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Former India captain Sourav Ganguly believes that the players in contention for the World Test Championship (WTC) final will cope with the workload well, given that there is a short window of rest following the conclusion of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL).
The Men in Blue confirmed their berth in the final after winning the four-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy by a 2-1 margin.
Qualifying for the summit clash for the second straight time, they will face Australia at The Oval from June 7 onwards.
Ganguly, who was recently appointed as Director of Cricket for the Delhi Capitals (DC), told the Times of India in an interview:
"I think players should be fine. I don't see a problem. Yes, there's a lot of cricket. The scheduling is like that. That's the way it is. Players will play. I really don't see a problem. When it comes to the World Test Championship final, they anyway get 10-day breaks after IPL. I think they will manage."
Recurring injuries have been the crux of Team India's progress of late. They played the T20 World Cup 2022 without the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja. From the likes of it, they are set to play the WTC final without crucial members like Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and Jasprit Bumrah.
Ganguly admits that the rising number of franchise tournaments is making things difficult to accommodate in the events of the cricketing calendar, but he does not believe that any tournament will overshadow the WTC. He said:
"It's a challenge to prepare international Future Tours Programme (FTP). But I don't think you can stop leagues going around the world. Test cricket will always be the best format of the game. I don't see any league being as important as WTC final."
The franchises have been told to keep an eye out on the workload of players and will be in contact with the coaches at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) as well, over the course of the tournament.
"India have to play aggressively, especially in T20s" - Sourav Ganguly
Team India's batting approach during the T20 World Cup 2022 was whole-heartedly criticized.
While they employed an aggressive approach during the build-up to the tournament, when the moment arrived, they were arguably back in their shells, earning the wrath of fans and pundits alike.
Ganguly opined that since Team India have depth in their batting, they can afford to be aggressive from the word go. He said:
"India have to play aggressively, especially in T20s. They have the team to do that. A team which sometimes has Axar Patel batting at No. 9 must play aggressively at the top. Pandya batting at No. 6 and Jadeja at No. 7, there's too much depth."
Stressing the importance of preparation for the major events, Ganguly continued:
"It's about adjusting to the pressure, knowing your game and batting according to your game. Indian cricket will always have talent and a big pool. It's the ones who are more hungry go to the next level. It's about how you prepare for the big tournaments."
Team India last won an ICC event in 2013, in the form of the Champions Trophy. Since then, they have had a meteoric rise in terms of rankings and bilateral series, but ICC silverware has continued to elude them, despite being a constant presence in the knockout stages.
Will IPL 2023 give rise to any more injuries ahead of the crucial WTC Final? Let us know what you think.
