"That's really exciting" - Pat Cummins on Australia facing India in the World Test Championship final
Australian captain Pat Cummins said he remains excited at the prospect of facing India in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at the Oval in London. The right-arm paceman revealed that they have made a conscious effort this time not to fall behind on over rates.
Australia, 2-0 ahead in the ongoing three-Test series against South Africa, need a victory in the third match in Sydney to confirm their WTC final berth. They were also on track to play the 2021 WTC final before a penalty for slow over-rate during the MCG Test against India cost them a spot.
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Speaking to reporters ahead of the third Test against the Proteas starting on Wednesday, Cummins admitted that over-rates were a new concept back then and weren't much discussed. However, he stated that reaching the final has been a massive motivation for them.
As quoted by Perth Now, he said:
"It was still a new concept, so even things like overs rates, it wasn't really spoken about as importantly as perhaps what we think about it now. Every point is vital. It's been a big driver for us over the last couple of years. I think playing a final in London against India, say, at a neutral venue, that's really exciting."
Australia's dedication to keeping up with the over rate was apparent during the Boxing Day Test when Steve Smith bowled a few overs in the second innings.
"We got down to nine minutes behind at one stage" - Pat Cummins on slow over rate in Melbourne
Pat Cummins hailed the umpires for keeping them abreast with time and over rate and addressed their efforts during the Boxing Day Test. He added:
"It's about lots of communication with the umpires, they are always keeping us abreast of where we are. We got down to nine minutes behind at one stage, so we just made sure we had Trav Head or Smithy as an option, and we got back basically within a couple of overs."
bit.ly/AUS-SA-2nd-Test
Another statement made by Australia in the #WTC23 race 💪
They travel to Sydney with an unassailable 2-0 series lead over South Africa.
Watch the rest of the #AUSvSA series LIVE on ICC.tv (in select regions) 📺
Scorecard 📝 bit.ly/AUS-SA-2nd-Test https://t.co/ejVw9wxN9F
If Australia don't win in Sydney, they would require at least one win in India out of four Tests and require other results to go their way to reach the final.