India (404 & 258/2d) defeat Bangladesh (150 & 324) by 188 runs to win the 1st Test

[MenInG]

India have boosted their chances of appearing at next year's ICC World Test Championship final with a comprehensive 188-run victory over a gritty Bangladesh in Chattogram on Sunday.

Despite a strong rear-guard action from Bangladesh veteran Shakib Al Hasan (84), the hosts' last four wickets all fell prior to lunch on the final day as India drew first blood in the two-match Test series.

Spinners Axar Patel (4/77) and Kuldeep Yadav (3/73) did the majority of the damage as they shared seven Bangladesh wickets in the second innings between them and India climbed the World Test Championship standings as a result.

India receive a valuable 12 points courtesy of the triumph and now hold a 55.77 win-percentage as they close in a top-two finish at the end of the current World Test Championship period.

The victory sees India jump in front of Sri Lanka and up to third on the current standings, with pacesetters Australia and second-placed South Africa the only teams in front of them.

The good news for India is that those two teams are currently battling it out in a three-match series of their own in Australia, meaning India may be able to make further inroads during their remainder of their series in Bangladesh.

The second and final Test of the series commences in Mirpur on Thursday and another win there could even see India close in on the leading two teams.

India host Australia for four Test matches during February and March next year and need to finish in the top two places on the standings to make it back-to-back appearances in the World Test Championship final.

Rohit Sharma's side were defeated by New Zealand in the inaugural World Test Championship final at Lord’s last year and will be keen to make amends for that loss if they can reach the 2023 decider.

ICC

 

[Pollack]

Is this region based politics at play here?

They’re treating Kuldeep horribly for a while from what I’ve gathered by posts by Indian fans on here.

He has been treated unfairly since 2019 in favor of Chahal.
Favouritism: Chahal's wife is great buddy with entire Indian team and their wives. Kohli and chahal were RCB buddies.
Cricketing reasons: Indian team managemnet hate attacking bowlers(pacers or spinners) They want spinner who can bowl fast, without flight, stumps to stumps. Kuldeep was very slow and prefers to offer some flight.

 

[Champ_Pal]

Bangladesh fans deserve a better team than this. A teams with talent that can rival the passion of its fans.

 

[Mahee]

Kudos to BD….scoring 300+ on a Day4/5 pitch against Asia’s GOAT test team and world’s No.1 test team is no small achievement…they should be proud.

 

[MP2011]

now all eyes on SA match. Australia must beat SA to help India

Quite close to achieving that.

 

[Pollack]

Kudos to BD….scoring 300+ on a Day4/5 pitch against Asia’s GOAT test team and world’s No.1 test team is no small achievement…they should be proud.

Dead pitch. Very very slow. Infact with a bit of application they could've saved the test match but India declared 3rd day itself and left no chance for bangladesh to survive these many overs.

 

[sweep_shot]

Well played Bangladesh. Making 300+ in the final innings is not easy. Good batting by Zakir, Shakib, and Najmul. Congrats [MENTION=141306]sweep_shot[/MENTION]!

Thanks.

4th innings batting was okay.

 

[Ab Fan]

Quite close to achieving that.

Inspite of Ashwin's lackluster performance overseas in SA, India continues to be a top test team and seems to be on their way to second WTC Finals. All hail GOAT Asian test team!

 

[Pollack]

Inspite of Ashwin's lackluster performance overseas in SA, India continues to be a top test team and seems to be on their way to second WTC Finals. All hail GOAT Asian test team!

India was much better team than NZ and also deserved previous WTC but finals in England was unfair advantage to NZ.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

India was much better team than NZ and also deserved previous WTC but finals in England was unfair advantage to NZ.

Deserving team won the final. Who stopped Indian team to reach there and practice before the final? NZ were serious about that final and played a series before that, Indian players on the other hand were busy playing pyjama league and fans like you had no problem then. Now bringing this stupid excuse of 'unfair advantage to NZ' lol.

 

[Sidilicious]

India was much better team than NZ and also deserved previous WTC but finals in England was unfair advantage to NZ.

How were we the better team when we got our ***** handed to us by not even crossing 220 in any innings?

And it’s not as if we didn’t know that the final would be held in England. The better team during the test won.

