India captain Virat Kohli is "not too bothered" about losing the World Test Championship final to the Black Caps and has called for future finals to be best-of-three contests.
India captain Virat Kohli celebrates the dismissal of Black Caps batsman Henry Nicholls on day five of the World Test Championship final. Photo: Photosport Ltd 2021
New Zealand have beaten India by eight wickets late on the sixth and final day's play at Southampton to secure the inaugural title.
Kohli believes a three test series would have been a better way to decide the World Test Championship.
"I'm not in absolute agreement of deciding the best test side in the world over the course of one game," Kohli said.
"It has to be a test of character over three tests, you know which team has the ability to come back into the series, or completely blow away the other team.
"It can't just be pressure applied over two days of good cricket and then you are suddenly not a good test side anymore. I don't believe in that."
Kohli has called for the International Cricket Council to make changes for the next edition.
India captain Virat Kohli checks on Black Caps batsman Ross Taylor after Taylor was hit on the head by a delivery on day six of the World Test Championship final. Photo: Photosport Ltd 2021
"At the end of three matches there's effort, there's ups and downs, there's situations changing throughout the course of the series, a chance to rectify the things that you've done wrong in the first game and then really see who's the better side over the course of a three match series will be a good measure of how things really are," he said.
"So we're not too bothered by this result because we understand as a test side what we've done over the last three, four years."
"This is not a measure of who we are as a team and the ability and the potential we have had for so many years now."
And India's captain believes there is appetite for a three test final in the congested international calendar.
"Why wouldn't you want to see two more tests of the same teams battling it out and eventually being the worthy winners of the World Test Championship?," Kohli pondered.
"Historically all of the great series you've seen in test cricket you remember them over a period of three matches or five matches perhaps.
"I'm not saying this because we're not on the winning side, but just for test cricket and for this saga to be absolutely memorable I think it has to happen over a period of three games minimum."
India captain Virat Kohli is dismissed by Kyle Jamieson on the sixth and final day of the World Test Championship final in Southampton. Photo: Photosport Ltd 2021
Black Caps captain Kane Williamson says there are "arguments for both sides".
"The exciting part to finals is that anything can happen," Williamson said.
"We know how fickle cricket is and we've seen it in another competitions and other world cups and all other bits and pieces and the one-off factor does bring a unique dynamic which does make it exciting and all these sorts of things.
"No doubt the more cricket you have within a series the more you do find out and the more it does reveal itself.
"But in the same way it was a really exciting match the first time that there's been this competition on and both teams were fully geared for the game and it was a brilliant game of cricket."
- RNZ
