India will take on the West Indies in the second Test of the series in Delhi. The hosts are leading 1-0 following their innings and 140-run win in the series opener. India and West Indies captains Shubman Gill and Roston Chase spoke about the importance of red-ball cricket and how it impacts the white-ball formats.
For Gill, red-ball cricket is the top priority. “If your red-ball base is strong, then you will do well in ODIs and T20Is. If you look at England and Australia, their Test teams are doing well. Naturally, your white-ball teams will do well. Maybe their (West Indies) focus is on the T20 format and the leagues, and that’s why they are struggling,” Gill said.
While IPL is the best league in the world, the red-ball system is still producing Test cricketers in India. Gill, Shreyas Iyer, and Mohammed Siraj have come through this system.
Roston Chase, the West Indies captain, spoke on similar lines. “If you play red-ball cricket well, you can compete in other formats. But white-ball cricket to red-ball cricket is tough. All the legends have come through red-ball cricket. It is the ultimate challenge,” Roston Chase said.
The West Indies have gone down in the traditional format, with the players failing to win matches. The Windies were one of the most feared sides in the past, but they have been losing series after series at the moment.
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