 

[MP2011]

He has been treated unfairly since 2019 in favor of Chahal.
Favouritism: Chahal's wife is great buddy with entire Indian team and their wives. Kohli and chahal were RCB buddies.
Cricketing reasons: Indian team managemnet hate attacking bowlers(pacers or spinners) They want spinner who can bowl fast, without flight, stumps to stumps. Kuldeep was very slow and prefers to offer some flight.

Indeed. Chahal is a nothing cricketer, can't bat, bowl, or field.

It's such a shame he has been continuously being played in LoIs.

Had he been any good, he'd have played at least a single test till date but he hasn't and never will

 

[Ab Fan]

India was much better team than NZ and also deserved previous WTC but finals in England was unfair advantage to NZ.

India were definitely better team than NZ. NZ got the advantage due to the conditions bring overcast which is completely suited to them. Also, we shouldnt have picked two spinners in that game that also costed us the game.

It is like Australia playing Sri Lanka in WTC Finals on Colombo. We all know SL will win there but they don't have the luxury to host finals.

 

[Front Foot Pull]

Deserving team won the final. Who stopped Indian team to reach there and practice before the final? NZ were serious about that final and played a series before that, Indian players on the other hand were busy playing pyjama league and fans like you had no problem then. Now bringing this stupid excuse of 'unfair advantage to NZ' lol.

ha, so sachin tendulkar is wrong about this advantage to NZ. you go on lecturing saab.

 

[Sidilicious]

ha, so sachin tendulkar is wrong about this advantage to NZ. you go on lecturing saab.

If thats the case, then is 2011 WC is unfair cuz it was advantage india? Same with aus and Eng?

The fact is we knew that we would need to play the final at Lords. Why didn’t we prepare beforehand?

Someone or other will always have the advantage wherever the final is played. That doesn’t mean we use it as an excuse. To be cup holder, we need to win the final, against whatever opponents and at any location.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

ha, so sachin tendulkar is wrong about this advantage to NZ. you go on lecturing saab.

I think I have already mentioned that NZ were serious about winning that final so they played the series before that final. See even they needed practice on these pitches whereas indian players and fans like you were busy watching pyjama league. I said this before the final also that Indian fans will use this excuse of unfair advantage to NZ. Once again I am asking, who stopped India from organising a series in Ireland/England before the final?

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

If thats the case, then is 2011 WC is unfair cuz it was advantage india? Same with aus and Eng?

The fact is we knew that we would need to play the final at Lords. Why didn’t we prepare beforehand?

Someone or other will always have the advantage wherever the final is played. That doesn’t mean we use it as an excuse. To be cup holder, we need to win the final, against whatever opponents and at any location.

Well said. This reminds me of GOAT Australian team.

 

[Pollack]

If thats the case, then is 2011 WC is unfair cuz it was advantage india? Same with aus and Eng?

The fact is we knew that we would need to play the final at Lords. Why didn’t we prepare beforehand?

Someone or other will always have the advantage wherever the final is played. That doesn’t mean we use it as an excuse. To be cup holder, we need to win the final, against whatever opponents and at any location.

In world cup the entire tournament is in one country. The teams reaching the finals have reached finals playing similar conditions. Here path to finals of India was more quality than NZ. Overall team India was much superior. In any other place except NZ or Eng, India would've crushed NZ. They even won the toss and put India to bat in the most difficult time to bat. So overall deserving team in the finals won the match but deserving team did not win the WTC.

 

[Pollack]

Indeed. Chahal is a nothing cricketer, can't bat, bowl, or field.

It's such a shame he has been continuously being played in LoIs.

Had he been any good, he'd have played at least a single test till date but he hasn't and never will

After 2019 we had to make a choice of only playing one wristie going forward and Kohli ensured chahal is the one to be persisted. Only when Rohit become captain kuldeep again started getting selected again in squads atleast.

 

[Front Foot Pull]

If thats the case, then is 2011 WC is unfair cuz it was advantage india? Same with aus and Eng?

The fact is we knew that we would need to play the final at Lords. Why didn’t we prepare beforehand?

Someone or other will always have the advantage wherever the final is played. That doesn’t mean we use it as an excuse. To be cup holder, we need to win the final, against whatever opponents and at any location.

impact of getting used to the conditions in test cricket > white ball. why is such a basic thing a matter of discussion. comparing WC to the test cricket. yes we need to win whoever and where ever, but that doesn't mean there shouldn't be any ground rules.

