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Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra reckons that the World Test Championship (WTC) final should be a three-match series instead of a one-off game.
The summit clash of the 2023 WTC will be played between India and Australia at The Oval from June 7 to 11. This will be the second World Test Championship final. New Zealand beat India by eight wickets in the first final, which was played in Southampton in 2021.
According to Chopra, conditions in England do not suit Asian teams. He added that the three-match series should feature one Test at home, one away, and one at a neutral venue. Sharing a post on Twitter, Chopra wrote:
"Why WTC Finals happen only in England? Neutral venue but it mirrors non-Asian conditions. Why does it have only one game? Why not have a Test series to determine the World Test Champion? Why not have one test each at home and one at a neutral venue? Ambitious… Yes, of course."
In the wake of Chopra’s statement, we look at three reasons why the WTC final should be a three-match Test series.
#1 A ‘Test championship’ deserves it
Test cricket is considered the ultimate format of the sport. Hence, the final of a World Test Championship deserves a proper series and not just a one-off Test match.
Isn’t it ironic that the finalists of the WTC are decided on the basis of multiple series, but the winner of the entire competition is decided on the basis of one game?
The same debate arose after the 2021 final as well. New Zealand had a significant upper hand since they were already playing a Test series in England ahead of the WTC final against India.
Then-Indian captain Virat Kohli had commented after India’s eight-wicket loss to the Kiwis:
"I am not in absolute agreement of deciding the best Test side in the world over the course of one game. If it is a Test series, it has to be a test of character over three Tests - which team has the ability to come back in the series or totally blow away the other team.
"It can't just be pressure applied over two days of good cricket and then you suddenly you are not a good Test side anymore. I don't believe in it."
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri had also stated that he would have preferred a best-of-three final to determine the winner of the World Test Championship.
#2 It should be fair, with matches at home and away as well
The ICC, responding to the debate over having a best-of-three final, had stated that the packed cricketing schedule does not make it a feasible option. However, to decide the winner in a fair manner, the WTC final must be played as a three-match series.
Just like teams have to play at home and away during the championship to cement their place in the final, so too the summit clash should also be a ‘test’ of the team across varied conditions.
One match should be played at home, one away, and one at a neutral venue. That way, the WTC will have a true winner as the team that has prevailed in different conditions will be crowned the champion.
#3 Why WTC is different from the World Cup
It can be argued that the white-ball World Cup competitions (ODI and T20I) are decided on the basis of a one-off final.
As such, the same must apply to the World Test Championship as well. However, a World Cup is played as one tournament and lasts for only a month or two.
In complete contrast, the WTC is contested over two years, with Test nations competing in multiple series at home and away. Each team played six series over a period of two years before India and Australia booked their place in the final.
Deciding the winner of a championship that is played over two years for a maximum of five days and that too at a neutral venue sounds quite unfair. As Chopra aptly put it in another of his tweets:
"No tournament lasts two years to find its winner. So, please don’t throw ‘Final should be one knockout game’ in my direction. Test cricket is a very unique sport… lasts five days. Championship lasts two years. Finals can surely be a 3-match series.”
The ICC needs to seriously consider the suggestion and work out a way so that future WTC finals are contested in a best-of-three format.
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