India’s two-Test tour of Sri Lanka is all set to kick-off on August 15 in Galle. The series is extremely crucial for Shubman Gill’s men as they look to climb in the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 standings.
India currently sit fifth in the WTC points table, holding 52 points and a points percentage (PCT) of 48.15%. Having played exactly half of their 18 scheduled matches, India's campaign has been a true mixed bag, consisting of four wins, four losses, and one draw.
India opened the cycle on a positive note, securing a hard-fought 2-2 draw during a grueling five-match series in England. They sustained momentum with a dominant 2-0 clean sweep over the West Indies at home, which temporarily propelled them into the top half of the standings.
However, the biggest setback came via a shocking 2-0 home series defeat against South Africa. A staggering 408-run defeat in the Guwahati Test severely dented India's qualification chances.
The race for the WTC final at The Oval is highly competitive, with India currently trailing behind Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and Bangladesh.
Ahead of the Sri Lanka series, former wicketkeeper-batter Deep Dasgupta has advised Team India to prioritize long-term development, tactical stability, and transition management over immediate WTC final qualification pressure.
Dasgupta believes the ultimate goal should be rebuilding the dominant team blueprint of 2020-21, which was capable of winning both overseas and at home.
"I want to see much more development. Are we improving? Yes, there is inexperience, and it is a transition, but it is important to see the improvement. In fact, I am going to say something that people may not like this, but for the time being, it is better to forget about WTC Final Qualification. It is better not to talk about it. In my opinion, what we should instead focus on is, how to make the Indian Test team like the one in 2020-21, like that phase where India were winning overseas and winning home series as well," Dasgupta said on his YouTube channel.
"If you keep thinking about the WTC Final, then you might be looking to take shortcuts. You will just look to figure out ways to win that particular match or series. It is important, don't get me wrong, but somewhere or the other, you can also look at it from another way. We can think about how we can dominate the next WTC cycle instead. So, either we can walk now with a band-aid, or we can look to get some stitches and get some rest, and give our best with 100 percent fitness," he explained.
India must win at least seven of their remaining nine Tests to realistically secure a spot in the WTC final. After the Sri Lanka tour, they will travel to New Zealand for two Tests before playing Australia in a five-match series at home.
Deep Dasgupta stressed that the captain-coach duo of Shubman Gill and Gautam Gambhir will face tough questions if the red-ball side falters in Sri Lanka.
"If the team does not do well, questions will be raised against him. Everyone in the team will be questioned because we have started to lose home series after a long time now, so that pressure will be there. But all of these names know how to handle pressure and play under pressure. When there is a transition, you need to know in which direction it is heading. It began with the England series, but I am a little confused about which direction we are heading?" he remarked.