I think I have already mentioned that NZ were serious about winning that final so they played the series before that final. See even they needed practice on these pitches whereas indian players and fans like you were busy watching pyjama league. I said this before the final also that Indian fans will use this excuse of unfair advantage to NZ. Once again I am asking, who stopped India from organising a series in Ireland/England before the final?

again, the preconceived notion. i am a bigger fan of indian team than IPL or any other team in it. test cricket is my fav format too. so you can put the pyjama league dialogue back in your little pocket.

yes, i agree and i put the blame on both ICC and BCCI for allowing NZ to have a series in ENG which ended 5 days prior to the start of WTC. warmup to the conditions matters the most in test cricket. shame on BCCI to not bringup this issue with ICC. ICC should put out a condition in FTP that the WTC final host country (who ever it might be) can't have a home series with anybody 1 month prior to the WTC final. or they can brainstorm a better idea.

also lol at ICC for NZ securing a finals berth by playing just 11 matches. shafting teams who play more and making fools of the fans of AUS, ENG and IND who play more. sustaining success % over more number of matches is tougher.

there are many loopholes in this, needs some modifications. just cause some boards can't financially afford to play more tests, doesn't mean you can shaft teams who play more and generate more revenue. we can rant forever but ICC gets a pass for coming up with the idea of WTC in first place.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

impact of getting used to the conditions in test cricket > white ball. why is such a basic thing a matter of discussion. comparing WC to the test cricket. yes we need to win whoever and where ever, but that doesn't mean there shouldn't be any ground rules.



again, the preconceived notion. i am a bigger fan of indian team than IPL or any other team in it. test cricket is my fav format too. so you can put the pyjama league dialogue back in your little pocket.

yes, i agree and i put the blame on both ICC and BCCI for allowing NZ to have a series in ENG which ended 5 days prior to the start of WTC. warmup to the conditions matters the most in test cricket. shame on BCCI to not bringup this issue with ICC. ICC should put out a condition in FTP that the WTC final host country (who ever it might be) can't have a home series with anybody 1 month prior to the WTC final. or they can brainstorm a better idea.

also lol at ICC for NZ securing a finals berth by playing just 11 matches. shafting teams who play more and making fools of the fans of AUS, ENG and IND who play more. sustaining success % over more number of matches is tougher.

there are many loopholes in this, needs some modifications. just cause some boards can't financially afford to play more tests, doesn't mean you can shaft teams who play more and generate more revenue. we can rant forever but ICC gets a pass for coming up with the idea of WTC in first place.

You love test cricket but you also love to whine a lot. You are finding loopholes in this but have no problem with IPL which is the biggest loophole in Indian cricket. Let me ask this third time again. Who stopped India from organising a series before WTC final in England/Ireland? Is that too hard to answer?

 

[Sidilicious]

impact of getting used to the conditions in test cricket > white ball. why is such a basic thing a matter of discussion. comparing WC to the test cricket. yes we need to win whoever and where ever, but that doesn't mean there shouldn't be any ground rules.



again, the preconceived notion. i am a bigger fan of indian team than IPL or any other team in it. test cricket is my fav format too. so you can put the pyjama league dialogue back in your little pocket.

yes, i agree and i put the blame on both ICC and BCCI for allowing NZ to have a series in ENG which ended 5 days prior to the start of WTC. warmup to the conditions matters the most in test cricket. shame on BCCI to not bringup this issue with ICC. ICC should put out a condition in FTP that the WTC final host country (who ever it might be) can't have a home series with anybody 1 month prior to the WTC final. or they can brainstorm a better idea.

also lol at ICC for NZ securing a finals berth by playing just 11 matches. shafting teams who play more and making fools of the fans of AUS, ENG and IND who play more. sustaining success % over more number of matches is tougher.

there are many loopholes in this, needs some modifications. just cause some boards can't financially afford to play more tests, doesn't mean you can shaft teams who play more and generate more revenue. we can rant forever but ICC gets a pass for coming up with the idea of WTC in first place.

Are there loopholes in the process and the WTC final? Of course.

However, we knew about this right from the beginning. When we knew the final was going to be in eng, we don't have a reason to complain. We should have played better, prepared better. We could have planned the IPL to finish earlier/or send the players not in the final 4 before hand, and even planned a test match with Ireland.

