Just like the fans, batting legend Sachin Tendulkar is also looking forward to the inaugural ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final, slated to be played between India and New Zealand in Southampton from June 18-22.

However, Tendulkar isn’t quite pleased with the hype and build-up for the marquee game.

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"There were so many breaks due to the pandemic and the other challenges in the wake of it, because of which the hype and excitement of a final is missing. When a tournament goes on without a break - like a 50-over WC or a T20 WC - there's a sense of continuity to it. There's a build-up to these tournaments which is missing in this case," he told TOI in an exclusive interview on Monday (June 14).

While the Kiwis are going into the marquee game on the back of a 1-0 series win over England, Virat Kohli and company are relying on intra-squad match and net sessions to get themselves ready for the all-important clash.  

According to Tendulkar, both the teams are perfectly placed on paper to make the contest a challenging one but he believes New Zealand hold a bit of advantage, having played a two-match Test series against England.

Tendulkar also opined that England-New Zealand series could have been stage later, allowing both teams to enter the WTC final on equal footing.

"I don't know when the New Zealand vs England series was decided. I'd like to believe that it was decided way in advance, way before New Zealand booked their spot in the Final. Maybe it's a coincidence. This England vs New Zealand series was not going to contribute to the WTC Final.. so maybe the WTC Final first and then this series (could have been staged).

"This is, without any doubt, another way to look at it. New Zealand will have that slight edge because they've played the two Tests against England while India haven't had practice matches except for playing between themselves," Tendulkar remarked.

Before departing for England, India coach Ravi Shastri has said that WTC final should be a three-match affair, which he believes is an ideal assessment of a team's performance graph over a two-year period.

Sachin Tendulkar also feels that it is unfair to play just one Test to decide the winner.

"Where's the continuity? It should actually be a World Test Championship series, not just one match. Because to get to this point, you've played Test series involving two or three Tests or more. So, it shouldn't have just been a World Test Championship Final but the World Test Championship Final Series. Because you've played series to get to this point," said the former India batsman, who has played a record 200 Test matches.

As per Tendulkar, one final would have made sense had there been only one match in every series played over the last two years.

"Maybe due to time constraints, this wasn't possible. In that case what the ICC can do (going forward) is pick one particular match in a series - first or second or third or fourth, whichever - and the result of that one game should be allocated to the WTC points tally and the remaining matches can be purely bilateral. That way, one final can be justified. But if the filter is an entire series, then the WTC Final should also be a series," he stated.

New Zealand might have an edge in terms of preparation, but Tendulkar reckons India too will be well-prepared with players having the experience of playing in England conditions.

"That's a good thing. Our players - in different capacities - have played in England, be it Test cricket or India 'A' team. So the conditions are not completely foreign to them," he said.

(With TOI inputs)