Australia dominated India on the opening day of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 final at the Oval in London.
Asked to bat first, Australia rode on Travis Head’s swashbuckling century (146* off 156 balls) and Steve Smith’s 95 not out to pile up 327/3 on the board at stumps on Day 1.
Indian bowlers had a tough outing despite the overcast conditions and a green-tinged pitch at the Oval.
With Head and Smith still at the crease and the likes of Cameron Green and Alex Carey yet to come, it would be tough for India to bounce back in the match. However, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh thinks otherwise.
According to Harbhajan, India can fight back with the bat as the Oval offers the best batting conditions in England.
"The Oval is perhaps the best pitch to bat on in England, and it will be better to bat on as the game goes on. I don't think India will have any difficulties batting on this wicket. Gill and Kohli are in good form, the weather has opened up, and there is not much cloud cover as well," Harbhajan said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
The No. 1 ranked Test spinner, R Ashwin, was left out of India’s playing XI for the WTC final against Australia. India went with the combination of four pacers and a spinner in Ravindra Jadeja.
The decision to drop Ashwin sparked an outrage but Harbhajan defended the move.
"Only the toss went in India's favor, after that it was all Australia. India did not have a grip on the game in any of the sessions. Considering the conditions, the team selection was right, but it did not pan out as hoped. The lines kept getting wider and the length also kept dropping," he opined.
Harbhajan was critical of the Indian pacers for not making the most of the new ball on Day 1.
"The Australian batters were comfortably playing on the back foot. India did not make the most of the new ball. There was a lot of carry on offer and the ball beat the edge a couple of times as well, but that does not matter unless it results in a wicket. It was not one bowler who made the mistake, all four seamers made the same mistake."
