ICC World Test Championship 2019-21: Team-Wise Prize Money Won In The Tournament

The inaugural edition of the ICC World Test Championship (ICC WTC) which got underway on 1st August 2019 between the hosts England and Australia at the Edgbaston, Birmingham finally got concluded on 23rd June 2021 when New Zealand were crowned as the Champions at the Hampshire bowl, Southampton in a rain-marred finale.

The inaugural edition of the ICC WTC had 9 participants across the globe (Australia, India, England, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh). The other three test playing nations i.e., Zimbabwe, Ireland and Afghanistan were not part of the first edition of the tournament. Building up to the final, The tournament saw many great games from Stokes’ heroics in Headingley to Hanuma Vihari and Ravi Ashwin’s resilience at the SCG to Rishabh Pant’s blinder to breach the Australian fortress, Gabba to the greatest test debut ever by Kyle Myers, A double century (210) in the fourth innings to chase down a mammoth target of 395 runs on a day-5 Asian turning track.

The finalists of the tournament:

India, Who started their ICC WTC campaign in August 2019 when they toured the Caribbean nation for a 2-match series and clean-swept the series to grab 120 points in their account. After winning 5 out of 6 series played – 2 Overseas and 3 at Home, Earning 72.2% PCT in the new points system, Indian National Cricket Team made it to the final of the first ever World Test Championship, Where they faced the lucky Kiwis, Who qualified for the Grand finale easily after changes made by the governing body in the ICC WTC points system which was altered due to the Covid-19 pandemic. New Zealand managed to win only one overseas test in the period against Sri Lanka in their first series of the competition and drew the series 1-1 against the Islanders. New Zealand played one more away series where they were whitewashed by the hosts Australia 3-0 in December 2019. However, they clean-swept all 3 series played in their home turf against India, West Indies and Pakistan in 2020, in the process to make it to the ICC WTC final.

The final between India and New Zealand which was earlier scheduled to be played at the Home of Cricket, The Lord’s, London was shifted to the Hampshire bowl, Southampton owing to Covid-19 and Quarantine restrictions. Before the final, ICC made some special changes in rules and added a provision for a reserve-day in the biggest match in the history of the longest format of the game. The finale which was supposed to begin on 18th June 2021,Got delayed as the first day got washed out due to persistent rain as predicted. On day 2 of the final i.e., on 19th June, The toss took place where the Kiwis won the toss and elected to field first in gloomy home-like conditions. The play got underway and India managed to score 146 losing 3 wickets in 64.4 overs which were bowled in the day due to early stumps caused by rain and bad-light. On day 3, India were bowled out for 217 post lunch session and by the end of the day, The Kiwis had an upper hand in the game scoring 101 runs losing two wickets in 49 overs. Day 4 had the same fate as the first day of the match where rain played a spoilsport. On the fifth day, Indian bowlers struggled to pick wickets in first session and then bowled out the opposition for 249 at Tea. In the third session of the fifth day, India managed to score 64 runs losing both the openers by end of the day with a lead of 32 runs. With a loss of two days of play, The reserve-day or the ‘Sixth-day’ of the final officially came into the play where both the teams battled it out on a sunny day for a result in their favour. The kiwi bowlers, Especially Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee ran through the Indian batting lineup on the sixth morning of the game to bowl out India for a mere 170 runs. New Zealand needed only 139 in about 53 overs to be crowned as the first ever World Test Champions and on the biggest day of New Zealand’s Cricketing history, The smiling assassin, The Captain, The Nice Guy of the World Cricket, Kane Williamson stood strong and scored a magnificent half-century and stitched up a century partnership with veteran Ross Taylor and chased down the target in 45.5 overs with a loss of only two wickets in their openers.

How teams were crowned as Test champions before introduction of the ICC World Test Championship:

Before the ICC Test Championship came into existence, The top ranked test team by end of the cut-off date i.e., 1st April were being awarded the Test Mace along with a cash prize of 1 Million Dollars. The first ever Test mace was presented to Australia in 2003 who dominated the top spot in the Test team rankings till 2009. After that, for 10 years the mace changed hands a number of times with India, South Africa, England and Pakistan being crowned as champions. From 2019, when the ICC introduced the “World Test Championship” it was decided that the Test mace will be awarded to the team which will win the final of the tournament along with a cash prize.

