WTC Final 2023 | Rohit Sharma's India and Pat Cummins-led Australia are gearing up for the ultimate Test when they face each other in the World Test Championship Final 2023 at The Oval in London. India have reached their second successive WTC final, whereas the Aussies have reached here for the first time after falling short in the previous Test cycle. Meanwhile, as the fans wait for these two giants to have a crack at each other, former Australian player Matthew Hayden has opened up on who will have the advantage in the Test championship final.
While speaking to PTI, Hayden stated that Australia would have had a huge advantage had the Test match been at Lord's. But the venue at The Oval presents a more evenly contest, Hayden pointed.
"Being at The Oval, it's a good opportunity for it to be a venue which doesn't necessarily favour one particular side or the other. It's by tradition England's bounciest, more even surfaces. It doesn't favour the spinners, doesn't really favour the seamers so it's quite a neutral venue. It's nice to see them playing in that venue in particular, had it been at the Lord's, Australia would have had a huge advantage there," he said
Hayden also pointed that the Test championship puts the relevance of Test cricket back and the two giants are facing each other. "The Test championship puts context to Test cricket relevance. And you've got two of the greatest nations in cricket, head to head in India and Australia," the Aussie great added.
'Forget the outcomes, but buy into the process' Hayden
The former Australian opener also opened on India's drought of ICC titles. He stated that the Indian team needs to forget about what the outcomes will be and rather focus on the process. He stated that cricket in India is a life and is in the DNA of many people, which puts pressure on the players. "It's certainly not a question of skill. So, it has to be a question of just the opportunity and the mindset going in.
I mean, cricket is life here, it is the DNA of sport and has no other competitors," Hayden said.
"In Australia, I could walk down the street and largely be unrecognised, especially with this terrible beard and hat on (laughs). But it's also got great competitive sports besides cricket. Rugby, football, our watersports, surfing, outdoor sports, here in India it's very insular and there's a lot of pressure," he added.
"So, that would be my advice to Indian cricket to forget the outcomes, but buy into the process," said one of the most destructive openers of his generation," Hayden stated.
