World Test Championship Final: Ringside view from the Oval

There’s a definite buzz about the World Test Championship final in the UK. But there’s gre­ater excitement around the big summer of Test cricket in England, with the Ashes following on the heels of the WTC final. That said, one can expect the Ind­ian diaspora to make good noise at the Oval when Rohit Sharma leads his team on to the ground on Wednesday.
 

The WTC final is significant for mainly two reasons. The first one is obvious and deals with the sustainability of the Test format with T20 leagues proliferating around the world. The other pertains to Sharma and India’s head coach, Rahul Dravid.
 

Let’s get the first one out of the way. WTC is a complex format. Teams play multiple bilateral series over a cycle of two years and none of them ends up playing the same number of matches. The even more complicated points system adds more relevance to each Test that is played — more importantly, going by what has happened to the sport every time India has won a major Int­er­national Cricket Council or ICC tournament (as in 1983, 2007 and 2011). Add to that, India being the single-largest contributor to the cricket economy.
 

I believe the ICC needs to explore options to take the final out of England. It’s a bit jarring for a World Cup to be played in the same country twice in a row. I mean, we have moved on from the 1970s and early ’80s when the first three ODI World Cups were played in England.
 

The primary reason is that playing in England is a disadvantage for Asian Test nations. The con­d­itions always favour the SENA countries (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Aus­tra­lia). I get that the WTC cycle ends at this time of the year when it’s prime cricket season in Eng­land, and you are more likely to see a good crowd even if two neutral teams are playing. There are other parts of the world, like Sri Lanka or southern India, where cricket can be played during this time. Does it have to be a neutral venue though? The home team will have an advantage, but then it doesn’t have to be a one-off Test. Make it a three-Test ser­ies where the teams have a chance to bounce back.
 

Now, coming to the significance of this match for the Indian team. There is a lot at stake for the big names. This isn’t just another one-off match. This is a World Championship final. With the ODI World Cup coming up in October-November, the next few months will be career-defining and even legacy-defining for Sharma and Dravid. Sharma’s captaincy has always been judged by the IPL trophies he has won, but he would want a world championship. Not just for him, a WTC win will also become part of the legacy of other seniors such as Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Mohammed Shami.
 

As for Dravid, the next few months will define how he is remembered as a coach. He has been great as the man in charge for the Indian colts from 2015 to 2021. But these two events will determine if he had a successful or ordinary stint. He’ll certainly not take this Test match lightly.
 

Honestly, you feel for Dravid and Sharma be­c­ause they are going into the match with a depleted team. One prays for Rishabh Pant’s speedy recovery. But that aside, something has to be done ab­out fast bowlers breaking down and struggling to re­co­ver. It’s been nearly a year since Jasprit Bumr­ah played for India. Prasidh Krishna was groomed as Ishant Sharma’s successor and he too has been sidelined for a year. With Bumrah not around, and Umesh Yadav and Jaydev Unad­kat’s limited game time, it will be tough for the team management to go in with four pacers as it used to on overseas tours two years ago. Will the second spinner bring more to the table than the fourth seamer in the given condition? That will be the question.
 

Conditions, obviously, will play a big part. I have been here for the last week, barely 30 miles from Oval, and it has been quite dry and warm. The Oval pitch traditionally has been batting friendly; it usually doesn’t have as much for the seamers as some other venues in England. As the adage goes: Look down at the pitch and then look up at the sky before taking any calls. Going by that, I’d be inclined to go with both the spinners.
 

I also feel that if the team management is not absolutely convinced with K S Bharat as their No. 1 wicketkeeper, they should hand Ishan Kishan his Test debut. Ishan Kishan’s attacking batting could make up for Pant’s absence.
 

All said, it will eventually come down to how the seniors perform with the bat. The two openers, Sharma and Shubman Gill, hold the key, and it’s time Kohli, Pujara and Rahane showed why they have played as many Test matches as they have. At least they have ample game time behind them, thanks to the IPL and Pujara’s county stint, as opposed to Australia playing very little cricket.
 

This should be a cracker of a Test match!
 

The writer is former India wicket-keeper and batsman