With an eye to improve the national team’s dismal sub-continental record, Cricket Australia was mulling the idea of importing soil from India to install Asian-style practice pitches at the National Cricket Centre. 

Australia holds a woeful record in sub-continent, the latest being their 0-4 thrashing in India last year. Since their tour to Bangladesh in 2006, Australia have played 13 Tests in Asia out of which they have had only one win. Australia’s next Test series is against Pakistan in the UAE later this year and adapting to spin-friendly tracks will be key to their success.

“Our toughest challenge in the last few years has been finding success away from home,” said Clarke. “We didn’t play well in India. I don’t know, but I am guessing the wickets in Dubai will be similar. I am guessing they will prepare spin-friendly wickets and they will have two or three spinners in their teams. We have to find a way to get better. That is one of our great challenges as a Test team,” he said.

Although the Indian-style pitches are unlikely to be installed in time to prepare Australia for their series against Pakistan, Cricket Australia’s General Manager of team performance Pat Howard hoped they would be in place by the end of the coming summer.  “A third of all our matches are in the sub-continent and so we’ve got to deal with it,” Howard said. 

“While we do practise here against spin, we know it’s not as real as being there. We’re never going to make it exactly the same, but we’re going to try and get as close as we can. The subcontinent (pitch) idea has been around for a long time and we’re very much trying to make this a place where in the middle of winter, our guys can get themselves ready and prepared,” he added.