INDORE: The Indian team management has had talks regarding the preparation of a green top for the fourth Test of the ongoing series in Ahmedabad as a possible dress rehearsal for the World Test Championship Final at the Oval from June 7-11.
If India win the third Test in Indore, they will seal a berth in the WTC Final, where there is a possibility they will again face Australia. If India win here, the Ahmedabad Test is probably the last chance to replicate some English conditions because the IPL will end only on May 28. "There is definitely a possibility of that," captain Rohit Sharma said on Tuesday. "We have already spoken about it. We need to get the guys ready for it as well."
Such an eventuality, however, will break the cycle of spin-friendly home pitches. "It will be a different ball game for both teams," Rohit said. "Actually, I don't want to talk about the World Test Championship. We're not there yet. The focus is on this Test.
"But that thought process is definitely there. If we get the result we want here, we might think of doing something different in Ahmedabad. After this we have one more Test to be played and then two months of IPL."
The big question is, can English summer conditions actually be replicated in Gujarat at this time of year?
India have simulated foreign conditions earlier too, notably preparing a green top to aid seamers in a Test against Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata in mid-November 2017, ahead of a South Africa tour. "There's no home advantage (in the WTC Final), no conditions advantage. . . but it's not alien conditions as such. I don't think England is going to qualify so both teams will be neutral teams. Sri Lanka and South Africa are also in the mix. Australia have also played a lot there. India have played a lot in England over the last couple of years," Rohit said.
If India do make the WTC Final, Rohit said it would be a "great achievement for us". "These are home conditions but these are challenging conditions. It is not easy to score runs consistently."
Playing on a more lively surface will also necessitate a change in team composition, with a seam-bowling all-rounder coming in. "The important one is Shard Taker because he comes into that plan for us," Rohit said. "But we don't know how ready he is since he has just got married. We don't know how many over's he has bowled."
Aussie captain Steve Smith appeared surprised. "Hopefully, we don't let them get the job done here (in Indore) and we'll see what happens from there," he said.
