Team India's Road To WTC 2023 Final
Team India's Road To World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 Final - India and Australia will lock horns in the final of the ICC World Test Championship to be played at The Oval in England from June 7th, 2023, to June 11th, 2023.
Between the WTC's two-year cycle of 2021 and 2023, Team India played 18 Test matches, winning ten and losing five of them. Three test matches ended in a draw.
Let's look at the series-wise journey of Team India.
India's tour of England (5 Tests)
India had played their first series against England in the second cycle of the World Test Championship. India was 2-1 up in the series with one match remaining. Due to the threat of the coronavirus, the fifth and last Test match, which was to be played in Edgbaston, was postponed. India toured England in 2022 to play this test match and lost it by seven wickets. The series was tied at two under the leadership of Virat Kohli.
New Zealand's tour of India (2 Tests)
India won the two test series 1-0. The Men in Blue played the first test under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane, as Kohli was not fit to play. The visitors fought well and were able to draw the first test. Kohli joined the team in the second test, which India won by 372 runs.
India's tour of South Africa (3 Tests)
Despite winning the first test, India lost the series by a margin of 1-2. South Africa is the only place where the men in blue haven’t won a Test series until now. This was Kohli's last test series as captain.
Sri Lanka's tour of India (2 Tests)
India registered a 2-0 clean sweep over Sri Lanka by beating them by an innings and 222 runs in the first test at Mohali and 238 runs in the second test in Bengaluru. Team India played this series under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma.
India's tour of Bangladesh (2 Tests)
KL Rahul led the side in the absence of injured Rohit Sharma and sealed the series by a margin of two nil. Team India won the first test by 188 runs and the second test by three wickets.
Australia's tour of India (4 Tests)
Also Read: Live Scorecard
In one of the most anticipated series of the year, India won the opening two test matches of the series at Nagpur and New Delhi. However, the tourists bounced back by winning the third test under the captainship of Steve Smith, who replaced regular captain Pat Cummins. They played some good cricket in the fourth test as well and managed to score a draw, losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 1-2.