WTC Final: 'I think the ball will swing even without saliva,' says Ishant Sharma

Ishant Sharma. Picture/ AFP

Team India and Team New Zealand fought against all odds and are one step away from creating history as the two face off in a high-profile clash for the coveted World Test Championship title.

Many former cricketers weighed in on the big match and shared their opinions on the probable heroes and top performers as well as explored both India and the Kiwis strengths and weaknesses.

Recently, Ishant Sharma also spoke about the use of saliva may impact the WTC match. Star batsman Shubman Gill also spoke about his time during India A's tour of England years ago.

Speaking exclusively on Star Sports show Cricket Connected, Team India's pacer Ishant Sharma shared his views on how the use of saliva probably won't be that important during the ICC World Test Championship Final. Ishant said, "I think it is not that difficult. I think the ball will swing even without saliva and somebody needs to take responsibility to maintain the ball. And if the ball is maintained well in these conditions, then it becomes easier for the bowlers to take wickets in these conditions."

Ishant Sharma also spoke on why adapting to changes is important for a cricketer. "You need to train differently and adapt to the change. In India, you get the reverse swing after some time, but in England, the length is fuller because of the swing. So, you have to adjust to the lengths. It is not easy to force that and the weather here is cooler so it takes time to acclimatize to the weather. And the quarantine makes it difficult because you cannot go to the ground, after IPL we were not allowed to go to the grounds and train. The way you train in the gym and the training on the ground is very different, so you have to adjust to that and it takes time," he said.

Team India's opening batsman Shubhman Gill shares his learnings from his India A and Under-19 tour of England. "When I toured England with India A and the Under-19 team, everyone asked me to play a certain number of balls if I wanted to score runs. But I feel, your intent to score runs should never go on the back seat and you should look to survive. When you are looking to score runs, the bowlers get to the back foot and you can put some pressure on the bowler. If you are just looking to survive, you tend to get more good balls than you should be getting. I think, at times to survive in England you have to leave the loose balls. So, that was my learning from the India A and Under-19 tour," he said.

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Catch all the action from the ICC World Test Championship Final LIVE & Exclusive on the Star Sports Network & Disney+ Hotstar VIP from June 18-22nd, 2021, 2.00 PM onwards