ICC Confirms Southampton As The Host For The World Test Championship Final

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed that Southampton will stage the World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand in June. New Zealand was the first team to reach the tournament-decider, followed by India, who made it last week by beating England comprehensively. Geoff Allardice, ICC General Manager, confirmed the same.

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly had earlier already announced that the Rose Bowl in Southampton would host the ICC World Test Championship’s final. The former Indian captain conceded that since a hotel is close to the iconic stadium, they saw it fit to shift the venue from the Lord’s. Furthermore, Ganguly announced that he would be attending the match between India and New Zealand.

Geoff Allardice hopes that by selecting the Rose Bowl, they have given themselves the best chance to deliver a successful final while keeping in mind the safety and welfare of the fans. In the process, the apex body also feel that fans would be able to enjoy two of the best Test sides clash for the ultimate prize. I would like to thank the ECB for their guidance and advice to enable us to make this decision, which gives us the best possible opportunity to deliver a safe and successful World Test Championship Final.

“We are confident that in selecting the Hampshire Bowl, we have given ourselves the best possible chance to successfully deliver the final whilst keeping everyone involved safe and healthy and giving fans the opportunity to watch the two best Test teams in the world go head-to-head for the right to call themselves the ICC World Test Champions. He thanked the England Cricket Board for their guidance and advise, allowing them to host it successfully and safely,” Allardice said as quoted by ICC’s official website.

Hampshire Cricket Chairman on Rose Bowl hosting the ICC World Test Championship final:

Rod Bransgrove, Hampshire Cricket Chairman, stated that they are honoured to serve as hosts for the tournament-decider between India and New Zealand. Ros acknowledged the confidence the ICC has shown in their capabilities and the ECB for supporting the venue as a host for the biggest Test event ever staged.

“We are honoured and delighted that The Hampshire Bowl has been appointed as the host venue for the inaugural ICC World Test Championship Final. I should like to sincerely thank the ICC for this huge demonstration of confidence in our capabilities and the ECB for its significant support of the venue as host of what will be the biggest Test Match event ever staged,” Bransgrove claimed.

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