Women's T20 competition to be held from July 29 to August 7 at Birmingham CWG

WTC final | Sachin Tendulkar backs Pujara's methods, suggests India to play both Ashwin, Jadeja

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has thrown his weight behind India’s number three in the longest format Cheteshwar Pujara and said that the world should be far more appreciative of his efforts and achievements rather than putting his batting under the scanner every now and then. Pointing out the role he performs for the Virat Kohli-led Indian side that possess assembly lines of stroke players such as Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Tendulkar said that Pujara has fit in perfectly with the role of providing a solid foundation at the top of the order over the past number of years. "I think we should appreciate what Cheteshwar Pujara has been able to achieve for India. It's not always going about and maintaining a strike rate and in Test cricket, you need different kind of planning and different kind of players to fit into your team," Tendulkar said in an interview with PTI. "It’s like five fingers in your hands. Each finger has a different role and Pujara is an integral part of our team. I really like what Pujara has done for India. Rather than scrutinising his each innings, we should be appreciative of what he has done for India. Expressing his hard discontent words the critics of Pujara, Tendulkar said that people who are judging his batting credentials have not played enough game at the top level to understand its nuances. He also blamed the change in the thought process of followers of the game in the contemporary era of cricket dominated by T20s where batsmen are judged on the basis of their hard-hitting abilities behind people questioning Pujara’s strike rate and at times inability to get things going at a brisk pace. "Guys who are digging deep into his technique and rotation, I don''t think those guys have played as much top level cricket as Pujara. They possibly don''t understand. In today''s age of T20, probably if someone can hit the ball, he is regarded as a good player. It is not necessary that person has to be a good Test player. In Test cricket, you need much more than just hitting the ball and trying to play big shots,’ one of the best batsman to have ever played the game said. He pointed out that India have Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja too, who have the task of enforcing the pace of the game and scoring quickly to change the momentum. However, Pujara’s role is to blunt the new ball and tire the opposition bowling attack so as the aggressive batsmen can cash in on a bit less intense bowling lineups. "For strike-rate, we have players like Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja. They can always increase the strike rate. But when it comes to tire the opposition and where you require planning and vision to execute whatever your strategies are, for that you need a Cheteshwar." India have a problem of plenty going into the World Test Championship final against New Zealand but for Tendulkar, both Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin should play the big game as they can provide solidity to the lower order along with the wickets they can take with the ball. He said that India should field a bowling attack comprising of two spinners and three pacers. "The possibility, according to me, is to play three fast bowlers and two spinners because both (Ashwin and Jadeja) can bat. Eventually how the team management feels after looking at the wicket matters," Tendulkar said. India have to ponder over the three pacers in the lineup as well as the newest member with the ball Mohammed Siraj contributed immensely to help India win the series in Australia in the absence of all senior members of the attack such as Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Umesh Yadav.

I think the ball will swing even without saliva: Ishant Sharma

India pacer Ishant Sharma who is likely to be a part of the playing Xi for the final of the inaugural World Test Championship against New Zealand has said that the ball will swing even without saliva. “I think the ball will swing even without saliva and somebody needs to take responsibility to maintain the ball,” Sharma said on Star Sports show ‘Cricket Connected’. The right-arm fast bowler further said that the bowling unit would fetch wickets if the ball is maintained well. “And if the ball is maintained well in these conditions, then it becomes easier for the bowlers to take wickets in these conditions,” he added. Sharma also talked about the difference in conditions in England and how the bowlers have to adjust their lengths accordingly. “You need to train differently and adapt to the change. In India, you get the reverse swing after some time, but in England, the length is fuller because of the swing,” he said. “So, you have to adjust to the lengths. It is not easy to force that and the weather here is cooler so it takes time to acclimatize to the weather,” Sharma added. The WTC final will be played in Southampton from June 18. Earlier in the day, New Zealand had announced their 15-man squad for the WTC final. The selectors have included Ajax Patel as the specialist spinner while Mitchell Santner has been omitted. Opening batsman Devon Conway who scored a double-century in his debut game at Lord’s against England has also made a cut into the side.

Series win over England doesn't count much, says Trent Boult as New Zealand prepare for WTC final

Leader of the New Zealand bowling attack Trent Boult has said that the series win over England will not make much of a difference in the World Test Championship challenge against India starting next week. However, he said that Blackcaps got the opportunity to get some game time against England. “I don’t think it counts for much. Good preparation, and good for everyone to have a hit out and get some time under their belt. Just really looking forward to this week, can’t wait, and hopefully, we can continue on our good form,” Boult said. Trent Boult missed the first Test of the series against England as he had not travelled with the New Zealand contingent in the IPL 2021 and instead chose to go home to see his family. He joined the squad in London after the UK government allowed him a relaxed quarantine. Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson shared the new ball in the first Test but New Zealand opted to rest both of them in the second Test to keep them ‘fresh’ for the final against India. However, New Zealand will unleash all of them in one bowling lineup against the Virat Kohli-led side in the final starting June 18 in Southampton.

Nasser Hussain, DK & Kumar Sangakkara included in mega commentary panel for WTC Final

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the commentary panel for the final of the inaugural World Test Championship slated to take place between India and New Zealand in Southampton from June 18. The panel includes Sunil Gavaskar, Dinesh Karthik, Kumar Sangakkara, Nasser Hussain, Simon Doull, Isa Guha, Ian Bishop and Michael Atherton. India wicket-keeper batsman Karthik has said that the two sides are evenly matched and it would be interesting to see how they fare at a neutral venue. "The inaugural WTC Final is the much-anticipated pinnacle event in Test cricket, and I am looking forward to an exciting match between India and New Zealand. There is so much at stake here, both teams look evenly matched and what makes it even more interesting is that they are going to be playing at a neutral venue. It's an honour to work as a broadcaster on this historic event.” India made it into the final of the WTC after back to back series win against Australia and England respectively. They first defeated the Australian side 2-1 in a four-match series away from home and then thumped England 3-1 in home fixtures to march into the finals. New Zealand on the other hand will be coming into the final with a series win against England earlier this month. The Blackcaps won the two-match series 1-0 after beating the hosts in the second Test by 8 wickets at Edgbaston.