WTC Final: Virat Kohli Becomes Most Capped Indian Test Captain

Indian skipper Virat Kohli became the most capped Indian Test captain on Saturday. The Indian skipper walked out for his 61st Test as the captain of the team. In the process, he overtook MS Dhoni’s tally of 60 Tests as captain. Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson won the toss and opted to bat first. The first day of the WTC final was washed out due to rain. The match finally got underway on the second day. With the reserve day in place, there are still five days of cricket left potentially.

Virat Kohli not only overtook MS Dhoni in the list. He also overtook the likes of Sourav Ganguly (49 Tests) Sunil Gavaskar (47) and Mohammed Azharuddin (47) in the list of most Test matches as Indian captain.

Meanwhile, there were lot of talks regarding the possibility of India making changes to their playing given that the first day was washed out and the conditions favoring the seamers a lot more than the spinners. However, they have stuck with the same playing XI that was initially announced.

Virat Kohli Leads India In His 61st Test As Captain

The Kiwis, on the other hand, went for an all-pace attack with Colin de Grandhomme being the fifth bowling option in the line-up. The New Zealand team heads into this innings, winning the Test series against England 1-0.

The WTC final between India and New Zealand is a rematch in many ways of the ICC World Cup 2019 semifinal. Both India and New Zealand played some fantastic cricket to get to the final. New Zealand beat teams like India, West Indies and Pakistan to reach the finals. They became the first team to reach the final after Australia postponed their tour to South Africa over COVID-19 concerns. India, on the other hand, beat teams like Australia and England after losing to the Kiwis to kickstart their World Test Championship campaign.

Virat Kohli spoke at the toss about bowling first if he would have won the toss. However, after losing the toss, he has backed his batsmen to come good in the final.

“We would’ve probably bowled first as well. But runs on the board has been our strength. In a big final, runs on the board, however many, are an advantage. As you saw the makeup of our side, the balance is such that we prepare for any conditions. We’ve been performing really well in Test cricket. For us this is just a Test match we have to be professional in, have to follow our processes.”

Also Read: WTC Final: India vs New Zealand- Toss Report