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Whichever team remains injury-free will win the tour: Adam Gilchrist

Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist reckons the team, which remains injury-free, will go on to win the much-anticipated India-Australia series Down Under.

New Delhi: Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist reckons the team, which remains injury-free, will go on to win the much-anticipated India-Australia series Down Under.
"It will be quite difficult to predict the result. I think both the teams are evenly matched, particularly when it comes to the batting department. On the bowling front, though, whichever team plays full strength and remains injury-free will go a long way in winning the series," Gilchrist said. The former Aussie great had earlier mentioned that the series will provide India with an opportunity to register their first-ever victory in Australia as the hosts have been going through a transitional period. His views were endorsed by Andrew Symonds who felt that India can put pressure on the young and inexperienced Australian bowling line-up to earn a favourable result. "Indians can put pressure on the young Australian players. They have a good opportunity to beat Australia in their home country. I think there are good chances of India beating them," Symonds had suggested. Gilchrist meanwhile said that the on-field rivalry between the teams was "gaining a bit of history" since Australia`s series loss to hosts India in early 2001. "It was one of the best Test series ever. It set a terrific rivalry between the teams. The build-up to the forthcoming series is exciting," the left-hander, one of the all-time best wicketkeeper-batsmen, revealed during a promotional event here today. Gilchrist was all praise for off-spinner Harbhajjan Singh, who was left out of the tour by the Indian selection committee, saying that he is a "unique character" and one who has a lot of appetite for making a fightback. "Harbhajjan is a wonderful guy to play with. His fighting spirit is really admirable. I don`t know the reasons why he was not picked but he will be definitely missed from the series," he said. The cricketer, however, said the two spinners on tour -- Pragyan Ojha and Ravichandran Ashwin -- have set a high standard and felt that "they deserved their place in the team". PTI