WTC Final: ICC explains the reason for not conducting a three-match series to decide the winner

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has put forth the reasons why a best-of-three format wasn’t considered to decide the winner of the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Earlier, a number of pundits, including Ravi Shastri, the head coach of the Indian cricket team, stated that the best of three final is needed to sustain the tournament in the long run.

Later, former all-rounder Yuvraj Singh also backed Shastri. However, Geoff Allardice, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the ICC, stated that “blocking out a month” isn’t feasible as far as the congested schedule for international and domestic cricket goes.

ICC opens up on the WTC final

“The reality of the international cricket schedule is that we’re not going to have that month or so, blocking out a month or so for all the teams in the tournament for a final. That’s why (a) one-match final was decided upon,” Allardice was quoted as saying in a virtual news conference.

The points system of the WTC came under scrutiny to start with. Thereafter, the rules were tweaked after a number of series were either cancelled or postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But Allardice sounded happy with the overall qualification process.

“We were really pleased with the way it played out. It was obvious that the interest in certain series wasn’t just restricted to the two teams involved. It was coming from all over the cricketing world and I think to bring that sort of context to test cricket is a real step forward,” he added.

The WTC final between India and New Zealand is set to get underway on Friday, June 18 at the Rose Bowl in Southampton. Even as Virat Kohli’s team is playing an intra-squad game, the Black Caps, led by Kane Williamson, will be going into the game on the back of a 1-0 series win against England.

The series between the Brits and Kiwis wasn’t a part of the WTC. The ICC, earlier, stated that the winner of the WTC would be given a cheque of $1.6 million and a Mace. If the game ends in a tie, the prize money will be shared between the two teams.