Also Read: Teams With Most ICC Test Championship Mace Wins (2003-2019)

Cash Prize In ICC World Test Championship 2019-21:

Ahead of the tournament final, The governing body announced a prize pool of 3.8 Million Dollars (Approx 28.2 Crores INR) which will be awarded to the Winners, Runners-up and other participants of the tournament as consolation. The ICC announced that the winners of the Final will be awarded 1.6 Million $ while the runners-up will be given 0.8 Million $. In case the final ends in a draw or tie, The prize pool for the finalists i.e., 1.6M$ (Winners) + 0.8M$ (Runners-up) will be split in a half and shared by the both teams i.e., 1.2 Million $ each. And both the teams would also share the “Test Mace” until new champions are crowned in the next cycle of ICC WTC. The governing body also announced prize money for the team finishing third in the tournament standings a cash reward of 450,000 USD, While the fourth on the table will be awarded 350,000 USD. Team finishing fifth in the points table would get 200,000 Dollars and the bottom four teams would get a consolation of 100,000 Dollars each.

On that note, Let us take a look at the prize money all teams got awarded after completion of ICC World Test Championship 2019-21:

9. Bangladesh – 100,000 $ (Approx 74 Lakhs INR)

Bangladesh kicked off their ICC WTC campaign against India in 2019 when they toured the neighboring country for a 2-match test series. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Bangladesh’s home series against Australia and New Zealand got cancelled. The pandemic also affected their away series against Pakistan was got postponed after the 1st test where hosts Pakistan perished against the visitors. In 2021, Bio-bubbles paved a way for Bangladesh to host West Indies for a 2-match test series and tour Sri Lanka for another two matches. Unfortunately, Bangladesh ended up losing all but one of their matches in the ICC WTC 2019-21 cycle. They managed to draw the first test against Sri Lanka played in April this year. Middle-order batsman Mominul Haque ended up as Bangladesh’s leading run scorer with 534 runs while spinner Taijul Islam picked 23 wickets in the period to end up as leading wicket-taker for the nation.

As per the ICC, Bangladesh, who stand at 9th position with 20 points earned and 4.8% PCT after end of ICC WTC 2019-21 cycle, will get a reward of 100,000 USD (Approx 74 Lakhs INR). A team like Bangladesh would like to improve their record in the next edition of the World Test Championship.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: 5 Players To Face 100 Balls In An Innings Most Times In The Tournament

8. West Indies – 100,000 $ (Approx 74 Lakhs INR)

Just like Bangladesh, West Indies started their ICC WTC campaign against India. The Caribbean side hosted India for a 2-match test series in August, 2019 where the hosts lost both matches. West Indies’ next assignment was the 3-match tour to England which marked the resumption of International after the Chinese virus impacted a worldwide lockdown for months. The Caribbean side beat the hosts in their first match of the tour but lost rest of the matches. The same fate continued for West Indies in the entire cycle as they managed to win only one series throughout their WTC 2019-21 campaign against 9th ranked Bangladesh in February 2021. Throughout the campaign, West Indies played 3 series in home and 3 away, Where they managed to win one series against Bangladesh, Drew against Sri Lanka at home and faced defeat in the hands of India, South Africa at home and lost their away tour 2-1 to England and were whitewashed by the Winners of the WTC, New Zealand. Middle-order batsman Jermaine Blackwood finished off as West Indies’ leading run scorer of the tournament with 709 runs, while Kemar Roach with 39 wickets ended up as their leading wicket taker.

Ending up at 8th position in the standings with 194 points and 26.9% PCT, West Indies have pocketed a reward of 100,000 USD (Approx 74 Lakhs INR) as consolation for participating in the inaugural edition of the ICC World Test Championship.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: 5 Deserving Players Who Could Have Won The Player Of The Tournament Award

7. Sri Lanka – 100,000 $ (Approx 74 Lakhs INR)

Sri Lanka began their ICC WTC campaign against the winners of the WTC, New Zealand at home where they drew the series 1-1. Which was also New Zealand’s only overseas match win in the first cycle of the Test Championship. Sri Lanka further toured Pakistan in December 2019 for a two-match series where they managed to draw the first test and lost to hosts in the second. After one year, in December 2020, Sri Lanka’s next fixture was against South Africa in an away tour where they were completely dominated by the hosts facing an innings defeat in the first test and losing the second by 10 wickets. Right after a week Sri Lanka hosted England in their home in a 2-match series which was supposed to be played in March 2020, but got postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic where the tourists perished in both of the matches. In their next assignment, Sri Lanka drew the two-match test series against West Indies in March 2021, in the Caribbean islands before winning their first and only series of the cycle against Bangladesh at home 1-0. Overall, The Island nation played 6 series in the entire cycle to only win 1 out of them drawing two and losing on 3 occasions. Sri Lankan skipper Dimuth Karunaratne who was 1 run shy of a thousand, ended up being Sri Lanka’s highest run-getter of the tournament while youngster Lasith Embuldeniya was the highest wicket-taker with 30 scalps to his name.

