It may have been the same old narrative for India in an ICC final, but what made this defeat notable was the manner in which they were eliminated, particularly in the second innings when The Oval’s conditions may have been the most conducive to batting during the Test match. Thus, Cheteshwar Pujara uppercut one right into the keeper’s hands, Rohit Sharma ended up sweeping a one that was too full, and Virat Kohli once more chased a wide ball.
Rohit defended the Indian hitters after their 209-run defeat to Australia at The Oval, saying that their failure was not down to a “lack of concentration” but rather to a desire to “play in a different way” that didn’t exactly pan out in this particular instance.
“We have competed in numerous ICC competitions, but we have yet to prevail. So, Rohit said, “Our effort is to play differently and attempt to do something unusual.
“There was no lapse in focus. The guys are free to play, we’ve informed them. And if that’s the case, strike. It has an easy message. We don’t want to play under pressure in any type of cricket, including Test, T20, or one-day cricket. Looking at the innings, you can see that Gill and I put all of our effort into hitting, playing, and applying pressure to them when the game was in the second inning. We scored 60 runs in just 10 overs as a result. But if you play with that attitude, you probably will succeed. Then come the remarks and the mentions of attention span violations. There is no attentional slippage. Simply said, we’d prefer to play differently. We would like to try something new.
According to Rohit, India also supports the innovative, cutting-edge style of Test cricket, which includes a riskier style of batting that has both benefits and drawbacks. According to Rohit, India, which hasn’t won an ICC title since 2013, would continue to play in that manner at the 2019 ODI World Cup at home.
“These days, test cricket is played differently. We also wish to play in that manner. And the pitch was sound. You are free to take the shots you want to, Rohit remarked. Of course, bearing in mind, you know, you try and respect that if someone is bowling a very nice spell. To disrupt the bowler’s rhythm, you must attempt something unusual if nothing else.
“Travis Head actually did that. He came over and started shooting. And he truly helped them to leave that uncomfortable situation. We actually believed that we were fairly competitive in the game until Travis Head entered the scene and basically stole it away from us. We also aim to accomplish that. Sometimes you have to let your instinct make those middle decisions when you know the pitch is terrific.
And no, I don’t believe it was a case of inattention or anything similar. Men are simply let to shoot the shots they feel most comfortable playing when they feel that way.
“We’ll strive to play differently when the World Cup is played in October. In our efforts to provide freedom, we won’t place any emphasis on winning certain games. We have been believing that this game and this event are significant, however nothing seems to be occurring. Therefore, it goes without saying that we will need to think and act differently. Our message and attention will be on trying something new.
Rahul Dravid, the coach of India, said it “wasn’t a 469 wicket” and that their bowling performance in the first few sessions of Day 1 had come back to haunt them in an interview with Star Sports following the match. Rohit, however, believed that the fact that the team’s batsmen were seasoned veterans who had previously played in England cost them the championship since they were unable to quite stand up.
“When you have in your top six, you know, five or six batters who have quite experience played in these conditions before and couldn’t go on to get big runs, that is probably what cost us the game,” Rohit remarked. But I don’t want to be very critical of it, you know? I say that because several of the senior batters actually put their hands up when we came here the last time and helped us win the series. After all, incidents like these can occur. In the previous two years, our outings have been excellent. Regardless of where we played—in Australia or England—you can lose this one-off game if your mental state is off. You are aware that is exactly what took place.
Additionally, it was India’s second straight defeat in a World Test Championship final. Both events were conducted immediately after a protracted IPL season that lasted for a couple of months, which, to be fair, didn’t offer India much time to prepare.
We should play the finals in additional months, Rohit proposed. “Any time of the year can be used to play it. And not only in England, but everywhere in the world.
“You need a lot of time to prepare for an event like this, a final like this, and that is what we did the previous time we were here in England. We had around 25 to 30 days to be ready. And the outcome was clear. Up until that game’s postponement, we were up 2-1. Yes, in an ideal world, we would want to have enough time to prepare and give the bowlers ample rest. It can be challenging at times because T20 cricket requires you to bowl a variety of lengths, lines, and change-ups.
“And then Test cricket obviously requires a lot of discipline, hitting that area consistently, and challenging the batsmen, but again you know Shami, Siraj, Umesh they are all experienced, they obviously know how to prepare themselves and get ready for a game like this,” the author continued. However, in a perfect world, I would choose to have 20 to 25 days to prepare for a match like this.
Would a WTC final with three tests be a better option? “I’d adore that. Is there a moment, though? Rohit enquired. “The big question is that. However, in all honesty, you need to give both teams equal opportunities in a large tournament like this. A three-match series would be fantastic, but you have to figure out when it can fit in. You put in two years of hard effort for something like this, and then you only get one chance. Therefore, it is impossible to build the momentum required for Test cricket. Test cricket, as you may know, is all about finding that rhythm and momentum. A three-match series would therefore be excellent if it were able to do so in the upcoming cycle.
