Five things India's batsmen need to keep in mind in Australia
Length is vital. The sooner you pick it and play accordingly, the more successful you will be
When you play against pace bowlers on Indian pitches, the first thing you need to decipher is the line. Since the bounce is generally lower than it is outside the subcontinent, it's important to play the right lines - you can only leave balls that are clearly outside off, and you want to be playing across the line only if you're certain that the ball is missing the leg stump.
While having a solid defensive game against bouncers is important in most Test matches, it's almost vital in Australia. The lack of pace and bounce on Indian pitches discourages the faster bowlers from digging in too short. So you can get away with a good attacking game and a not-so-efficient defence against bouncers. Also, in India the grounds aren't big enough to allow the bouncer trap to be executed well - even mishits end up going over the ropes.
The extra pace and bounce on Australian pitches make for positive shot-making, since the ball comes on to the bat nicely. But your shot selection needs to be spot-on; you must choose, and choose quickly, between vertical- and horizontal-bat shots for every delivery you face. On slow and low Indian pitches you get away with an angled bat, but that's a recipe for failure on pitches that offer more bounce and pace.
The low percentage of bowled and lbw dismissals above paints a certain picture, but that has little to do with the length and plenty to do with the extra bounce on Australian pitches
This won't count as an adjustment for Indian batsmen, because they are hardwired to be ready for the fuller delivery against pace. But when Indian batsmen tour down under, there's a lot of advice that comes their way telling them to work more on their horizontal-bat shots - the reason being that the Australian quick bowlers bowl the shorter length more often. This couldn't be further from the truth. The low percentage of bowled and lbw dismissals above paints a certain picture, but that has little to do with length and plenty to do with the extra bounce on Australian pitches. Most dismissals against pace, even in Australia, are while playing off the front foot, and so it's prudent to prepare for the full ball always. The short ball is used liberally to push the batsman back to set up a dismissal off the full ball, and seldom with the intent to take wickets through intimidation (unless you have shown a weakness against the short ball).
One big adjustment batsmen from the subcontinent need to make while playing against spin in Australia is to get the hands higher when playing the defensive stroke. Playing on pitches with low bounce, you often develop the habit of staying low while defending. In Australia that can lead to the ball hitting the shoulder of the bat or the gloves.
Aakash Chopra is the author of three books, the latest of which is The Insider: Decoding the craft of cricket. @cricketaakash