Sydney, Jan.22 : Australian batsman Michael Hussey does not believe that opener Mathew Hayden is the difference between his side and what India has to offer on the cricket field in the current series, but adds that he is a key player.

Hussey does not believe Hayden is the key to winning the Adelaide Test.

"I hope he is not the difference. He's obviously one of our key players, a senior player, a great player for Australia for such a long time. But I think if we are pinning our hopes on Matthew Hayden playing or not, we might be in a bit of trouble. It would be great to have him back in the team. He's such a great fielder, such a great guy to have around the team, but I'm sure everyone in the team will want him to contribute rather than rely on one or two players," Fox Sports quoted Hussey, as saying.

Hussey further said India is proving to be one of the better travelling sides in world cricket, despite a poor performance in Melbourne.

"They've got a well balanced attack. It complements each other quite well. There's some good swing bowling there, some good pace there and good spinners. It's been a very tough Test series. I know we won pretty comfortably in Melbourne, but the Sydney Test was a really tough, hard-fought Test. The Perth Test was obviously a tough, hard-fought Test, and I'm sure Adelaide will be no different," he said.

While admiring India's swing trio, Hussey was not inclined to agree when asked if India had the best bowling group he had seen.

Ishant Sharma, R.P. Singh and Irfan Pathan are not the most experienced bowlers around, but Hussey said the Australians had done their homework on them and had not underestimated their ability.

"If you are playing Test cricket you are obviously a very, very good bowler or a very, very good cricketer. So everyone deserves plenty of respect," he said.

ANI