Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting slam India’s decision to drop Ashwin

Australian greats Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting have slammed India’s decision to drop premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for the World Test Championship final against Australia.

Ashwin, who is the No 1 bowler in Test cricket and India’s leading wicket-taker in the 2021-23 WTC cycle, was dropped as the Rohit Sharma-led side bolstered the pace ammunition by playing four seamers.

After the day one’s proceedings, Hayden told ICC, “I feel that Ravichandran Ashwin is such a key factor, the leading wicket taker in the Tests cycle is not there. There are a few factors worth pondering on in Team India’s perspective,” 

World Cup-winning captain Ponting termed Ashwin’s exclusion a “mistake”.

“So far for me, it looks like it was a mistake from them by playing the four seamers, but we will see how the game pans out,” Ponting told the ICC.

“As this game goes on, I have got no doubt that there is going to be turn. Australia have got a lot of left-handers in their batting line-up to which Ashwin would have been perfectly suited for,” he said, as Ashwin is the most successful bowler in Tests against left-handers.

India lacked positive mindset by opting to field, says Ravi Shastri

Disappointed by India’s defensive approach, former head coach Ravi Shastri has said Rohit Sharma did not show a “positive mindset” by electing to bowl in the World Test Championship final against Australia. “From what came out today, the mindset was to field if they won the toss, hence the choices in the bowling department — four seamers one spinner,” Shastri told ICC after the end of the opening day’s play on Wednesday.

“If the mindset was positive you’d want to bat, rough it out in the first session and see if you can put 250 on board. Don’t think too big 250-260 and if the conditions got better and you saw the first session through, you could have got more,” he added.
Shastri further said Australia are in a prime position and it’s up to Pat Cummins and his men to let India back into the marquee contest.

“I think Australia are in a prime position now. It’s up to them to allow India back into the game, they batted beautifully, especially in the first session of play and that really set things up,” Shastri said.

What happened in India’s previous matches at the Oval?

India have won 2, lost 3 and drawn 7 of the 14 matches they have played at The Oval.

What time does Day 2 match start

The WTC 2023, Ind vs Aus Day 2 match will start at 3 pm. Stay tuned here for the live updates

What was Ravi Shastri’s take on ICC WTC Final 2023

Former Indian team coach Ravi Shastri gave his opinion on the favourites for the WTC Final 2023 while speaking to Star Sports, he said, “Look at the pace attacks. Which side has the better attack? If Bumrah was here, then I would say equal, with Shami, Bumrah and Siraj. But now when you look at that Australian attack – Cummins and Starc, though Hazlewood is gone,”

In a previous conversation with Star Sports, he had also said that the current Indian team is good enough to win the WTC Final and has played ‘very good’ cricket in ICC tournaments but luck has not always gone in their favour.

Should India play 2 spinners in the ICC WTC Final? Sachin Tendulkar opines

India have long been faced with the dilemma of playing two spinners or opting for an extra seamer in overseas conditions. Ahead of the WTC final, however, Sachin Tendulkar has some advice for the Indian team’s selection for the all-important match.

Speaking to 100mbsports, Tendulkar said, “The Indian team will be happy that they are playing at the Oval. The nature of the Oval pitch is such that it assists the spinners as the match goes on. So, spinners will come into play a little bit. It need not be always a turning track as sometimes the spinners rely a lot on the bounce, sometimes that little bit of zip that they get off the pitch, also on the overhead conditions and it depends a lot on the shiny side of the ball.”

What did Shashi Tharoor say after India dropped R Ashwin

As India excluded R Ashwin from the squad despite his vast experience and his performance against Australia, Shashi Tharoor in a tweet wrote, “Australia has recovered well from the early loss of a wicket in the Oval #WTC2023Final. Now I’d normally expect @ashwinravi99 to bowl a couple of overs before lunch. But incredibly enough, India has left the #1 ranked bowler in the world out of their team in the most spinner-friendly ground in England, against his favorite opponents, who are playing four left-handers in their top seven! Baffled, dismayed & bewildered.”

Why Sunil Gavaskar disagrees with Ricky Ponting about WTC Final?

Ahead of WTC Final 2023, Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar refuted the claim of Ricky Ponting that Australia will be at a slight advantage at the WTC Final. The Former Indian cricketer emphasised the importance of match practice before significant fixtures. While speaking to India today he said, “For a big match, you need miles under your feet. And most of the Indian players have done that. Even one player who was not in the IPL, Pujara was playing County Cricket and was scoring centuries for fun. So yes, the Indians are in a better position.”

Why oil protesters may target WTC Final?

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has taken some precautionary measures to deal with the possible disturbances by the Just Stop Oil activists. ICC has prepared a backup pitch, in case the Just Stop Oil activists attempt the ruin the primary pitch.
What is Just Stop Oil?
Just Stop Oil consists of some environmental activists and is founded after Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain. They are known for disrupting international events including sports to make the government listen to their demands. Read more here

Why did Hardik Pandya rule himself out of WTC final 2023?

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting said Hardik Pandya was asked about making himself available for the one-off WTC final, however, he thought it would be unfair on the rest of the players.

“That’s the one line that was mentioned in commentary earlier today. He made it clear that he feels his body won’t get through the rigours of Test cricket. He was thrown up in a game like this what do you think about playing in a game like this, just a one-off Test just to help the balance of the side? And his reply apparently was that he didn’t feel it was fair on everyone else who have been through this journey in the last couple of years leading into this game,” Ponting answered after Nasser Hussain asked about Hardik Pandya as quoted by Hindustan Times.

