After losing in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against New Zealand, India’s lack of match experience has been criticised. Post to the Suspension of the IPL 2021 season, India played a first-class game against England. New Zealand, on the other hand, faced England in a two-match Test series and became extremely familiar with the conditions. Virat Kohli on India preparation for England series
According to Sunil Gavaskar, India will play only one intra-squad warm-up match which is not sufficient preparation for the competitive match. Again, a game is taking place more than a month before India and England lock the horns in a five-game test series from 4 August. India has no warm-up games scheduled against county teams, which has raised many concerns.
We had requested for a first-class game prior to the Test series but had not received one: Virat Kohli
Rather In the post-match press conference, Indian captain Virat Kohli said that they had requested for a first-class game prior to the Test series but had not received one. Instead, from July 28 to July 31, India will play another four-day intra-squad competition.
“That doesn’t depend on us. We wanted first-class games but that’s not been given, I don’t know the reason. We have ample time for the first Test, we should be ready for it,” he said.
We wanted first-class games: Kohli on India preparation for England series
The last time India toured England, they competed admirably, and the series was highly competitive, despite the final score of 4-1. India appeared to have the game in hand on several occasions before England attacked them virtually every time. India’s failure to eliminate the tail has troubled them for years, and it was one of the reasons they surrendered a 32-run lead in the WTC Final.
On the other hand, India’s lower order has been in poor performance for a long time. Cricket has evolved significantly, and it is now necessary for bowlers to at least stick around with the bat and provide value to their wicket. Surprisingly, it was only their lower-order that got them out of danger in the first innings of the Gabba Test, which India went on to win.
