WTC Final Very Similar To Playing A World Cup Final - Cheteshwar Pujara

Senior India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara is excited to feature in a one-of-a-kind match: The ICC World Test Championship Final versus New Zealand, from June 18 in Southampton. He says that this inaugural WTC final is “like a World Cup final in any other format”.

Pujara enjoyed a successful outing with the bat in his last match at The Rose Bowl, albeit the team lost the game. The right-hander played a terrific knock of 132* on the 2018 tour to England.

He is a Test specialist of Team India and played a crucial part in the two series triumphs in Australia. Hence, the 33-year-old is buzzed about donning the whites for a landscaping event in Test cricket.

“Personally, it means a lot as I play just one format (Tests). This is the first time we are playing this WTC Final. As a team, we have worked hard over a period of time. You have to win so many series away and at home.

“To be at top, it does require a lot of hard work. It’s like a World Cup final in any other format,” Pujara said during a media interaction on Tuesday.

“This is the first time in Test format, but it’s very similar to playing a World Cup final in ODI or T20. As a team we are looking forward to the final,” he added.

WTC Final will definitely help the survival of Test cricket: Cheteshwar Pujara

It was with the utmost thought of the need for the survival of the longest form of the game that the ICC introduced this two-year cycle of the World Test Championship, culminating in one marquee match.

That made the bilateral Tests, even if the series was decided, of importance, due to the points on offer. Pujara, who currently sits on a healthy average of 46.59 in 85 Tests, reckons the WTC final will do loads of good for the dying state of Test cricket.

“Yes, of course, I think Test cricket needs to survive and with this WTC Final, it will definitely help.

“If we win, more young players in India will want to play Test cricket. And overall, even across the world, Test cricket needs to survive and this is a very good way to do it, having this WTC,” the right-hander further stated.

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