The Pat Cummins-led side was the first team to qualify for the final after their win at Indore in the third Test match of the BGT series. India qualified after NZ defeated SL in their first Test match of the two-match series at home. The Kohli-led side had lost to the Black Caps in the final two years ago. But former Australian skipper Aaron Finch feels history will not repeat itself when Rohit Sharma’s men travel to London for the WTC final against Australia.
Speaking to Hindustan Times on the sidelines of the Legends League Cricket in Doha, Aaron Finch said –
“I am not sure what Hardik’s Test match plans but when you look at Shami, Umesh, Suraj and these guys, they are really very very good fast bowlers. Siraj is among the top bowlers in the world at the moment. He can all swing the ball. They beat England in England last time. So India have a huge chance for the final. They have a lot of bases covered whether they play one or two spinners.”
When asked about what changes he expects from Australia, barring the return of Cummins who had missed the last two Tests against India, Finch said: “They are not going to play three spinners, that’s for sure (laughs).”
Finch, who had announced his retirement a little more than a month back, also felt that Australia should have beaten India in the recently-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, claiming that the horrifying collapse in the second innings in New Delhi Test match changed the course of the series. He said – “They should have won 2-1. It is just that one hour of madness in Delhi.”
Finch said when asked to point one factor that worked for Australia in the last two matches –
“Khawaja was amazing. But Australia also batted a bit longer and deeper in the game. It would have been easier for them to drop their heads after losing the toss in the third Test but the way they approached and bowled on the first morning was brilliant. And then to take a lead and get ahead in the game was pretty awesome as well. They deserved that Test win. They should have been 2-1 up in the series.”
