"In a one-off Test, one bad day can land you in trouble” - Ravi Shastri on Australia being termed favorites for WTC final
Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri has stated that while Australia are being termed as favorites to win the World Test Championship (WTC) final, they will need to be wary as one poor day could make the difference. Shastri asserted that India have the team to win the contest, even though they haven’t lifted an ICC title since 2013.
India will face Australia in the WTC final, which will be played at The Oval in London from June 7 to 11. Owing to the conditions in England, many critics reckon that Pat Cummins and Co. will have the upper hand in the summit clash.
Speaking on Star Sports, Shastri opined that things might not be as straightforward in a one-off Test.
“Everyone is saying they [India] are playing against Australia in England; Australia are favorites. In a one-off Test, one bad day can land you in trouble. So, even Australia will have to be careful," he said.
On India’s inability to win ICC events, the former head coach opined that the team has done well in major events, but lamented that the rub of the green hasn’t gone their way.
“In ICC tournaments, you have to compete. Sometimes, you need a little bit of luck also going your way. I wouldn’t say they haven’t played good cricket. India have played some very good cricket. The rub of the green has not quite gone their way," Shastri explained.
“This team is good enough to win an ICC trophy. Even when I was in the team, I used to say the same thing. In the last 3-4 years, I thought that team was good enough to lift an ICC trophy and I think that nucleus of players is still there,” he added.
Team India last won an ICC trophy under MS Dhoni when the Men in Blue beat England in the 2013 Champions Trophy final.
“A lot of these players are at their prime” - Shastri on Team India’s impressive consistency
Speaking on ICC Review recently, Shastri stated that India have been performing consistently well across formats in recent times because many players are at the prime of their careers.
"It's a tribute to their consistency, their fitness and the way they've worked over the last five or six years to now be hungry and proud of wanting to belong there. It's the quality of players. If you look at these players, a lot of these players are at their prime when you look at the Indian Test side," the 61-year-old said.
"They're experienced, they're at that age where they're battle-hardened, they've traveled around the world. They know what Test cricket is all about, they know what one-day cricket is all about, they know what T20 cricket is all about,” he added.
As on June 3, 2023, India are ranked first in Tests and T20Is and third in ODIs as per the ICC rankings.