Mr. Cricket UAE in conversation with Wasim Jaffer, former Indian Test opener previewing the World Test Championship Finals against New Zealand and why he feels India has a slight edge over the Kiwis who have been India's Nemesis in ICC games.
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#UAEnews #WorldTestChampionship #cricket
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00:00Hello all to the beautiful people of this country, as well as all the cricket followers on our page.
00:06Today, we have a guest who has scored leaps and leaps of runs, not only in domestic cricket, as well as for Indian cricket.
00:15He was known as the master of Mumbai cricket, and when he used to play the back foot shot, you couldn't take your eyes off.
00:22Yes, I am talking about one star of Indian cricket, Wasim Jaffer. Welcome to the show, Wasim bhai.
00:30Thank you. Thank you. And it's very nice to be here.
00:33The pleasure is all mine. And the reason we had you on this show, because we vividly remember
00:39your debut series was against England and India's Tour of England starts with the
00:45World Test Championship. So we did not think about anybody else but Wasim.
00:50That's very nice of you and kind of you.
00:52All right. Now, before we, you know, step on to the World Test Championship, the IPL is on
01:02hold till September and I believe you all will be here, you're there as the batting coach for
01:07Punjab Kings. So looking forward to it?
01:11Very much so, very much so. I mean, very happy that cricket is coming back. Since IPL,
01:18the normal public also have been deprived of watching some quality cricket. So it's
01:24good that cricket is coming back with this World Test Championship, plus the India.
01:39GG. Yeah. You can hear me?
01:45I can, I can. Yes.
01:48Okay. All right. So we'll start with the World Test Championship.
01:54It's the biggest platform they say that test cricket as this is the purest form and India
02:01in the finals against the old nemesis, New Zealand. Now, my first question to you,
02:09you've seen India squad, which has been announced. What do you think about the squad?
02:15I think it was expected, you know, more or less, I feel the 12, I personally feel
02:24was pretty much the same, which I feel that, you know, India might more likely than not would go
02:31with five bowlers, plus the six batsmen, but they've got the liberty of the two all round,
02:35the two spinners, 10 bat, they've got test hundreds. And that makes the side very strong.
02:42Especially when both of your spinners can bat, they've got test hundreds.
02:50And you've got batting till the eight. And you know, the kind of form that Yashapant is in,
02:56I think the team selects himself, to be honest, there is only one or maybe at most two,
03:02you know, selection issues that can happen. But I feel that mostly the 11 or 12 pick themselves,
03:09in my opinion. All right, since we're talking about the 12, which you think pick themselves,
03:17could you just run through me? And for all our fans, players, you expect them to be on the park?
03:25I mean, in my opinion, or if you ask me, I would like Rohit Sharma, obviously Rohit Sharma and
03:30Shukman Gill, you know, they should open in my opinion, number three Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya
03:38Rahane, number six should be Rishabh Pant. And then Ravindra Jadeja at seven, Ashwin at number
03:45eight, Bumrah number nine, Shami number 10. And the debate probably that's going on is between
03:54Siraj and Ishaan Sharma. But I would personally would want Ishaan Sharma to play because somebody
04:00who's played 100 test matches, who's been in England before he knows how to bowl in Dukes
04:05with the Dukes ball, he's played county cricket. And that experience counts for a lot, I feel,
04:10you know, somebody who's got 300 plus test wickets. And plus, Ishaan Sharma bowls so well
04:15to the left handers and New Zealand has got quite a few left handers in the top order.
04:19I feel they should go with Ishaan Sharma, even in the in the practice game within the squad,
04:25he's picked up wickets. So I feel they should go ahead with Ishaan Sharma as a third seamer.
04:31That's a very fair point, like you mentioned about the choice. It's a headache for selectors,
04:37whether it should be Siraj or Ishaan. And you rightly mentioned a player who's played 100 test
04:42matches, has the experience of playing so many matches in England, has taken enough wickets and
04:49has an edge over left handers, whereas New Zealand does have quite a few. And Ishaan
04:53Sharma should be the pick ahead of Siraj. Now, do you think India might
05:02see that, no, we will play four seamers and drop probably one of the spinners,
05:05or you see them going with two spinners, even though because they're bad people?
05:10No, I don't think I don't think, you know, you'll only go with four seamers if it's a really green
05:15pitch and it's going to stay like that for the most of the test matches, which I don't think
05:20will happen. I mean, in England, mostly the pitches will spin from later half of the third
05:28day to the fourth and fifth day. And both of your spinners, you know, somebody like Ashwin
05:35has got 400 plus wickets, Jadeja has got more than 200 wickets, and they are so accurate.
