HYDERABAD (India), March 1: After their morale-boosting win in the opening Test, India will look to strengthen their position in the four-match series by putting up another dominant performance in the second cricket Test against Australia which starts here on Saturday.

After putting the visitors on the mat, riding on Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s individual brilliance and an equally impressive show from off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, the home team would aim to guard against complacency having learnt their lesson the hard way from the England series.

Dhoni’s men would be determined to ensure that Australians aren’t let off the hook like Alastair Cook’s England, who rallied to win the previous Test series 2-1.

The Indian captain’s superlative effort in Chennai could well turn into a series defining knock and his leading from the front is the shot in the arm that the team required as they were not performing as per expectations in the longer format.

The last time India played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, they inflicted a humiliating innings and 115-run defeat on New Zealand with Ashwin grabbing 12 for 85.

That particular match which ended on the fourth day could well have ended inside three days had weather not played spoilsport on the curtailed second and third day.

Therefore, India will certainly not deviate from their ‘turning track template’ and Ashwin and company will certainly have a huge role to play again as the hosts look to go for the kill.

A 2-0 lead will not only push the Aussies back to the wall but it will also ensure that making a comeback in the series will be practically impossible for the visitors.

India also have lesser worries regarding the team composition save whether they would be playing Pragyan Ojha on his home ground. Even though both Murali Vijay and Virender Sehwag flopped in Chennai, India are unlikely to tinker with the opening combination.

But bowling is one area where Dhoni will need to put in some thought. While Ojha is a far better left-arm spinner than Ravindra Jadeja, the all-rounder did his cause no harm by picking five wickets in the first Test and complementing Ashwin well. Harbhajan Singh wasn’t at his best in the first innings but looked like hitting some form in the second innings where he got important wickets of David Warner and Matthew Wade.

Playing four spinners can be a luxury as was proved during the Nagpur Test against England as Piyush Chawla was the one who was underused in both innings.

Australia, on the other hand, will certainly be tempted to play a second specialist spinner but even skipper Michael Clarke knows it all too well that neither Nathan Lyon is of Graeme Swann’s class nor does left-arm spinner Xavier Doherty possess the calibre of a Monty Panesar. While Doherty’s performance was the best among the spinners during practice games, Glenn Maxwell will be in the selection radar considering he is a capable batsman.

With Australia’s middle-order batting performing below expectations, a few changes could be expected. Phillip Hughes’ way of countering spin wouldn’t have inspired the highest level of confidence. Usman Khawaja is Hughes’ direct replacement but there remains a possibility that Shane Watson would be pushed to the No 3 slot, fitting in Maxwell in the middle-order.

This move will also give the Aussies a chance to push in Doherty by dropping either Peter Siddle or Mitchell Starc. The bottom line for Australia, however will remain how well Clarke bats.

Australia would want that Clarke, who is in arguably their best player of spin bowling, leads the charge once again.

Watson is a vital cog in the Aussie set-up and his performance with the willow will certainly have a lot of impact in the remainder of the series.

Moises Henriques’ lion-hearted effort must have given Clarke the confident feeling of not only having a batsman adept in handling the Indian spinners but also a steady wicket-to-wicket medium pacer which gives the skipper chance to play around with his options.

Teams (from):

INDIA: Virender Sehwag, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda, Pragyan Ojha, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane.

AUSTRALIA: Ed Cowan, David Warner, Phil Hughes, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke (captain), Matthew Wade, Glenn Maxwell, Moises Henriques, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Xavier Doherty, Jackson Bird, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith.

Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (Sri Lanka) and Marais Erasmus (South Africa). TV umpire: S. Ravi (India). Match referee: Chris Broad (England).—Agencies