Sachin has best chance for 100th ton in Aus: Gilly

Bangalore: Australian cricketing legend Adam Gilchrist on Thursday said that batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has the best chance of scoring his 100th international century in the upcoming India-Australia series.

"Sachin has a very good chance of scoring his 100th ton in the series as he knows Australian conditions well. It is a matter of time he does that," he told reporters here. "However, the Australian bowlers would be unhappy to give it away to the Indian master to get his 100th international ton," Gilchrist said. Asked about calls for Ricky Ponting`s retirement, Gilchrist said his last two innings were extremely encouraging and was playing with freedom and skill that the world knows about him. "I am sure Ponting is feeling good about his game as he works hard on his batting. I think he is looking forward to India`s tour to Australia," Gilchrist said. On India`s chances in Australia, Gilchrist said it would an exciting series and both teams were evenly matched. "Whichever bowling attack dominates opponent batsmen will get gain advantage (of winning the series)," the legendary wicketkeeper-batsman said. Gilchrist said Australia would miss its strike bowler Mitchell Johnson. "Definitely it is a loss for us as he has the ability to change the course of a Test match. But at times he is inconsistent," he added. Gilchrist also said Pat Cummins has had an impressive debut against New Zealand, but how much his nonavailability (against India) would be a cause of worry is difficult to say. He also lavished praise on rookie Indian pacers Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav. "Varun and Umesh have impressed me in IPL. They have made a reasonable start to their international career," he said. On Harbhajan Singh, who would be missed in Australia, Gilchrist said, "Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha have performed well to keep Singh out." PTI