Tim Paine says the Australian team has banded together to rectify its second Test mistakes in time for Thursday's third Test at the SCG.<\/p>\n
In a column for The Daily Telegraph, the Australian skipper said in sport wanting to win badly can be a detriment to performance, with rational thinking out the window.<\/p>\n
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RELATED:<\/strong><\/em> 'Steve Smith coaches himself': Australia coach Justin Langer leaving wizardly batsman to find own way out of form slump.<\/a><\/p>\n "You want it so badly, you want to be winning and maybe you try too hard," Paine, 36, wrote. "I think we tried too hard, sometimes you just have to play the game."<\/p>\n "When you try too hard you are in a bit of a rush rather than slowing down and winning parts of the game.<\/p>\n "If you string together small wins, all of a sudden you win a session, then you win the day and maybe another day, but it starts with focusing on the moment."<\/p>\n India tied the series at 1-1 last week, with a decisive eight-wicket victory in the second match at the MCG.<\/p>\n Paine blamed his team's error-inducing hastiness for the loss, which he said left them "disappointed, but not devastated."<\/p>\n "We were just in a little bit of a hurry (in Melbourne) at the start and let them take control… It was more through our mistakes than their brilliance \u2013 they batted and bowled well enough, but if we had eliminated our errors we would have been in a different position," Paine wrote.<\/p>\n He added that the talks he has had privately with the struggling top six will add impetus to the team's bid to get on top of India.<\/p>\n RELATED:<\/strong><\/em> 'We all have a choice': Justin Langer's swipe at India over hotel quarantine concerns.<\/a><\/p>\n "A lot of talk goes on among the group between games about bowlers, the field placements and things we can do better," he revealed.<\/p>\n "We've got a lot better at sharing each other's plans and that makes it easy in the middle when batting.<\/p>\n "If I know what Marnus or Smithy or whoever else I'm batting with is trying to do to a certain bloke, then I can feed in to that strategy on the spot."<\/p>\n Speaking to media today, Paine further enticed fans into the Aussie side's plans to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which is currently held by India thanks to their historic away series win in 2018\/19.<\/p>\n He confirmed star opener David Warner will make a return from his groin injury, which ruled him out of the first two Tests. Warner will replace Joe Burns, who was dropped after failing to turn a dismal summer around in the first two Tests against India.<\/p>\n Paine also dropped hints that there would be more than one change to the team's XI.<\/p>\n "We've got a team but we're just not releasing it at the moment," Paine said in a media conference this morning.<\/p>\n "The boys are still training so we'll get through that first, unscathed and then we'll try to get a team out as quickly as we can after that.<\/p>\n "Obviously with David (Warner) playing and potentially more, there's some conversations that need to be had first."<\/p>\n Uncapped 22-year-old Will Pucovski is likely to make his international debut. He took part in an optional training session at the SCG this morning.<\/p>\n If Pucovski is included to open the innings alongside Warner it will be the first time the pair have played together at first-class level.<\/p>\n Paine hinted the experience of Warner would make that task easier.<\/p>\n "I love having him around, he brings a different intensity, a different energy and he breeds confidence," Paine wrote.<\/p>\n "He is one of those blokes as I've always said that makes others walk taller. He has made an immediate impact on our group with his energy, his intensity \u2026 we feed off that."<\/p>\n As for tomorrow's Test, Paine is confident that Australia will come out on top, and regardless of the newly introduced COVID restrictions, he is proud to still be playing the great game.<\/p>\n "The SCG Test is an opportunity and one we're looking forward to," he said.<\/p>\n "It's great that there will be crowds, even limited numbers \u2013 it's great to be in the middle of an intense series and we are just so lucky to be playing cricket at all."<\/p>\n For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by<\/em><\/strong> clicking here!<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n
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