Team India has started their World Test Championship final (WTC Final 2023) preparation which will be played from June 07, 2023, at The Kennington Oval, London.
Although the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 is still not over yet, most of the players who are a part of the squad are headed down to England, preparing for the ICC WTC Final 2023. The final of the IPL 2023 is yet to be played between the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), who are four times champions, and the defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT). Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad will be the venue for the IPL 2023 final.
Most of the players reached England for the ICC WTC Final 2023
Two batches of Team India’s players have already landed in the UK, out of the three batches that were expected to depart for the country. And the remaining batch will depart for the UK after the IPL 2023 finals.
In the first batch, Umesh Yadav, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, and Jaydev Unadkat along with the support staff have already reached England. They left for the UK on May 23.
Team India started their preparations for the finals
As soon as the first batch touched down in the UK, they started their preparations for the ICC WTC final 2023.
Umesh Yadav and Shardul Thakur were among those sporting the new Adidas training jerseys as they started their preparation. The BCCI’s official Twitter account released images of Indian players and the support staff led by coach Rahul Dravid.
“Unveiling #TeamIndia’s new training kit, Also, kickstarting our preparations for the #WTCFinal,” wrote BCCI on their official Twitter handle.
Virat and Ashwin didn’t go with the first batch
Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin didn’t leave for UK with the first batch. The reason for their departure is unknown. Although, they depart for UK on May 24 and have already joined the Indian Team. Virat Kohli also shared some pictures of practice on his Instagram. Mohammad Siraj also touches down in England for the WTC final 2023.
The remaining players will leave after the finals
The 3rd lot of the Indian players will leave for UK after the IPL 2023 finals. “There may be departures every day till May 30,” said a BCCI official. “Logistics arrangements are being made for almost every day.”
The last lot of players include Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, A Rahane, KS Bharat, Ravindra Jadeja, and Mohammad Shami.
A few of the players are a part of the two finalists teams. And Rohit and Ishan were a part of the MI squad, who got out of IPL 2023 after losing Qualifier 2 against GT.
Pujara is already in England
Cheteshwar Pujara has already arrived in England. He played County Cricket with Sussex and was expected to join the Indian Team before May 26. As we write this article, he has already joined the team.
Lack of preparations for WTC finals for Team India
The Indian team Management is concerned over the lack of preparation time for Team India for the ICC World Test Championship 2023 final. That is because of the IPL as still a good number of players are in India for the IPL 2023 finals.
With less than 2 weeks left for the marquee India vs Australia final, the time is less for Team India to prepare.
No practice game for Team India
As the time is less to prepare for Team India, there will be no practice game for them before the ICC WTC final 2023. Once all the players join, it is expected that the team will play an Intrasquad match.
A lack of preparation time is a big concern for Team India. On the other hand, some Australian players took their names away from the IPL to prepare for the ICC WTC final 2023 and for the Ashes. A few Aussie players shared videos on social media, showcasing their practice sessions.
Injury Concerns for Team India
There are a few injury concerns that exist for Team India before the WTC final 2023. Umesh Yadav and Jaydev Unadkat are struggling with their full fitness. KL Rahul sustained an injury during the IPL 2023 and got out of ICC WTC final 2023.
Already some injury blows for the team
Team India already lost a few big names like Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, and Shreyas Iyer for the WTC final 2023.
Especially Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah have done well for Team India over the years overseas. They are the match winners for the team.
Comeback for Rahane
Ajinkya Rahane will play in place of Shreyas Iyer. His experience will be vital for the team. He made a strong comeback after doing well in domestic and in the IPL.
What about Ishan Kishan?
Ishan got a blow on his eye while fielding for MI during Qualifier 2. But we are expecting he will be all right and ready to go to England for the WTC final.
India’s squad:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat.
Australia’s squad:
Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner
Let’s see how Team India performs in the ICC WTC final 2023. They will look to go one step further as last time, they fell short in the ICC WTC final of 2021 against New Zealand.
Thank you for reading the article. Keep following us for the latest updates.
