WTC Final | We are confident with our preparation for the final, insists Cheteshwar Pujara
Pujara states that the Indian team is ready for the challenge
|Ahead of the inaugural World Test Championship final, Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has reckoned that the Indian team are confident with their preparation for the final. Terming the mental aspect important, Pujara insisted that the youngsters are ready for the challenge, against New Zealand.
India’s clash against New Zealand in the World Test Championship might one of the biggest challenges for Virat Kohli’s side, who have in the past faltered in the knock-out stages of the various ICC competitions. With the BlackCaps having already played two Tests in England, they would ultimately start as the favourites, going into the all-important final.
However, Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara stated that the Indian team is very confident with their preparation for the final, as they prepared for the clash with an intra-squad warm-up game. Not just that, the rock-solid Indian batsman pointed out that the ‘mental part’ of the battle is going to very important as it is a one-off Test.
"Well here I think the mental part is very important because it is a one-off Test," Pujara said on Tuesday (June 15).
"We've had 10-12 days of preparation, so you know mentally you need to be up for it because sometimes you have little time for preparation and you are not playing any first class or any other Test before an important game because of quarantine and all the restrictions,” he added.
“But as I said, if you are up for the challenge, even in non-favourable circumstances you still want to do well. As a team we are confident that preparation is up to the mark. A few extra days of preparation would have helped but that we cannot complain. I think we are ready for the final," he stated.
For the likes of Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill, it would be one of the biggest games in their Test career, having shown their talent in the last year. Pujara hailed their confidence and stated that they work incredibly hard on improving their game, in any conditions.
"The best part about all young players is that they are very confident. And you know they are ready to work hard to improve their game, depending on the conditions. You've seen in Australia, the conditions were not familiar to them but they still did well.
“Even here, when we started practice sessions, they were finding it a little difficult early on but slowly they worked towards their game, they spoke to the senior players, they spoke to the management and they're ready to improve.”
From the larger scheme of things, Pujara insisted that Test cricket needs to survive and credited the World Test Championship format for helping it. Not just that, the Indian batsman also opined that winning the WTC final would give the youngsters motivation to play the format in the next cycle.
"Even across the world Test cricket needs to survive and having this World Test Championship is a very good way to do it. Each and every series means a lot. Winning every Test gives you points. I think this should continue and I feel if India does well, many youngsters will want to play this format and would want to be part of the finals when the next cycles come."
