Nathan Lyon surrenders to Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli after ICC announces WTC Final Date and Venue
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Australia's veteran offspinner Nathan Lyon has come out in support of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Recently, Lyon advocated for the World Test Championship (WTC) final to be a three-match affair instead of just one Test match between the finalists.
Before Nathan Lyon, India captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have also spoken about the WTC final to have at least three matches to decide a worthy winner of the coveted Championship.
After India's defeat in the WTC final to Australia in 2023, Rohit Sharma stated that he wants to play a three-match Test series to decide the winner of the WTC.
Earlier after India's defeat in the WTC final 2021, Virat Kohli had also said something similar and wanted three Tests for the championship final.
Nathan Lyon backs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's enterprising suggestion
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli now have the backing of Nathan Lyon who also wants the WTC final to be a three-match Test series.
Lyon backed his argument by saying that three Tests will allow the teams to bounce back even after one bad session. However, he also mentioned that it would be a challenge given the time constraints.
“One thing I would like to see, I'd like to see the World Test Championship Final potentially in a three-match series. That may become a little bit better because you potentially can lose using a Test match in one session where (in a three-match series) it may allow teams to bounce back all your show their dominance and win 3-0," Lyon was quoted as saying by ICC.
"We're pretty time-poor anyway and that's going to be a challenge but that's one thing I would change," he added.
WTC is like the World Cup for me - Nathan Lyon
The legendary offspinner even hailed the World Test Championship for giving Test cricket a new life.
He believes that there are important points on offer in every Test match which forces the teams to play their best cricket in every game. Lyon also compared the WTC to the World Cup.
“Oh, yeah. I'll just say it's (World Test Championship) the pinnacle for Test cricket. People say it's sometimes a dead rubber when you turn 2-0 up in a three-match series or whatever it may be. But I feel like there's no more dead rubbers. I've never considered them dead rubbers, but there's always points on offer now. You look at us last year losing against West Indies at the Gabba hurt us a fair bit," Lyon reckoned.
"It's massive, but I feel like the World Test Championship for me is like the World Cup and that's a genuine big World Cup. When you are competing against the best for long periods of time over a two-year period, you have to be good for the whole lot,” he added.
Nathan Lyon's next international assignment
Nathan Lyon will have a huge role to play in the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 which is set to be played between Australia and India later this year.
Over the years, Lyon has established himself as one of the best red-ball spinners in the world.
Lyon has an excellent record against India in Tests. He has picked up 121 wickets in 27 Tests against the Men in Blue at an average of 31.56, which includes a no. of match-winning performances.
Despite offspinners having a tough time on Australian pitches over the years, Lyon has been highly successful with his skills and accuracy. He has played 129 Tests so far and picked up 530 wickets at an average of 30.28.
