The Australian team has a slight advantage on paper on a bouncy Oval course, but both Ravi Shastri and Ricky Ponting believe the Indians are better prepared for the World Test Championship final which begins on Wednesday with IPL playing time under their belts . Shastri, Ponting and Pakistani legend Wasim Akram all believe the Oval course will remain fresher than usual as it has never hosted a June test match in the venue’s 140-year history. Shastri, a former Indian head coach who led the team to the inaugural WTC final in 2021, believed that had Jasprit Bumrah been included, India would have started tied if not a favourite.
“I would say if you look at the speed attack, if Bumrah was there I would say it was equivalent to an attack by Mohammed Shami, Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj. But that Aussie attack with Starc, Cummins, may be the competition fitness. in the game,” Shastri said at the ICC’s “Afternoon with Test Legends” event.
Shastri believes that even if it was two months of T20 cricket, playing time makes a difference. Ponting and Akram both agreed with Shastri.
“Competitive fitness could play a role,” Shastri thought.
“You need some cricket behind you and staying in the park for six hours for five days is different from bowling in nets for two hours every day,” he said.
“Shami could be the key as he plays a lot of cricket,” added Shastri.
In fact, Ponting seemed to be conflicted about whether being fresh without many games is better than playing an intense T20 cricket.
“Some Aussies have done nothing and played nothing. Come in fresh, is that better? Or get a little tired but play a lot of cricket, which is better,” said Ponting, without a definitive answer.
Akram’s view of the workload problem has been consistent over the years.
“I, as a player, like to have cricket (games) behind me. Size doesn’t matter as long as I play. It’s better to have tournaments like IPL.” Shastri, who was in the Indian dressing room when they lost the rain-ravaged final at Southampton in 2021, said things have been completely different in this cycle.
“If you don’t win, it hurts because you’re not there to fill in numbers. But when I look back, compared to that World Cup cycle, it’s chalk and cheese.
“There was COVID-19, quarantines. It was difficult for players, 14 days of isolation and then seven days of training. Here both teams have had time to prepare and this will be a good game,” he said.
For Akram, who has played county cricket in England for over a decade, mainly for Lancashire, a team he also captained, a test match in June at Oval will have its own terms. “At Oval you play a test match in the last week of August or in the first or second week of September when the pitch is bone dry. But this time it’s a fresh pitch and it’s early June.
“There will be a lot more bounce. The Dukes swings a lot more and for a longer period of time and stays a lot harder than Kookaburra. I think Australia will be a bit of a favourite,” said the ‘Sultan of Swing’.
For former Australian skipper Ponting, conditions on the Oval are in the month of June, with the promise of sunny weather. He said it reminds him more of the conditions at home than of English.
“Never been in a Test match held at the Oval in June (since 1880). The pitch should be perfect. It’s a neutral ball (Dukes and not Kookaburra or SG Test) on neutral ground and it does (Dukes) also (seam and swing). ) longer (time periods).
“When you look at this location, it looks more like an Aussie location than an English one. Conditions are somewhat in Australia’s favour,” he said.
Topics mentioned in this article