And we shouldn't complain about the rules. Our insistence on not playing Pakistan (which I don't entirely disagree with) is one of the main reasons the format has been followed. The only thing that can be changed is choosing the venue of the final.

We also know that the next 2 Test Finals will take place in England. Lets say a team that play swing better than us - Aus, Eng, SA or NZ make it to the final. Will we complain again despite knowing that its been planned?

Life is never entirely fair. Making excuses about it does not make us a better team.

 

[Sidilicious]

In world cup the entire tournament is in one country. The teams reaching the finals have reached finals playing similar conditions. Here path to finals of India was more quality than NZ. Overall team India was much superior. In any other place except NZ or Eng, India would've crushed NZ. They even won the toss and put India to bat in the most difficult time to bat. So overall deserving team in the finals won the match but deserving team did not win the WTC.

I agree that we would have crushed NZ anywhere but NZ, Eng and possibly SA. But the fact is that the last final and the next finals will be in England again. And this cannot be our excuse.

And there are many world cups where the final winners were not the best team of the tournament. 1987 WC, 1992 WC, 2017 CT, 2014 T20 etc. But that doesn't make them any less winners.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

WTC final should be best of three final so that fans don't whine when their team loses the finals.

 

[Sidilicious]

Well said. This reminds me of GOAT Australian team.

We dont need to be GOAT to be no.1 For instance, between 2016 and 2020 we were the #1 team. Were we GOAT? No. But we were the better than rest. That's sufficient to be #1.

But unlike the test rankings, in tournaments where is there is a final, all teams are aware about the venue of the final. Its not like the venue was going to be SL, but cunningly NZ had the venue changed to the Eng. Everyone knew about it beforehand. So it strong for any Indian to use the benefit NZ had as an excuse.

 

[Energy]

Playing 2 tests against Bangladesh is a lottery for WTC. Good business model.

 

[jnaveen1980]

By the way why is England is getting to host every TC final? Why not Australia?

 

[Devadwal]

Playing 2 tests against Bangladesh is a lottery for WTC. Good business model.

Isn't Pakistan played 2 test matche series vs Bangladesh?

 

[JaDed]

By the way why is England is getting to host every TC final? Why not Australia?

WTC final is again in England?

edit: just googled next two are in England lol why??

 

[Front Foot Pull]

Are there loopholes in the process and the WTC final? Of course.

However, we knew about this right from the beginning. When we knew the final was going to be in eng, we don't have a reason to complain. We should have played better, prepared better. We could have planned the IPL to finish earlier/or send the players not in the final 4 before hand, and even planned a test match with Ireland.

And we shouldn't complain about the rules. Our insistence on not playing Pakistan (which I don't entirely disagree with) is one of the main reasons the format has been followed. The only thing that can be changed is choosing the venue of the final.

We also know that the next 2 Test Finals will take place in England. Lets say a team that play swing better than us - Aus, Eng, SA or NZ make it to the final. Will we complain again despite knowing that its been planned?

Life is never entirely fair. Making excuses about it does not make us a better team.

not entirely. yes the venue was known but the points system and the qualification criterion was changed midway citing covid as a reason. they just changed it like that, shastri was also unhappy about it. and who was on the technical committee which made these changes? if i am not wrong it was anil kumble, what was he thinking? what is the point of the trophy if we have rules which treat teams inequal in the first place and then change the rules from time to time. they need to sit down and chalk out robust system and stick to it for long.

all said and done. NZ outplayed IND and won the WTC, fully agreed on this. but zero importance to how the teams got there? so playing for 2 years to decide the finalists only to tweak and twist the rules and call life is unfair, move on?

 

[Front Foot Pull]

You love test cricket but you also love to whine a lot. You are finding loopholes in this but have no problem with IPL which is the biggest loophole in Indian cricket. Let me ask this third time again. Who stopped India from organising a series before WTC final in England/Ireland? Is that too hard to answer?

i have already sort of answered this. my opinion is that the WTC final host nation shouldn't be allowed to host any home test series 1 month or so prior to the finals. so, as i said earlier i blame unfair ICC and spineless, shameless BCCI for allowing such a thing to happen. to repeat i absolutely blame BCCI..not for not having a series in ENG but for not protesting against NZ having it there.

i am neither the biggest fan of IPL nor its hater. but i have enough sense to know that IPL is only going to get bigger and bigger. i have no problem with it as long as both international and IPL co-exist. i am not at all the biggest fan of IPL but i am also not going to spend half my life ranting about it in every thread of this forum. i remember news channels and critics running programs after the inaugural season that it ran only because of the novelty factor and no one would watch it from second season and we all know what happened and where the league is now.

i am sure the second paragraph might have irked you and you quickly want to brand me as IPL fan. majority of the people choose what they want to watch and its journey shows many casual fans like it. one can absolutely choose to not watch a single ball of it, but to deny its existence & success is acting blind.