05:41You don't want to, you know, tempt yourself to, you know, drop any of them. Three plus two,
05:47I think gives you the right balance. You know, the spinners can hold one end and your seamers
05:52can rest. And knowing Ravi Shastri, knowing Virat Kohli a little bit, I feel they both
05:58are very aggressive, you know, the way they approach to the games, they want to win.
06:03And most of the times we see, they play with five bowlers. And like I said, you know,
06:10you've got that liberty that two of your main spinners can bat. So there's not a problem that
06:16your tail becomes a bit if you play five bowlers. So that's not an issue. So I feel
06:21three plus two looks a very sensible option for me.
06:26Fair point. Now, because New Zealand has been there in England, and has already played two
06:32test matches, does that give them a slight edge ahead of India, who's just come there and just
06:38had some practice matches between themselves? I think so. I think so. It will give them the
06:43edge because they have played the real game. They play test cricket, no matter how much you practice
06:49or, you know, play within the squad, that intensity probably is never going to be there.
06:57When you play a test match, that intensity is totally different. So that gives them a little
07:00bit of edge. But saying that, you know, they've also, you know, tested their bench strength. So,
07:06you know, after the first test match, which was a draw in Lords, they have benched Saudi,
07:14they've benched Jameson, they've benched the other guys. Williamson didn't play up for an injury.
07:21So they've also tested their squad a bit. So, you know, but saying that I feel that New Zealand
07:28have a little bit of edge, but you know, India will be very prepared. I mean, come the day one
07:33of the tests, you know, they're all seasoned campaigners. Everybody has played in England
07:38before. So I think it's going to be a cracking contest. If you had to mark a few New Zealand
07:46batsmen, whom would you be worried about in the batting? And then I'll come to the bowling.
07:54I think I was really impressed with the way Devin Conway has played. I think he was really,
08:01really, you know, fantastic the way he played it. You know, first time he's been to England,
08:05I'm sure he might have played some league cricket or some other cricket, but the way he played in
08:12Lords test match and the edge bus in the second one, I was really, really impressed with his
08:17technique, with his temperament and with his discipline, the way he's constructed his innings.
08:22So I was really impressed. So he's going to be definitely one of them that India need to
08:26dislodge early. Williamson, you can't look beyond Williamson and Ross Tiller. They've got heaps and
08:30heaps of experience, quality players. But I think there is not much, to be honest, I mean,
08:38other than these guys. Obviously, Tom Latham is another one. He's also a very solid player.
08:44But I think these three guys, Ross Tiller, Williamson and Devin Conway, I feel those are
08:48the very important guys in the batting line. And when we come to the bowling.
08:53I think bowling, you know, Trent Boult, Tim Southey and Jameson, I think those are the three
09:02guys I feel, you know, are more likely to play. Neil Wagner might play because he's one of those
09:08guys who does the hard work for them. He's, you know, once, I think he bowls first and second
09:15spell. He's mainly the guy who will come in and bowl, you know, short balls, he'll bowl bouncer
09:21and he'll have that, you know, field placing where he'll tempt you with quite a few short
09:26balls. So he does the dirty work for them most of the times. And he's been quite successful with
09:31that. So it's going to be a little interesting to see whether they go with three fast bowlers plus
09:38Wagner or they go with Ajaz Patel as well as a main spinner. So it's going to be interesting to
09:44see, you know, what kind of attack they employ. But I think Trent Boult and Southey looks very
09:51very sure to play and they are a very seasoned, you know, campaigner, somebody who's played again
09:57a lot of times in England. They played against a lot of Indian players. Last time India played
10:01in New Zealand, they beat them 2-0. And they were the guys who did, you know, most of the damage.
10:07Jameson was another guy who debuted in that series and did really well. So I feel, you know,
10:13those are the threats probably are for the Indian backing line.
10:19Very rightly said, Vasim. Now, you know, playing in England and playing in India is
10:24totally different conditions. You have played in England and been successful.
10:29What advice you would like to give youngsters like Shubman Gill or the players you want to,
10:35you know, to be safeguarding themselves against the moving ball, the Dukes ball?
