India and Australia made it to the final of the second cycle of the Test Championship. The final game is set to be played at the Oval in London from the 7th of June. India also played in the final of the first cycle but lost to New Zealand in 2021. They will look to get redemption this time around.
In the meantime, former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has pointed out some flaws in the format of the Test Championship. He said that the conditions in England mirror any other Non-Aisan conditions which will be a disadvantage for India.
He then questioned as to why only one match was played to determine the champion and not a series. Chopra suggested that a match each should be played at the top two teams’ home and one match at a neutral venue, making it a three-match series.
“Why WTC Finals happen only in England? Neutral venue but it mirrors non-Asian conditions. Why does it have only one game? Why not have a Test series to determine the World Test Champion? Why not have one test each at home and one at a neutral venue?” he wrote on Twitter.
“Ambitious…yes, of course. No tournament lasts two years to find its winner. So, please don’t throw ‘final should be one knockout game’ in my direction. Test cricket is a very unique sport…lasts five days. Championship lasts two years. Finals can surely be a 3-match series,” he added.
No tournament lasts two years to find its winner. So, please don’t throw ‘final should be one knockout game’ in my direction. Test cricket is a very unique sport…lasts five days. Championship lasts two years. Finals can surely be a 3-match series. 2/2 ?
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) March 14, 2023
In the meantime, Twitter agreed with the point that the former cricketer made, while some said that one final match was more than enough. “Totally agree. It could be a 2 match series. The neutral venue match is not required. If scores are level then the team which placed 1st in the 2-year cycle should win. it’ll place more emphasis on the league phase and give the due advantage to the team who ‘won’ the league,” a user replied.
Here is how Twitter reacted to Aakash Chopra’s statement
What would be a neutral venue if Asian team faces one of SENA in finals ? There's ain't any.
— Simran Randhawa (@Randhawa36_) March 14, 2023
Three match finals in a home-away-neutral format is a great idea Aakash ji……
— Rommel (@rommelbtw) March 14, 2023
when shastri said that in 2021 people laughed and said hes just making an excuse for losing
— test_comeback (@100_52notout) March 14, 2023
Shah ko bol ke Oval mein pitch ka setting karao na Akash bhai … a dry, half cooked, Indori type pitch will be just fine for us ?
— Vicky kashyap (@Vickyinvincible) March 14, 2023
Problem is no team would keep a month free in their international calendar for WTC. Future tours are planned way in advance and no body will keep a month free every 2 years because they'll probably qualify for WTC final.
— Ravi K (@CrikFan45) March 14, 2023
Totally agree. It could be a 2 match series. The neutral venue match is not required. If scores are level then the team which placed 1st in the 2 year cycle should win.
it’ll place more emphasis on the league phase and give the due advantage to the team who “won” the league— GauravGMI.eth (@starlordGMI) March 14, 2023
Teams fighting out to be in final for two years and one test to decide winner is unreasonable. Should be at least best of three if it's neutral venue or best of two, one home and away.Should be equal playing field. One bad performance shouldn't take away two years work #WTC
— Ajay Arora (@Ajayarora71) March 14, 2023
This is meaning of final. One pressure game. Better prepares team wins.
— Ashish kohar (@ashish_kohar) March 14, 2023
Also if it can't be a Test series, then I believe the team finishing at the top should have the right to host the final. Topping the championship after 2 years should bring you an advantage.
— Saurabh Malhotra (@MalhotraSaurabh) March 14, 2023
