The Indian Premier League is done. It is now time for the national duty. The Indian team will be up against Australia in the World Test Championship Final 2023 in England. The Men in Blue have made it to the finals of WTC on two successive occasions and now look to bag the Test mace for the first time. Meanwhile, former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has issued a warning to the team.
The Legendary cricketer has stated that it will be a challenge for India to come out of T20 mode and get into the Test mode. "The biggest test will be the fact that just about everybody will be coming out of a T20 format, and Test cricket is a longer format. So, I think that's going to be the big challenge," said Gavaskar on Star Sports on Tuesday.
Gavaskar also stated that only Cheteshwar Pujara has acclimatised to the English conditions as he was playing in County cricket there. "They (India) have only Cheteshwar Pujara who has been playing in the English County Championship, so he will be the only guy who has played the longer format in these conditions, so that's going to be the big challenge for them," he added.
Rahane has a point to prove: Gavaskar
Ajinkya Rahane has received a recall into the Indian team on the back of a good domestic tournament and the IPL 2023. Gavaskar has said that Rahane will be crucial for the team at No.5 and has a point to prove. "He's got a lot of experience having played in England, having scored runs in England. So, yes, I think he is going to be crucial down at number 5. And yes, I do believe he has a point to prove, I still feel he has got plenty of cricket left in him, and this is a wonderful opportunity for him," Gavaskar said on Rahane.
"I'm hoping he will be able to grab this opportunity with all the experience that he has and make a place for him back in the Indian team," he added.
The Indian team has begun preparations for the marquee clash as most of the squad is in England. The IPL-bound players will also leave for the UK soon. Notably, the Aussie players are also short of game time as they have not played warm-up games ahead of the WTC final. Several former Aussie players criticised the move. Only a handful of Aussie players have played in County Cricket recently. Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Marcus Harris played in County cricket for their teams.
