The Indian quickie Umesh Yadav conforms with the remarks given by his fellow pacer – Ishant Sharma and vice-captain, Ajinkya Rahane, and says the World Test Championship final is like a World Cup final and also agrees that he’s uncertain about playing the shorter formats.
The No.1 Test team led by Virat Kohli are set to battle it out against Kane Williamson-led New Zealand in the World Test Championship final starting on June 18th at The Ageas Bowl, Southampton. Winning against strong teams like England and Australia in the journey gives a feeling of satisfaction and exemplifies that the team is moving in the right direction, says Yadav.
“I feel that winning against strong teams like England and Australia have been a good journey. So you get a feeling of satisfaction and you know that your team is headed in a good direction and I feel India has been doing so for the last five years.”
The 33-year-old, who has done exceptionally well for India at home conditions, gives credit to the captain and the coach, Ravi Shastri. He also says they have given the freedom to all team member to express themselves and this has improved everyone’s performance. He also cites this as a reason for India’s success in this format for the past five years.
When asked about his opinion on considering the World Test Championship final as a World cup final, he said:
“Yes, Ishant Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane are correct (to say WTC final is like World Cup final). As a player when you are playing Test matches, the WTC is like a World Cup for you.”
“I also think the same. WTC final is different because you reach at that place by defeating a lot of good teams,”
Umesh, who last played an ODI for India back in 2018, also failed to make it to the 2019 World Cup squad. Nevertheless, he agreed that his chances of playing the shorter format in the near future are very uncertain.
However, he is positive about overcoming the conditions of England and is looking to perform well for the team in the upcoming finals.
