The wait is over for the ICC World Test Championship final. The WTC final will be played at Southampton from June 18-22. In the end, either of these two teams will be called the World Test Championship winners. The final would also culminate an event that has been played over two years in different countries and playing conditions. Both India and New Zealand have had enough match practice before the much-awaited final.
New Zealand beat England in a Test series 1-0. The Kiwis won the second Test under Tom Latham’s captaincy. India, on the other hand, played a practice game with their batsmen and bowlers getting a good hit out in the park.
The BCCI and the New Zealand Cricket board announced 15-member squads for the WTC final. For NZ, Kane Williamson, Tim Southee, and BJ Watling returned for the big final. While Williamson and Watling were nursing injuries, Southee was rested to be ready for the big final.
India also announced a full-strength squad with enough options in both batting and bowling departments. Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul, Shardul Thakur, and Washington Sundar were among the ones not selected in the Indian squad for the final.
India vs New Zealand WTC Final: Stats Preview
Overall matches: 56
India won: 21
New Zealand won: 12
Drawn: 26
Average 1st Innings score-337
Average 2nd Innings score– 280
Average 3rd Innings score-262
Average 4th Innings score-187
Key Stats Ahead Of WTC Final Between India & New Zealand
1) This will be Virat Kohli’s 61st Test as captain going past MS Dhoni’s tally of 60
2) Ravichandran Ashwin is on 67 wickets in the WTC campaign. He needs four more to overtake Pat Cummins’ tally of 70 wickets.
3) Kane Williamson is 105 short of getting to 8000 Test runs. He is on 7895 rus=ns at the moment.
4) Ross Taylor needs just 4 runs to complete 18000 international runs. He is on 17996 runs at the moment.
5) The WTC final will be Trent Boult’s 200th international game for New Zealand. he will be the 19th Kiwi player to get to that milestone.
6) Rohit Sharma with 27 sixes needs five more to become the highest six-hitter of the tournament. Ben Stokes leads the list with 31.
Also Read: India vs New Zealand WTC Final: Weather Forecast And Pitch Report