At seventh position in the standings with 200 points and 27.8% PCT after completion of the cycle, Sri Lanka also earned the same as Bangladesh and West Indies – 100,000 USD (Approx 74 Lakhs INR) as consolation.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: Top 5 Highest Wicket Takers In The Tournament

6. Pakistan – 100,000 $ (Approx 74 Lakhs INR)

Pakistan kicked-off their ICC WTC campaign against Australia in Australia where they were clean-sweeped by the hosts 2-0. In their second series, They hosted Sri Lanka for a two-match series and defeated them 1-0 to earn their first points in the tournament. Two months later Pakistan hosted fellow Asians, Bangladesh in a bizzare schedule where first match was scheduled to be played in February while the second test was scheduled to be played in the month of April. Hosts Pakistan perished in the first match at Rawalpindi where they beat the tourists by an innings and 44 runs. The second test scheduled in April got postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The second match was postponed until the 2021-22 season and outside the WTC cycle. In the Covid-19 bio-bubble era, Pakistan toured England in their next assignment for a 3-match series where they lost the first test and managed to draw last two to earn 26 crucial points. Pakistan next toured to New Zealand in December 2020-January 2021 where they were clean-sweeped by the ICC WTC 2019-21 Champions. In their last series of the tournament, Pakistan hosted South Africa and thrashed them in both of the matches in their own backyard to end up with 286 points to their account. As of their leading run-scorer and wicket-taker are concerned, Babar Azam attained top positon with 932 runs while another youngster Shaheen Afridi ended up with 36 scalps.

At Sixth position in the final standings, Pakistan got awarded 100,000 USD (Approx 74 Lakhs INR) as consolation for their participation in the first ever ICC World Test Championship.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: Top 5 Highest Run Scorers In The Tournament

5. South Africa – 200,000 $ (Approx 1.45 Crores INR)

South Africa who finished at 5th position in the ICC WTC standings, played their first series of the tournament against India when the toured India in October 2019 for a 3-match test series. South Africa were hammered by the hosts 3-0 in the series. In their next assignment, South Africa hosted England for a 4-match series where they beat the tourists at Centurion but the hosts made an outstanding comeback and thrashed South Africa in rest of the matches to win the series 3-1. South Africa next hosted the Island nation, Sri Lanka for a 2-match series in Decemeber 2020, where the hosts comfortably beat visitors 2-0. South Africa next toured Pakistan where they couldn’t manage to win a test in the 2-match series. South Africa were next supposed to host Australia for a 3-match series in March 2021 which got cancelled after Australia denied to fly blaming the Covid-19 situation in South Africa. In their last series of the tournament, South Africa toured West Indies in June 2021, which was originally scheduled in July 2020 but got postponed due to the Chinese virus. The tourists comfortably won the series 2-0 beating the hosts in their own backyard. Overall, South Africa managed to win only 2 series out of the 5 they played and lost 3 of them to end up with 264 points and 44% PCT which helped them stay above Pakistan at the fifth position in the WTC standings. Opener Dean Elgar scored 935, the most runs for South Africa in the entire cycle, while speedster Anrich Nortje scalped 47 wickets to end the tournament as highest wicket taker from the country.

According to the ICC, South Africa will receive a prize money of 200,000 $ (Approx 1.45 Crores INR) for finishing at 5th position in the standings.

Also Read: ICC Test Championship 2019-21: 3 Bowlers Who Took A Hat-Trick In The Tournament

