Former England player Monty Panesar feels that the success of the current Indian team has come mostly because of the head coach Ravi Shastri’s ‘fearless brand of cricket’, rather than the captain Virat Kohli’s ‘on your face kind of cricket.’ However, Team India are all set to tour England for six Tests which will begin with the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship final against New Zealand.
After that, they will take on England in a five-match Test series as well.
“If one analyses the performance of India in the past few months, you can see that it is more of Ravi Shastri’s team than Virat Kohli’s. At least that’s what I feel,” Monty Panesar told IndiaToday.in. “It is Ravi Shastri who has built a self-belief in this Indian cricket team. What they achieved in Australia after the infamous ‘36’ in Adelaide is quite a miracle. They won the series even though their charismatic captain Virat Kohli didn’t play the rest of the series, and India kept losing players to injury. It was Shastri who got the job done for India against Australia that too in their backyard.”
However, this WTC final is going to be an interesting clash considering the fact that both teams have some fierce cricketers – be it batsmen or bowlers. Meanwhile, the Indian team is currently in Mumbai and have been undergoing the mandatory quarantine period. And, they have been in great form in the longer format where they beat Australia last year and then England at home as well.
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“Oh, it will be a treat to watch,” added Monty Panesar. “Two greats of the game going against each other in the toughest format of the game. The battle will be intense. believe Kohli will again have a great series and will end up the highest run-getter.”
While the much-awaited World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and New Zealand will take place from June 18 at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton, the former spinner believed it can go either way.
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“If there will be an overcast condition then Kane Willamson-led New Zealand will have an upper edge, but at the same time the Ageas Bowl has a great drainage system, and if weather permits and the game went on to Day four or five, India would have a great chance to win the championship. India must play both Jadeja and Ashwin. There is no one better than these two at present in the world. They bowl in partnership, understand each other’s game, and overall they are street-smart cricketers,” concluded Monty Panesar.