 

[MP2011]

By the way why is England is getting to host every TC final? Why not Australia?

Especially when they are not even able to qualify for the finals.

Why not Asia? Isn't spin part of cricket?

 

[jnaveen1980]

Especially when they are not even able to qualify for the finals.

Why not Asia? Isn't spin part of cricket?

Money will go to whose coffer? I am curious. Anywhere India plays you expect a huge crowd assuming India goes through.

 

[RamLakhan]

WTC final is again in England?

edit: just googled next two are in England lol why??

Because rain can make matters interesting!

 

[Sidilicious]

Especially when they are not even able to qualify for the finals.

Why not Asia? Isn't spin part of cricket?

I think its due to the crowds. Even without England playing, I would expect a good attendance in any test. Whereas in India, I doubt crowds to attend an England vs Australia test match, as exciting that may be. Possibly only Chennai and Bangalore.

Actually, thinking about it, and England vs Aus final at a normal Indian pitch helpful for spinners (not a rank turner) will be quite exciting. That would truly be a spectacle.

 

[Ab Fan]

I think its due to the crowds. Even without England playing, I would expect a good attendance in any test. Whereas in India, I doubt crowds to attend an England vs Australia test match, as exciting that may be. Possibly only Chennai and Bangalore.

Actually, thinking about it, and England vs Aus final at a normal Indian pitch helpful for spinners (not a rank turner) will be quite exciting. That would truly be a spectacle.

England have been quite far from contention for WTC Final in either of the two tournaments.

 

[James]

On the WTC, there is a little bit to do with the likely decent crowds which will turn up; and also history, with Lord’s being “the home of cricket” going back to 1787 — and also, one of the first ever Test matches (and the first in England) was played at the Oval.

I do perceive this though to be primarily a broadcasting based decision. Because London is on Greenwich Mean Time, the ICC may well believe that having the WTC Final there will maximise the opportunities for channel coverage and enhance viewing figures around the world. In Asia or Australia, there may not be as much viewership.

Putting that aside, the MCG should be a future venue for a WTC Final in my opinion. It hosted the first ever Test match.

Other good venues could be Trent Bridge, the Gabba, the SCG, Newlands, The Wanderers, the Wankhede, Eden Gardens… lots to choose from.

 

[Sidilicious]

not entirely. yes the venue was known but the points system and the qualification criterion was changed midway citing covid as a reason. they just changed it like that, shastri was also unhappy about it. and who was on the technical committee which made these changes? if i am not wrong it was anil kumble, what was he thinking? what is the point of the trophy if we have rules which treat teams inequal in the first place and then change the rules from time to time. they need to sit down and chalk out robust system and stick to it for long.

all said and done. NZ outplayed IND and won the WTC, fully agreed on this. but zero importance to how the teams got there? so playing for 2 years to decide the finalists only to tweak and twist the rules and call life is unfair, move on?

Firstly, India played a Test and a limited over series against Australia just before the 2015 WC. This gave us nearly 3 months to acclimatise to the condition in Australia. India clearly had an advantage there as opposed to the other teams that turned up without the same preparation. So, if we start stopping teams from hosting WTC, then why should teams hosting WC be allowed to play any cricket or host any team.

The fact is India was the strongest side going into the final. In fact, India has been the best test team for 6 years since 2016. However, if you look back, had we scored another 50 runs in 2 tests in England in 2018, and then bowled better in 1 innings in 2021/22, we would have won 2 series in England. Similarly, had we scored 70 runs in one test in SA in 2018, and bowled better in 1 innings in 2022, we would have won 2 consectuive series in SA too. And it is clear that we keep repeating our mistakes. We made same mistake again WTC 21, and we are making those mistakes again today. The numpties in Team management/selection committe/planning committee are to blame for this. We could have made the required changes and we would have at least won the series in SA in 21, Eng 21/22 and finally the WTC 21.