10:40I think, like I said, you know, the way Devin Conway has played, you know, the kind of discipline
10:46that he showed in constructing an innings, you know, leaving a lot of balls outside the off-stands,
10:51especially in the early part of the innings, especially in the first session. I think that
10:56is going to be very, very vital because scoring runs is never going to be a problem to Shubman
11:01Gill or Rohit Sharma or even Virat Kohli. They can always accelerate. But I think in England,
11:08for you to succeed or to play really well, you need to have that self-discipline at the start
11:13of your innings. When you start to build your innings, you need to leave a lot of balls,
11:18you know, that fifth and sixth-stump balls. You need to be very sure of your off-stump and you
11:23need to play, you know, late. In England pitches, the pitches are not going to scare you with the
11:31bounce and there are not going to be a lot of bounces because the pitch is not going to be like
11:37Australia or maybe South Africa. So the threat would be the lateral movement. So those are the
11:45things that you need to worry, you know, and you need to have that self-discipline of leaving a
11:50lot of balls outside off-stump. And once you do that, once you play out that first hour or maybe
11:56hour and a half, then I think, you know, you're pretty much sure that, you know, you've got a
12:03hang of the conditions. So then you can obviously expand your, you know, the area of shots.
12:10And the other thing is, like you said, the Dukes ball. The Dukes ball never stops swinging. So you
12:15need to be, no matter how much runs you've got against your name, you still need to be very
12:20watchful. So unlike the Kookaburra ball where it's only going to swing for first 25-30 overs,
12:27then there's no worry. But Dukes ball is totally different. It's got a very upright seam and it
12:33keeps swinging throughout the day. The conditions, you know, help the bowlers. It's going to be
12:39overcast unless it's really bright, red-hot day, then it's a different story. But in England,
12:45you've got to expect that it's going to be overcast at some point. So those are the things
12:51actually that the batsman needs to be aware of. And that's why I feel that Devin Conway has
12:57given us a template of how you need to bat or how you need to construct an innings. So the
13:04Shubman Gills or Rohit Sharma. Rohit, even though he's played in England before, but he's played as
13:11a middle order. He's never opened the innings in England. Shubman Gill or even Mayank Aggarwal
13:16never played a test match in England. So that is something, you know, a template they need to
13:22follow at least at the start of the innings. Fair point. Again, Vasim, you were part of the
13:28Indian squad, which won under the captainship of Rahul Dravid. And I remember that test match
13:35when I believe it was Leeds. I'm not sure about the venue. Maybe probably you can correct me.
13:41Where India bowled England out cheaply and then you and Dinesh Karthi gave a good start.
13:46And then England were chasing the game throughout until Michael Vaughan came and scored some runs
13:51in the second innings and Zaheer Khan bowled them out in the second inning. Which venue was that?
13:56That was Trent Bridge. Trent Bridge. Yeah. All right. So, you know, I remember that
14:04game very vividly because on the first day, it was cloudy and we got the best of the conditions
14:09to bowl. Now, imagine India wins the toss and suppose if it's cloudy and you're going in with
14:14two spinners. Generally, when you have two spinners, you hope that your spinners come into the play,
14:19into the fourth innings of the game, which is on the last day or probably on the second last day
14:23at the end, fag end of the day. So, would you still bat first and take the challenge on of
14:29batting first or would you make the opposition, put the opposition in?
14:35I think it all depends on the conditions. I mean, if you think that the conditions
14:41going to stay overcast for a longer period, then obviously you have to think about
14:47bowling first. But if you think that it's going to be a very passing phase and it's going to clear
14:52out in the first hour or maybe after an hour, then you don't mind even batting first because, you know,
14:58generally there is going to be some movement and some help for the fast bowlers, no matter where
15:04you play because the ball is hard, the wicket is fresh, the bowlers are fresh. So, eventually,
15:10at most times, you'll always want to bat first. Unless, you know, the conditions are really in
15:15favor of the bowlers, then you'll have to think twice. So, if the conditions you feel that, you
15:20know, it's going to stay overcast for most part of the day, then you don't mind to bowl first because
15:26you've got three genuine fast bowlers. I mean, that is the reason why I say that playing five
15:31bowlers, having that liberty of having two all-rounders in the team give you that liberty, even
15:36if you are made to bat first, you've got, you know, batting till number eight.
15:43Even if you have to take, you know, the option of bowling first, you've got three genuine fast
15:48bowlers who bowl 140 plus and can exploit the conditions. So, I feel Indian team won't mind
15:53anything, to be honest. Very well said, Wasim. Now, New Zealand somehow has been India's nemesis.
