Former India captain Ravi Shastri has bluntly told the Indian players that they need to skip the IPL in case India qualifies for the World Test Championship (WTC) final and if the summit clash keeps falling in June, just after the IPL ends.

India lost to Australia and New Zealand in the last two WTC finals, respectively. Nearly the whole Indian squad was recovering from playing in the IPL before the 2023 WTC finals, but some Australian players appeared fresh, and players like Travis Head and Steve Smith dominated the final Test with hundreds.

“In an ideal scenario, yes, I would prefer it if we had 20-25 days to prepare for a game like this,” Indian skipper at the time Rohit Sharma had said after the loss.

No team, particularly India, will have that many days to prepare for the game, according to former head coach Ravi Shastri. Players may have to miss a few Indian Premier League (IPL) games if they require days to prepare, Shastri said.

Ravi Shastri feels BCCI should have an option in place if India features in the WTC final after the IPL shortly.

“Let’s be realistic here. You’re not going to get those 20 days. And if that’s the case, then you’ve got to miss IPL. So, the choice is yours, and it’s up to the establishment as well. I’m sure the BCCI will review this in the future. If a World Test Championship [final] is going to come after an IPL every time in the month of June, then for that season, if your team qualifies for the final, there should be certain clauses put to franchises,” Shastri said, as per Indian Express.

Steve Smith’s 121 and Travis Head’s 163 powered Australia to 469 runs after they were asked to bat first by India captain Rohit Sharma, who had won the toss. In response, India was bowled out for 296 runs, with Ajinkya Rahane making 89.

Australia responded with 270/8d in the second innings, with Alex Carey scoring 66*. Set 444 runs to win the game, India was shot out for 234 runs as Australia won their maiden WTC final by 209 runs.