'It took us a third tour to figure out how to win in India'

Legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne threw his weight behind Australia coach Mickey Arthur, saying it would be unfair to make the South African the scapegoat for the team's poor showing on the ongoing tour of India.

"It will unfair to say that Mickey Arthur should be sacked. It's like making him a scapegoat for the poor performance of the Australian team.

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"I would like to see a combination of old school and new together, and all of them should have played cricket at some level – not rugby, not tennis; basically, someone who has played the game to understand the game and be successful," said Warne.

Backing Arthur's decision to suspend four Aussie players ahead of the third Test in Mohali, the 43-year-old former spin ace said one should look at the situation in totality and not isolation.

"If you see the incident in isolation you will find the punishment was ridiculous. But I am sure there must have been many more things in the lead up to the expulsion," Warne said.

The leg-spinner, however, felt the visitors would have learnt a lot from the tour and will emerge better players come the Ashes.

"Australia will learn a lot from the tour. We have to understand most of them are touring here for the first time. I'm hoping that the youngsters will learn a lot from the series and become better players come the Ashes and Champions Trophy.

"Also, you have to keep in mind that Indians have been simply fantastic in the series. The Indians are playing exceptional, hard cricket, and their youngsters are performing really well... the likes of Shikhar Dhawan, (Cheteshwar) Pujara... all have performed.

"You have to realize that Australians don't play in this sort of conditions. When I played here, it took us two tours to understand how to win here. 1998 and 2001 were all excellent tours, great matches, but it took us a third tour to figure out how to win here," he added.

Warne felt the visitors will play for pride in the fourth and final Test, commencing in Delhi on Friday.

"The Australians would obviously be disappointed with the loss and would like to make amends, whereas India will look to go for clean sweep.

"But, having said that, it's been very hard on the youngsters to adjust, and, like I said, they will become better players by playing in such conditions.

"They won't realize it now, but the next tournament they play, they will realize it. They are better players than what they have shown in here," he added.

He also expressed hope that injured Michael Clarke will be available for the match.

"Let's hope that Clarke is fit, as he is one of the best batsmen of the world. Along with Hashim Amla and Alastair Cook, he is one of the top-3 in the world -- so I'm hoping his back is okay," said Warne.

Quizzed about the increased role of coaches in the Aussie camp, Warne was quick to say that it's up to the skipper to choose a side.

"Every international team has a coach, but it's the captain who should have his team when he walks on to the pitch. If that's not happening then it should happen. Clarke should get the team that he wants."