The second edition of the World Test Championship will be upon us in about 3 months from now. India and Australia will compete for the title. For Australia, who has won everything under the sun, this is the only ICC Trophy that hasn’t adorned their glittering cabinet. As for India, it has been more than 10 years since they won any ICC tournament. They have come close only to fall in the last or penultimate hurdle. In terms of a recent big tournament win, Australia is ahead of India. They won the World T20 as recently as 2021. What must India do to win the WTC finals? The WTC finals an Indian perspective.
Let us get onething straight. Australia will be the odds-on favourite in the finals. They have an extensive knowledge of the English conditions and with The Ashes scheduled to commence in July, one would assume that they will have all the bases covered for the England tour and that includes the WTC finals. Another important factor in favour of Australia is that most of their main bowlers have had decent enough breaks. Either forced or because of injury. Cummins missed the last couple of Tests in India whereas Starc, the first couple. Hazlewood the entire series. Lyon will not be part of the IPL and hence will have an extended break.
The pressure on India will be enormous. They will have to cover every possible base to be in prime condition for the finals. Against an Australian side who will eager to avenge the multiple series losses over the last several years, India will not only have to be in peak form but will also have to be mentally strong. I have tried to identify the 5 aspects that the team and the board must take care of inorder to win the finals.
Rahane is back but why?
Ajinkya Rahane, the much-beleaguered Indian batsman, is back in the Indian squad for the WTC final in England in June. First, it was Pujara and now, it is Rahane. Both the batsmen were dropped after the disastrous series in South Africa when it was no longer tenable to continue with the senior cricketers who were past their prime. The struggles of both Rahane and Pujara were simply unbearable, to say the least. Both of them were part of some historic wins. They have contributed handsomely. However, over the last 4 years, the runs have dried and so have the wins alongwith Kohli’s form. It was left to the bowlers to perform Houdini act most of the time and they weren’t successful. Now, Rahane is back in the Indian team.
It must be remembered that not long ago, Rahane was completely removed from the Indian players contract. He did not even find a spot in Category C. At that time, I had written that despite his being dropped, he must still be given a contract because it wasn’t that long ago. Never did I imagine that Rahane will find his way back into the squad.
A pitch that will help bowlers
The pitch will carry a lot more bounce than usual. ICC over the last several tournaments has ensured that the bowlers have a fair amount of support from the surface. That is the reason it is not that easy to find scores of over 325 that easily in ICC ODI tournaments when on the same ground, in other bilateral games, teams would have easily scored more than 350 and still felt vulnerable.
As such, it calls for 6 proper batsmen with 4 bowlers being enough. A youngster could have utilised this opportunity to play alongwith a Kohli or Rohit or Pujara to understand the nuances of the game at the highest level. Afterall, 5 experienced batsmen could easily shield a youngster. Now that chance has gone unutilised.
Swing bowlers
This is where India is likely to struggle. English conditions are known to help the swing bowlers. Especially, when the clouds rollover. India is severely restricted on this front. Shami, Siraj & Umesh, who are likely to form the attack, are essentially hit the deck bowlers. More suited for the bounce of Australia and South Africa. Unfortunately, the decline of Bhuvneshwar Kumar has left a huge void. With his bowling skills and his ability with the bat, he could have been an asset in England.
Get the team combination perfect
This is imperative. In 2021, the team combination was flawed. On a seaming pitch under overcast conditions, India went in with two spinning all-rounders. Neither of them was required to bowl a lot of overs and as such, Kohli was limited to just 3 medium pace bowlers. How he would have loved to have a 4th seamer who could have kept the pressure on from one end?
The pitch at The Oval is likely to be similar to the Rose Bowl. The curator is likely to leave a lot of grass on the pitch. I am thinking along these lines because being an ICC event, it is they who will have a say on the pitch preparation. Neither India nor Australia or not even England will have any role to play. If the past events are anything to go by, ICC has tended to prepare a pitch that will help the bowlers. The Oval is usually the flattest pitch in England but in ICC tournaments, it is unlikely to be.
Also, being early June, rain cannot be ruled out and hence overhead conditions will enable the ball to move. It will not be a typical Oval pitch where the batsmen prevail and the bowlers struggle.
I do not think that there is a need for a 5th bowler. Ofcourse, there is the possibility of one of the bowlers getting injured leaving Rohit with just 3 bowlers. Despite this, I would still want Rohit to take just 4 bowlers and pack the team with 6 batsmen. 6-1-4 must be the ideal combination. The game is unlikely to last beyond lunch on the 5th day because of the bowler friendly conditions that are likely to be found.
Mental aspect
From time immemorial, whenever India travels abroad, the instinct is to bowl first if they win the toss. It is to discourage the opponent from taking advantage of the friendly bowling conditions. This shows a lack of confidence in the batsmen. Recently, this attitude has shifted ever so slightly. Unless and until the overhead conditions are likely to be advantageous to the bowlers to a great degree, India must resist the urge to bowl first. There is always something about runs on the board.
History has shown us that in India if their batsmen post a low score, the bowlers will fight like tigers and more often than not, have managed to restrict the opponents within manageable proportions. It is another matter that the batsmen have often squandered the brilliant efforts of the bowlers but batting first will remove a critical facet of the game where the pressure is the maximum. Chasing a competitive total in the 4th innings.
The mental aspect needs challenges. The Indian batsmen must believe that it does not really matter who the opponents are and what the conditions are like, they will bat first and post a decent enough score to be able to win the game.
Wrapping up WTC finals an Indian perspective
All said and done, the Indians must believe that they have it in them to win an ICC Trophy. Years of falling short just before the last hurdle must have affected the confidence of everyone involved in the team but by the looks of it, atleast for a few cricketers, Rohit, Kohli, Pujara, Shami, Jadeja, this final and the ODI World Cup this year will be their final chances to win that elusive trophy. They must leave no stone unturned to achieve victory in the WTC finals.
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