Published 18:50 IST, June 12th 2023
Harbhajan Singh rejects Rohit Sharma's idea of 3 match WTC Final; 'One final is enough'
Harbhajan Singh disagrees with the Indian captain, Rohit Sharma's opinion which he gave during the press conference after India lost the WTC title to Australia.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
Why you're reading this: India lost the WTC 2023 Final to Australia by a margin of 209 runs on Sunday after a poor display of Test match batting. On Day 5, the team needed 280 runs to win. The final day did not start well for Team India, as Steve Smith stunned Virat Kohli by holding on to a screamer in the first hour of play. Soon after Virat Kohli was dismissed, Ravindra Jadeja was bowled by Scott Boland in the same over. The fall of Virat and Jadeja's wicket led to yet another Indian batting collapse with India missing out on yet another ICC trophy.
3 things you need to know
- Rohit Sharma only made 15 runs in 26 balls in his first innings against Australia
- India won their last international trophy in 2013 under the leadership of MS Dhoni
- Australia will now go on and play against England in the upconing Ashes series.
Harbhajan Singh disagrees with Rohit Sharma
India skipper Rohit Sharma suggested that there should be a best-of-three format for the upcoming ICC World Test Championship Final. However, former Indian bowler Harbhajan Singh, did not agree with the opinion of the Indian skipper
Talking to the media, Singh shared his thoughts on the best-of-three format for the WTC Final, and he stated, "I'd like to know what happens in 50-over World Cups. Do you want three finals as well? Would you say the same thing if it were New Zealand vs. England? You would not. You'll say no, one final is sufficient. So, one final in the 50-over World Cup and one final in the Test Championship. The tennis and football World Cups each have one final.
He shared his disagreement, asking if it is possible to play a 50-over match three times and what if the final is between strong teams like New Zealand and Australia, claiming that people will lose interest as it will affect the viewership and that one final is sufficient to decide the winner. He went on to give an example from other sports like tennis and football, saying that each of the big sports have one final to decide the winner. He concluded saying that no one will be waiting for the teams to finish three matches.
Who were the other stars to disagree with Rohit Sharma?
During the conversation, former one of the most prominent cricketers in India, Sunil Gavaskar, said that domestic tournaments like the Indian Premier League also possess one final to decide the winner. Continuing with that, he said that with the best-of-three format, players will start demanding the best-of-5. Harbhajan Singh agreed with Sunil and told him that it is not possible to have 3 games in the finals, for that bilateral series are enough and for Test matches, one final is enough. Australia lifted their ICC World Test Championship title on Sunday and now will be eyeing to win the 2023 Ashes next week.
Updated 18:51 IST, June 12th 2023