Australia appoint Sridharan Sriram as spin consultant for India Test tour

In a bid to overcome spin troubles in India, Australia contracted all-rounder Sriram, who played eight ODIs between 2000 and 2004, and had previously worked with the Aussies during the World T20 in India last year and the tour of Sri Lanka.

"Sri has worked with us on a number of occasions now all across our pathway system and he is currently in Dubai with our Under-16 team providing his expertise on sub-continental conditions. He knows our players very well and has a wealth of knowledge on the conditions that our players will face in India,” Howard said.

Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Panesar, who picked up 17 wickets in England's 2-1 series win in India in 2012-13, will work with O'Keefe in preparation for the series.

"Having Monty come up is a nice way to kickstart the squad's thinking about playing in India. We want the batsmen to be thinking about what the bowlers will be trying to do to them over there and Monty can engage them that way as well as with the bowlers," Howard told The Australian.