ICC Title Drought Continues: India Falls Short in ICC World Test championship final 2023
At the end of the fourth day, with India needing 280 runs to win and Virat and Rahane at the crease, many cricket fans expected resurgence from the Indian batting. They hoped for a session-wise battle and a triumphant return with the long-awaited ICC trophy. However, as the story unfolded, Indian batting crumbled like nine pins, they were bundled out in the very first session itself. Painful memories of the WTC final in 2021 resurfaced, raising questions about what went wrong. Were we underprepared? Was there a wrong team selection? Many queries plagued our minds.
In a country obsessed with white-ball cricket, it is often challenging to make people understand the significance of being a world champion in the purest form of the game, which requires two years of hard work. This year, India will host the ICC World Cup 2023, and soon the defeat in the WTC final may fade from memory. However, dedicated fans of red-ball cricket, will always carry the pain, regardless of our achievements in white-ball cricket. For us, India’s Test series win in Australia holds more value than the 2011 World Cup victory, and the heroic performances of Vihari and Ashwin in Sydney, battling against hostile bowling to secure a draw, are more cherished than Yuvi’s six sixes.
The Indian touring side has developed a tendency to bloom late in a series. This pattern has been observed in Australia and England, where we often make a strong comeback after losing a Test. It could be due to getting accustomed to the pitches and conditions over time. In the past, touring sides used to play numerous tour matches to prepare for Test matches. However, in the current cricketing calendar, players from around the world are occupied with professional leagues, leaving little room for tour matches. But a WTC final is different. It is paradoxical to come and play a final of such stature after two months of playing the shortest format of cricket.
Some of the dismissals of Indian batsmen, such as Gill and Pujara getting bowled in the first innings, Rohit playing a lap shot in the second innings, and Virat chasing a wide delivery, are examples of how the influence of the shortest format has changed the batting approach even for the best players in the world. Perhaps the BCCI could have planned the fixtures in a better way, but it is evident that IPL, with its higher viewership, holds more significance for them.
The selection of the team for this crucial match has been a subject of debate. The absence of Rishabh Pant was a significant blow to the Indian team, especially in red-ball cricket. However, the biggest disappointment was the stubbornness of the Indian selectors in persisting with the same squad. Srikar Bharat has been projected as Pant’s understudy in red-ball cricket, but as we witnessed in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2022-23, he is still not mature enough to bat in the top six of the Indian batting lineup. Surprisingly, the Indian think tank did not consider bringing back Wriddhiman Saha, who is still regarded as the best wicketkeeper in the country.
Another example is Hanuma Vihari, who has hardly put a foot wrong but was overlooked by the Indian selectors. Could it be because he is not a part of the world’s biggest cricket league? Additionally, both Umesh Yadav and Jaydev Unadkat had recently recovered from injuries and missed cricket for the last 30 days. Despite this, they were included in the squad for this crucial final. As we saw, Umesh was not at his best in the first innings. Moreover, the omission of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who is arguably the best swing bowler in the country, raises questions about his standing as a red-ball bowler.
These peculiar selections have resulted in us fielding a makeshift eleven rather than our best eleven.
The schedule for the 2023-25 WTC has been released, and it includes a total of 19 Test matches, with 9 of them being played overseas in Australia, South Africa, and West Indies. While we may have the opportunity to reach a successive third final, it will always be a tale of “so near, yet so far” without proper preparedness and selection.
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Very well compiled,the painful point of wrong selection was put forth in excellent manner.
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More than wrong selection, the most painful part was that the trait of fighting spirit didn’t reflect apart from two or three players showing zeal and firmness.
The energy and aggressiveness these players reflect in tournaments like IPL, completey disappear in the traditional game, i.e TEST cricket.
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