"If Conditions Demand...": England Great Warns India Ahead Of WTC Final

06.06.2023 - 16:22 sports.ndtv.com

India should learn from their past mistakes and not think twice before leaving one of their premier spinners out of the playing XI for the World Test Championship final against Australia if the conditions demand, said former England skipper Nasser Hussain.

The spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin didn't make much of an impact two years ago when India lost to New Zealand by eight wickets in a rain-hit final of the inaugural edition.

According to Hussain, India made the blunder of reading the conditions wrong the last time and shouldn't repeat the mistake this time as they eye their maiden ICC title in 10 years. "I think India, as they showed in Australia, can win in any conditions,” Hussain said on The ICC Review. "It helps with the balance of their side if the weather is good and if the sun shines at The Oval, that they can go with their formula of two spinners, two seamers, and have (Shardul) Thakur as your third seamer. "If you look back at the last World Test Championship, I think India read the conditions wrong.

The lights were on on all five days, it was grey, it was miserable, it was cold. New Zealand didn't play a front-line spinner.

cricket Conditions Nasser Hussain Ravichandran Ashwin Ravindra Jadeja Australia New Zealand India

England captain Ben Stokes has been under the scanner for his captaincy after Australia won the first Ashes Test by 2 wickets at Edgbaston earlier this week. The narrow loss left England 0-1 down in the five-match Ashes contest as they bid for a first Ashes win over arch rivals Australia since 2015. Stokes' decision to declare on the first day before England had scored 400 was heavily criticised by several current and former players even before the conclusion of the match.

"I Need Closure": R Ashwin Breaks Silence On Tweet Post India's WTC Final Defeat

The absence of Ravichandran Ashwin from India's playing XI for the World Test Championship final against Australia remained one of the biggest talking points. Ashwin, who had worked hard to succeed in the tricky English conditions, didn't even find his name on the team sheet, with Ravindra Jadeja taking up the sole spinner's spot. As the match ended in a defeat for India, Ashwin took to social media and posted a lengthy tweet. The veteran cricketer has now opened up on the feeling that prompted him to do so.

"Would Have Always Kept Ashwin...": Ex-India Star On All-Rounder's Exclusion From WTC Final's XI

Team India was thrashed by Australia in the World Test Championship, earlier this month. Playing at the Oval, the Rohit Sharma-led side faced a 209-run defeat and their hopes of winning an ICC trophy were brutally crushed. Team India's failure at another major ICC event gave rise to a lot of criticism, as many fans and experts raised questions about the side's Playing XI. The team management went with Ravindra Jadeja as their only spinner in the match, which led to the exclusion of the ace all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin.

"Missed Stumping, Dropped Catch...": England Great Slams Ben Stokes And Co

Former England Captain Nasser Hussain thinks that the Ben Stokes-led side was a little "sloppy" in the last session of the second day of the Ashes Test match against Australia at the Edgbaston here on Saturday. Usman Khawaja's 126 (279)* and Alex Carey's 52(80)* helped Australia to reach 311/5 in 94 overs on Day 2nd stumps, though still trailing by 82 runs. Hussain also pointed out missed stumping and dropped catches in the last session.

"My Bowling Overseas Has Been...": Ravichandran Ashwin Breaks Silence On WTC Final Snub

Ravichandran Ashwin, the No. 1 Test bowler in the world, couldn't find a place in the Indian team's playing XI for the World Test Championship final against Australia. For many, Ashwin's absence from the team was one of the biggest reasons behind India's defeat in the final. The off-spinner, who himself is one of his biggest critics, opened up on the heartbreaking decision by the team management, admitting that he would've loved to feature in the title-decider.

Watch: R Ashwin Puts Aside WTC Final Snub, Hits The Ground Running in TNPL

Ravichandran Ashwin is arguably one of the finest all-rounders India ever-had. Despite his heroics in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia, earlier this year, he was not named in the Playing XI against the same opponent for the World Test Championship final at The Oval. However, Ashwin seemed to have moved on from the snub as the 36-year-old spinner is currently playing in the ongoing Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) 2023 for the Dindigul Dragons and took his side to victory over Ba11sy Trichy on Wednesday.