16:03Whether we talk about the 2019 World Cup semi-final, we all thought that we would have a
16:08walk in the park and they stunned us at Manchester. Or in the past also, they've had the better of us,
16:15as you had mentioned in the start of the show, that they even beat us when we went there and
16:20the conditions won't be that different as what is in New Zealand. So, my point here is, I'm sure
16:27Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri must have done their homework against New Zealand. But going into this
16:32test match, if you had to pick one winner, upright winner, would it be India or New Zealand?
16:40I think India looks, I mean, out of the two teams, India do look, you know, a very formidable team,
16:46you know, batting-wise and bowling-wise, you know, and the kind of cricket they played in Australia,
16:52you know, I think the series win against Australia must have, you know, boosted their confidence,
16:58you know, next to nothing, you know, having to go through so many crises in that series
17:08and still coming out trumps and, you know, winning in Melbourne, winning in Brisbane,
17:15drawing that test match in Sydney, you know, everything was against us. But still, I mean,
17:20they have, they got to make, to play the net bowlers in a test match because there were nobody
17:27left to play. All the players were injured. So that shows the quality of the team that,
17:33you know, we possess. Washington Sundar came in and performed, Shahdul Thakur came in and
17:39performed, Natarajan made debut in all three formats in that tour. So that shows, you know,
17:46the quality of the Indian side. And I feel they are more balanced team compared to New Zealand.
17:52But like I said before, you know, when somebody is qualified for a world test championship final,
18:00they work really, really hard for two, two and a half years. So you can't take any teams lightly,
18:07leave alone New Zealand. And New Zealand, like you said, very rightly,
18:10they've always been our nemesis. And they've beaten us. I mean, the last time India beaten
18:15them in the ICC event was way back in 2003. So nothing comes easy as far as beating New Zealand
18:24to the Indian team. So they'll be, you know, won't be taking them lightly at all. Mark my words that,
18:33you know, they will be up against. Like I read an article today in one of the sports page
18:38that they are the good boys whose actions does all the talking. They don't make more noise.
18:43They just do with the actions. Definitely, I think they are, I think they'll always been
18:50the second best team of everyone, you know, everyone likes them, because you don't see them
18:56sledge too much. And they are, I mean, even I've come across them, a lot of them in IPL,
19:02when I've played in RCB, or even while my time with Punjab Kings, they've always been, you know,
19:09one of the nicest guys you can find the New Zealanders. So they're very easy to work along
19:14and to interact with. So that is why probably everyone likes them. And you know, there's no fuss,
19:21you don't see any fuss with any of them. I mean, Williamson is been a great ambassador of the game,
19:28not just for New Zealand, but I feel for everyone. So even Ross Taylor, when I played with him in
19:34RCB, he was one of the best guys that you know, you can interact. So they are, I'm sure,
19:40they are always the second best team of everyone. Very well said again, Vasim, New Zealand,
19:47the second best team of everyone. And we as Indians, we hope we are the team which will
19:53beat New Zealand in this big, big final because everybody says that this is like a World Cup.
20:00And for the first time, this is happening. We are all excited. So are you, Vasim. And so all
20:051.3 billion Indian fans will be cheering Team India. And we hope that we can this time put it
20:11across New Zealand and have a trophy in our cabinet. Definitely, definitely. I feel this
20:17is the biggest, like you said, this is the centerpiece of test cricket that is going to
20:23happen in a couple of days. And, you know, anybody winning it is going to be a number one test site
20:30without a doubt. But in test cricket, you know, the shorter the game, there are more chances of
20:37you upsetting anyone. But the longer the game, the quality of the side, you know, comes to the fore.
20:44So anybody, I mean, to play a really good cricket for over a period of five days are going to decide.
20:51So whoever comes up after that, I feel that they deserve to be number one side in the world.
20:58Well, we've had analysis, rather the pre-match analysis from the great Vasim Jaffer. I've seen
21:04him very fondly playing for India, playing for Mumbai, for whichever Ranji team he's played.
21:10He's scored heaps of runs. Records were meant to be broken, but I'm not sure who's going to break
21:15Vasim Jaffer's record. We'll have to wait and watch. Till then, we hope you've liked the show.
21:21And if you like, please make sure to share and say some good things if you feel that what Vasim
21:26has said has been spot on. Thank you, Vasim Bhai, for all your insight and we look forward to catch
21:31you post-match. Thank you.