I believe that despite all the preparation NZ got, India could have easily beaten NZ even in England (of course, had we had full 5 days of cricket) had we simply played 1-2 tests in Ireland beforehand. Hell, we were 1 hour of decent batting away from drawing the test, despite the lack of preparation. Add some solid preparation and we would have won the match with full play, or at least drawn the shortened 3 day match we got.

IIRC, the IPL was stopped end of April. Thus, BCCI had nearly 1 month to plan for the series. So, even IPL was NOT hindering us, but only our planning and possibly motivation. The blame squarely lies on Indian cricket.

 

[Sidilicious]

Firstly, India played a Test and a limited over series against Australia just before the 2015 WC. This gave us nearly 3 months to acclimatise to the condition in Australia. India clearly had an advantage there as opposed to the other teams that turned up without the same preparation. So, if we start stopping teams from hosting WTC, then why should teams hosting WC be allowed to play any cricket or host any team.

The fact is India was the strongest side going into the final. In fact, India has been the best test team for 6 years since 2016. However, if you look back, had we scored another 50 runs in 2 tests in England in 2018, and then bowled better in 1 innings in 2021/22, we would have won 2 series in England. Similarly, had we scored 70 runs in one test in SA in 2018, and bowled better in 1 innings in 2022, we would have won 2 consectuive series in SA too. And it is clear that we keep repeating our mistakes. We made same mistake again WTC 21, and we are making those mistakes again today. The numpties in Team management/selection committe/planning committee are to blame for this. We could have made the required changes and we would have at least won the series in SA in 21, Eng 21/22 and finally the WTC 21.

I believe that despite all the preparation NZ got, India could have easily beaten NZ even in England (of course, had we had full 5 days of cricket) had we simply played 1-2 tests in Ireland beforehand. Hell, we were 1 hour of decent batting away from drawing the test, despite the lack of preparation. Add some solid preparation and we would have won the match with full play, or at least drawn the shortened 3 day match we got.

IIRC, the IPL was stopped end of April. Thus, BCCI had nearly 1 month to plan for the series. So, even IPL was NOT hindering us, but only our planning and possibly motivation. The blame squarely lies on Indian cricket.

As proof is in the pudding, just look back at the test series results, where we first played LOIs, got some good practice in, played 1-2 first class matches and then played tests. We end up playing really well in those series. For eg. England 21, after LOIs and WTC. Australia 21. Preparation plays a big factor in our results. Its not the only factor we need to fix, but a major one.

Now contrast that with the results of tests, where we play the tests cold Turkey. We get hammered left, right and centre.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

i have already sort of answered this. my opinion is that the WTC final host nation shouldn't be allowed to host any home test series 1 month or so prior to the finals. so, as i said earlier i blame unfair ICC and spineless, shameless BCCI for allowing such a thing to happen. to repeat i absolutely blame BCCI..not for not having a series in ENG but for not protesting against NZ having it there.

i am neither the biggest fan of IPL nor its hater. but i have enough sense to know that IPL is only going to get bigger and bigger. i have no problem with it as long as both international and IPL co-exist. i am not at all the biggest fan of IPL but i am also not going to spend half my life ranting about it in every thread of this forum. i remember news channels and critics running programs after the inaugural season that it ran only because of the novelty factor and no one would watch it from second season and we all know what happened and where the league is now.

i am sure the second paragraph might have irked you and you quickly want to brand me as IPL fan. majority of the people choose what they want to watch and its journey shows many casual fans like it. one can absolutely choose to not watch a single ball of it, but to deny its existence & success is acting blind.

So you are not an IPL fan but you keep on defending it like a diehard f@nboy? Who are you fooling here?

Even after multiple tournament failure if you still can't see it then you will never see it in the future as well. If IPL is going to get bigger and bigger, expect more players like Bumrah who will remain injured during internationals and available during IPL. The things I said about IPL are all coming true one by one. Keep crying.

 

[MP2011]

I think its due to the crowds. Even without England playing, I would expect a good attendance in any test. Whereas in India, I doubt crowds to attend an England vs Australia test match, as exciting that may be.

That's just conjecture.

Besides, WTC final must be played in any of 2 finalists' home.