India finds itself in a precarious situation as their hold on the World Test Championship (WTC) final slips away at The Oval. With Australia already enjoying a substantial lead of 296 runs with six wickets in hand, Team India faces the formidable challenge of mounting one of the highest successful chases in the history of the game.
Several factors have contributed to India’s predicament, starting with the decision to exclude R Ashwin. After conceding a massive first-innings total of 469 and losing four top-order wickets at a mere 71/4, their chances of a favourable outcome have diminished significantly. Despite the valiant fightback led by Ajinkya Rahane and Shardul Thakur, who both scored half-centuries, India finds itself playing catch-up. However, the task of chasing a target exceeding 300 runs in the fourth innings against Australia’s high-quality bowling attack poses an immense challenge.
Amidst India's struggles at The Oval, former Pakistan batsman Basit Ali launched a scathing attack on the team, deeming the match a foregone conclusion from the moment captain Rohit Sharma chose to bowl in overcast conditions. While India initially had an advantage by restricting Australia to 76/3, counter-attacking centuries from Travis Head and Steve Smith swung the momentum firmly in Australia's favour.
Ali, who represented Pakistan in 19 Tests and 50 ODIs, believes that India can only salvage the WTC final through a miraculous turn of events. Expressing his criticism on his YouTube channel, Ali stated, “India lost the match the moment they chose to bowl worrying about the first two hours. All India can do now is hope to get them out cheaply and hope for a miracle in the fourth innings. During the 120 overs that India fielded, I could see only 2-3 players being fit — Rahane, Kohli and Jadeja. The rest looked tired.”
Ali's criticism didn't stop at the players — he also criticised coach Rahul Dravid. Despite being a great admirer of "The Wall," Ali questioned the team management's tactics and expressed disappointment with Dravid's coaching abilities. Ali said, "I am a huge Rahul Dravid fan, always have been and always will be. He is a class player, a legend. However, as a coach, he is absolutely ineffective. They prepared turning pitches in India. Just answer this: when India travelled to Australia, were similar pitches prepared? They had bouncy wickets, right? God knows what he was thinking. When the higher power was distributing intelligence, he must have been hiding behind mountains.
