Legendary Australian all-rounder Shane Watson believes the rapid shift from the fast-paced Indian Premier League (IPL) to the rigors of high-level Test Cricket with the red ball in the final of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) will be difficult. The WTC Final will be played at The Oval from 7 to 11 June. Australia, led by Pat Cummins, will face India, led by Rohit Sharma, for the coveted Test Mace.
The IPL, which ended on May 29, featured many players from the Indian side and a few from Australia. Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami, as well as captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Ravichandran Ashwin, took part in the last WTC final in England in June 2021, after the IPL.
“There’s no question that this transition period for the guys, I think, is going to have to be extreme. Get as much volume as they can see new balls and try to get the nets as seasoned as possible,” Watson told ESPNcricinfo. .
“That’s the only way to get your game back in hitting the ball under your eyes. Yes, you need that positive, aggressive intent, but you still need to understand which balls can score and which balls have a bigger risk,” he added.
Watson believes that no time should be lost during the training sessions of the players. “What you need to understand is what you really need to work on when you only have a few days,” Watson said.
Watson discussed how batters might get used to the Dukes’ prom in England. “For me, the most important thing came down to my defense. I just had to work on facing the moving ball, making sure I was hitting bowlers with the moving ball or getting pitches against the moving ball and then just making sure of being that I locked my defense I also just started getting your head around to leave the ball again What are the danger zones more so the lines that bowlers would bowl and most importantly The biggest challenge for all these guys and for Cameron Groen will be around the Dukes ball because he swings so consistently,” said the former Australian all-rounder.
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