Before the upcoming Test series against home team New Zealand, the Team India head coach Ravi Shastri has revealed their two objectives for the upcoming Test matches.
After the conclusion of the limited-overs series of the ongoing New Zealand tour, the Indian team is busy preparing for the traditional leg. The Test series will be the part of 2019-21 ICC World Test Championship which will run between 21st February and 4th March 2020.
In the ongoing ICC World Test Championship, India have already played seven Tests in three series and won all those Tests. On the points table of this championship, India are at the top position with 360 points. Australia managed the second spot with 296 points (played three series and ten matches).
Out of the three away Test series in this Championship, India have already played one away series in the West Indies last year. In the ongoing calendar year, the present No.1-ranked Test side will play the two remaining away Test series. After playing the forthcoming Test series in New Zealand, India will play the four-match Test series in Australia from late November.
Our one objective is to play like the world’s No. 1 Test team: Ravi Shastri
In the ongoing ICC World Test Championship, while the top two teams of the final points table will qualify for the One-off final Test of this tournament, Shastri believes that they need another 100 points to be in contention to play this historic final. He feels that two overseas victories will put them into a good position in this fight.
On the other hand, Shastri also revealed that their other goal is to play like the No.1-ranked Test team continuously.
Shastri recently told TOI, “We need 100 points to be in contention to play at Lord’s (in the World Test Championship final). Two overseas wins out of six Tests will keep us in good stead. We play six Tests overseas this year (two in NZ and four in Australia). So, that’s one objective. The other is to play like the world’s No. 1 Test team, because that’s what this team believes in more than anything else. On the Test front, that’s what we’re looking at.”
India will end the league stage of the 2019-21 ICC World Test Championship with the five-match home Test series against England.