Move over ODI and T20I cricket its time for the big game and the ICC World Test Championship kickstarts on August 1st with the first Ashes Test match between Australia and England, followed by India vs West Indies on August 22nd and end in a final match between the first and second-ranked teams at Lords in June 2021. Each team will play with six other opponents, three at home and three away. Each series will consist of between two and five Test matches. Therefore all participants will not play the same number of Tests but will play the same number of series. The nine full members India, Australia, England, South Africa, West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and New Zealand will sweat it out for the big one.

Virat Kohli has expressed his joy over the World Cricket Test Championship stating It is a great thing, to be honest. We all were looking forward to it. Very honestly, we felt like there were a few series in between where after big tours we felt like maybe a one-off Test or a couple of Tests were not apt for the moment, but this gives a lot of context to all kinds of cricket that we are going to play.

It is a great thing for Test cricket at the moment because we have been talking about it for the last two-three years, regardless of how we have played as a team and the interest of the fans building because of that, going for results and all that sort of stuff.

Test cricket really needed a boost. The players were always putting in the effort but from a global point of view, an incentive attached in a way which the Test Championship presents. I think for all the cricketers involved now, every session and every game will be more intense, there will be more on the line. So it will be challenging, but all the more exciting and all the teams I am sure are going to enjoy a lot through this whole journey of the Test Championships.

We are awaiting the ICC World Test Championship with great enthusiasm as it adds context to the longest format of the game. Test cricket is very challenging and coming out on top in the traditional form is always highly satisfying. The Indian team has done really well in recent years and will be fancying its chances in the championship.