The 2023 edition of ICC World Test Championship (WTC) Final between India and Australia is all set to get underway on June 7 at the Oval in London.
On the eve of the summit clash, the two skippers – Rohit Sharma and Pat Cummins – posed with the ‘mace’, the coveted trophy of the WTC which will be awarded to the winning team.
On the occasion, both captains spoke to ICC and shared their thoughts about lifting the WTC title, as well as the challenging journey to the final.
Rohit also expected the neutral venue to be filled with Indian fans, something which brought out a bit of laughter from his Australian counterpart.
“Overall, if you look at the consistent cricket we played, we displayed good cricket overall. It’s a tough tournament, you got to play consistent good cricket for a couple of years to get here. So you need all the departments to do well, and I thought we did well in all three departments," the Indian captain said.
“It’s exciting, it’s something different for both teams, although I guess we usually get a bit more support anywhere we play but it’s nice coming and playing at a neutral venue," added Rohit as Cummins broke into a chuckle.
“There’s so much history behind the two teams taking on each other, that’s what makes it exciting not just for the players but for everyone all across the world watching us," he further said.
Team India haven’t won an ICC trophy since 2013. They lost to New Zealand by eight wickets in the inaugural WTC final in Southampton two years ago.
When asked what it would mean to lead India to the WTC title, Rohit said it would mean ‘everything’ given the hard work they’ve put in the last two years.
“It means everything to us, this is the ultimate test, the most challenging format so to come out on top will be great because it will not be an effort of a month or two, it will be the effort we’ve put in for the past couple of years," he remarked.
