'Don't know how ready he is...': Rohit Sharma ready to unleash India's game-changer on Australia in view of WTC final

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma also revealed that one of the star performers is in the fray for the ICC World Test Championship final if the Asian giants end up securing their berth in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Playing down KL Rahul's removal from the vice-captaincy duty in the lead-up to the series decider between Australia and hosts India, skipper Rohit Sharma has also revealed that one of the star performers is in the fray for the ICC World Test Championship final if the Asian giants end up securing their berth in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. After hammering Australia in the first two matches of the four-match Test series, Rohit and Co. have already retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

India's skipper Rohit Sharma addresses a press conference on the eve of the 3rd Test between India and Australia, at Holkar Cricket Stadium (ANI)

Tipped to seal a famous series win over the top-ranked Australian side, hosts India also have one foot in the final of the World Test Championship. Prior to the start of the series, India needed to upstage Australia 3-0 or 3-1 to seal its berth for the Test Championship final. Speaking to reporters at a press conference ahead of the 3rd Test against Australia in Indore, Indian skipper Rohit opened up about India's plans for the preparations of the Test Championship final.

Hinting that India could request a green pitch in Ahmedabad, Rohit also gave all-rounder Shardul Thakur a special mention. The Indian skipper admitted that all-rounder Shardul is in India's plans for the Test Championship final. “There is definitely a possibility of that. We have already spoken about it. We need to get the guys ready for it as well. The important one is Shardul Thakur because he comes into the plans for us. I don’t know how ready he is, knowing that he just got married yesterday. How much overs he has bowled. If we get the result that we want, we might think of doing something different in Ahmedabad,” Rohit said.

Shardul, who was a star turnout for India in England, becomes a crucial member of Rohit's side in overseas conditions. The final of the ICC World Test Championship will be contested at The Oval in London from June 7-11. The 31-year-old has played 8 Test matches for India. Shardul last played a Test match for India against England at Edgbaston in 2022.

“It will be a great achievement. (In) the cycle after the last World Test Championship (WTC), the way we have played in certain conditions has been remarkable. Yes, these are our home conditions, but these are some challenging conditions that we are playing in. It is not easy for batters to come out and keep scoring runs consistently," Rohit added.