in Vizag

2-5 September v India A

8-11 September v India A