Rule for Reserve Day in WTC 2023 final

The sixth day will be utilised only if rain or thunderstorm forces a washout on one of the five days and there is no result reached at the end of the five days.

What happens to the ICC Test Mace if it ends in draw?

The ICC Test Mace will be shared by both the teams if India Vs Australia WTC Final ends in a draw.

‘Rohit Sharma allowed some easy runs to happen’ says Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly was disappointed with Team India’s performance. After Aussies had reached 170/3 at tea, he said, “India will be a bit disappointed. They had Australia at 76/3 and let them get off the hook. I know that partnerships happen in cricket. There will be a batting team who will come back and play well. I thought India started well just after Lunch but lost the feel a bit as the game progressed.”
“I thought they let Travis Head get off the hook very easily. I know he has been in good form, he has scored a lot of runs, but still they were 76/3. I think Rohit Sharma with his field placements at that stage probably allowed some easy runs to happen and now Australia are in a good position,” Ganguly said.

What did Virat Kohli say about Steve Smith?

Virat Kohli has rated Australian Steve Smith as the best Test batter of this generation, considering his consistency and “unbelievable” average of scoring runs. Ahead of the ongoing WTC final between Ind vs Aus, Kohli siad, “”According to me, Steve Smith is the best Test player of this generation. He has displayed that, his adaptability is absolutely brilliant. You take any cricketer of this generation.” 

Travis Head scripts history, becomes first player to hit century in WTC final

Australian southpaw Travis Head became the first player to score a century in a World Test Championship final, after striking a counter-attacking ton against India at the Oval in London on Wednesday.

From the very first ball, Head looked reading the surface well, judging the movement of the Duke ball as well as picking up the bowlers’ lines and lengths.

Not taking time to settle in, he went after the Indian attack from the get-go, turning the strike and finding boundaries at will.

Will India strike back on Day 2?

India and Australia will meet today for the Day 2 to play the World Test Championship (WTC). India is looking to lift the WTC title at the second attempt after losing to New Zealand in the final of the inaugural edition of the championship. The match is scheduled to be played over five days, from the 7th to the 11th of June, with a back-up day available in case of adverse weather conditions. The Day 1 ended up with Australia dominating the game, with Indian bowlers struggling at The Oval.

WTC 2023 Final: A look at Day 1 Scorecard

Australia batting

David Warner 43 (60)

Usman Khawaja 0 (10)

Marnus Labuschagne 26 (62)

Steve Smith* 95 (227)

Travis Head* 146 (156)

India bowling

Mohammad Shami 1/77 (20)

Mohammad Siraj 1/67 (19)

Umesh Yadav 0/54 (14)

Shardul Thakur 1/75 (18)

Ravindra Jadeja 0/48 (14)

‘Losing toss was challenging but…’ Travis Head after slamming century against India 

Australia batter Travis Head said on Wednesday that losing the toss was challenging for his team, but he is pleased with his contribution to the Aussies’ batting order as he slammed an unbeaten century in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against India on Day One of the match. In a post-match press conference, he said,  “Losing the Toss was challenging but happy to have contributed. Still, there are four days of cricket but happy to contribute. I think technically I have made those changes for England. Nice to prepare well and it is nice. I believe we could have bowled as well but hopefully, as the Game goes by it becomes quicker and our bowlers need to hit the right areas. It was challenging in the beginning and I hope when we go out to bat then we can hit the right areas as well.”

India bowling coach Paras Mhambrey on R Ashwin’s omission from WTC final

After many were left surprised as India dropped Ravichandran Ashwin from the team for the WTC final, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey on Wednesday broke his silence and said that the omission of the world’s top-ranked Test bowler was tough and after looking at the pitch they decided to go out with four seamers.
“It is always a very difficult decision to drop a champion bowler like him. Looking at the conditions in the morning we thought an additional seamer would be beneficial. It has also worked in the past for us. Seamers have done well out here for us. You can always look back and say that additional spinner would have been beneficial but we took the call looking at the conditions, ” Paras Mhambrey said in a post-match press conference.

Mhambrey said that India can still make a comeback against Australia and with the “freshness in the wicket” they can do something.

“Definitely we have an opportunity to make a comeback as there is still seam and cut. In the first hour of tomorrow morning with conditions and freshness in the wicket we can do something,” India bowling coach Mhambrey said.

Ricky Ponting compares Travis Head to all-time great Adam Gilchrist

After the left-hander moved the momentum of the ICC World Test Championship Final towards his side with a magnificent century on the opening day in London, Australian great Ricky Ponting is at ease comparing Travis Head to the modern-day Adam Gilchrist in Australia’s XI.

On an action-packed day at The Oval when Australia dominated, Head delivered his first Test century in England and the sixth of his career with a magnificent unbeaten 146* from just 156 deliveries. “He probably is (similar to Gilchrist). In fact he is probably scoring quicker now than Gilly probably ever did. His strike rate through this (World Test Championship) qualification period is 81, which is higher than anyone else in the world to have scored more than 500 runs,” Ponting told the ICC.

Highlights from Day 1 of the WTC final

At the end of Day 1, WTC 2023 Final was completely dominated by Australia as Steve Smith and Travis played a strong 251-run partnership to take their teams to a massive score of 327/3.