Smith worries as Australia let rivals off the hook

Australiacaptain Steve Smith is worried about his team’s failure to convertpotentially winning positions into victories after losing the one-dayinternational series against India.The visitors went down to theVirat Kohli-led side by five wickets in Indore on Sunday after openerAaron Finch had blasted 124 to give Australia the edge.“We’re quiteoften getting ourselves into good positions and we’re not takingadvantage of those, and today was no different,” Smith said after thedefeat that left his side trailing 3-0 in the five-match series.“Wecontinually address it and it’s just hard to put the finger on exactlywhat it is we’re doing or not doing to get the results we’re after,” headded.Despite Finch’s knock, Australia ended on 293-6, too small ascore to defend at the batting-friendly Holkar Stadium. This was not thefirst time the visitors had let India off the hook in the series. Inthe opening match India were at one stage 87-5 but posted amatch-winning 281-7.“It’s been a bit of a trend for this format andthe Test format as well,” said a worried Smith. Australia have won justthree out of 17 matches across all three formats since a one-day seriesvictory at home against Pakistan in January.The current defeat wasAustralia’s 11th loss in their past 13 ODIs away from home – a worryingtrend for the team that is two months away from a home Ashes seriesagainst England.“It’s a different format (the Ashes) but I’dcertainly like to start winning some games of cricket in every format,to be honest,” said Smith.“We’ve got to start winning games ofcricket. We’ve lost 11 of our past 13 games we’ve played away with twono results, so that’s pretty ordinary. And not good enough from anAustralian cricket team.“So we need to start turning those resultsaround and winning some games of cricket,” he said. Former Australiafast bowler Michael Kasprowicz defended the team’s miserable run inIndia, saying it takes time adapting to sub-continent conditions.Thevisitors, who drew a tough Test series in Bangladesh 1-1 before thelatest one-day games, were undone by India’s wrist spinners – with theirbatting faltering at crucial moments.“In these conditions youexpect the Indian players to be the best... it’s a case of adapting yourskills to suit the conditions here and it takes time,” Kasprowicz saidin New Delhi.“It’s difficult, because the conditions are so different from what we get in Australia, so that’s part of the adjustment. “Obviouslythat’s something that you have got to do better and obviously with theAustralian coaching team and with the staff around they will be doingthat,” Kasprowicz, a Cricket Australia member, added.Injured Agar to miss last two India ODIsSpinnerAshton Agar has broken his finger and will miss the remaining twoone-day internationals against India, Cricket Australia said yesterday.The left-arm spinner injured his right little finger while fieldingduring the third ODI on Sunday.“Following the conclusion of thematch he went for X-rays which have confirmed a fracture of the finger,”team doctor Richard Saw said in a statement. “He will return home toAustralia and consult a specialist with a possibility of surgery.”Agar,23, was not included for the opening match against India in Chennai. Inthe next two games, he took two wickets while conceding 125 runs. Theselectors have not asked for a replacement in the 14-member Australiansquad for the matches in Bangalore and Nagpur on Thursday and Sunday.The teams will also play a three-match Twenty20 series starting October7.