4. England – 350,000 $ (Approx 2.6 Crores INR)

England earned a total of 442 points in the first cycle of ICC WTC, second most after India (520), which would’ve helped them to qualify for the final if not for the Covid-19 pandemic and introduction of PCT (Percentage of points). England began their WTC campaign in the Ashes 2019 where they drew the series 2-2 after a brilliant comeback at the Headingeley headlined by Ben Stokes. England next toured South Africa for their second assignment where they won the 4-match series 3-1 after losing the first match to the hosts. In their next assignment, England hosted West Indies for a 3-match test series in the Covid-19 era, which also marked the resumption of International Cricket after worldwide lockdown. The hosts without their regular captain, Joe Root were beaten by the Jason Holder-led side in the first test. However, England made a comeback in last two tests to win the series 2-1. Right after the Windies tests, England hosted Pakistan for a 3-match series and won it 1-0 after winning the first match and drawing the final two. England next toured Sri Lanka in January 2021 for a 2-match test series which was originally scheduled to be played in March 2020, but got postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The tourists beat the hosts, Sri Lanka 2-0 convincingly before touring India, which ended up as their final series of the tournament. With help of Joe Root’s double-century, England won the first test against India at Chennai but ended up losing rest 3 matches to India on turning tracks. England managed to win 4 out of 6 series they played in the ICC WTC cycle earning 442 points with a PCT of 61.4%. England skipper Joe Root scored 1,660 runs in 20 matches in the cycle to finish as the second highest run-scorer in the tournament and England’s highest. Veteran pacer Stuart Broad rattled 69 batsmen to end up as England’s highest wicket-taker in the tournament. He also ended up being 3rd highest wicket-taker overall in the tournament.

With 442 points and and PCT of 61.4%, England ended up at 4th spot in the final WTC standings and hence earned 350,000 $ (Approx 2.6 Crores INR) as a reward from the Global governing body of the game.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: Batting Average Of Tailenders Of All The 9 Teams

3. Australia – 450,000 $ (Approx 3.3 Crores INR)

Australia who began their ICC WTC campaign against England in Ashes 2019 were the only team to hand a series defeat to the winners of the inaugural WTC, New Zealand in the entire cycle between 2019 and 2021. Australia could play only 4 series in the entire WTC cycle as their rest two series, Away tours to Bangladesh got cancelled and South Africa got cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They drew their first series 2-2 in England while white-washed Pakistan 2-0 and New Zealand 3-0 in their own backyard in 2019. Their next assignment in Bangladesh in June 2020 got cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They later hosted India for a 4-match test series in 2020-21. The Ozs made an outstanding comeback in the second innings of the first test after being on back-foot in the first innings and bowled out the visitors with the pink ball for a mere 36 runs under the lights. The visitors, in absence of their regular captain, Virat Kohli, made an outstanding comeback in the second test at the MCG where their S̶t̶a̶n̶d̶-̶i̶n̶ Temporary captain Ajinkya Rahane scored a magnificent century and changed the course of the series towards India. Australia bounced back in the 3rd test and put up a target of 407 for the visitors at the SCG, But the resilience of injured Ravichandran Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari in the final innings helped the visitors draw the game. Going into the final match of the series, The hosts were very confident of sealing the match and the series at their fortress, where they hadn’t lost a single game in 32 years, The Gabba, against an Indian team consisting 2 debutants and least experienced bowling attack. But the visitors put up an exceptional performance under the given circumstances and breached the Australian fortress to beat the hosts 2-1 in the series. The home series proved to be Australia’s last series in the tournament as they cancelled their away tour to South Africa due to Covid-19 concerns which paved a way for New Zealand to enter the Final. As of Australia’s individual performances are concerned, The greatest ever Concussion-substitute, Marnus Labuschagne scored 1675 runs in the tournament, ending up as the leading run-scorer for Australia and overall in the tournament. David Warner’s record-breaking 335* was the highest individual score recorded in the tournament. Leader of their fast bowling attack, Pat Cummins ended up with 70 wickets as Australia’s highest wicket-taker and overall the second.

With 332 points at a PCT of 69.2%, Australia ended up at the 3rd spot in the ICC WTC standings to earn a reward of 450,000 $ (Approx 3.3 Crores INR). Australia would definitely want to go a step ahead next time and qualify for the final in the next cycle.

Also Read: ICC World Test Championship: 4 Teams Which Can Change Captains After The Final Of The Tournament

2. India – 800,000 $ (Approx 5.9 Crores INR)

The most dominating test team of the current era, India, clean-swept West Indies in their own backyard 2-0 to kick-off their ICC WTC campaign as No. 1 ranked test side. India played 5 more test series as part of the WTC cycle where their second assignment was a 3-match home series against South Africa. The hosts thrashed South Africa in a dominating way to rack up 120 more points to their account. India’s third series of the tournament was against the neighboring nation Bangladesh who toured India for a 2-match series. India thrashed Bangladesh with innings-victory in both of the matches to grab another 120 points and topped the table with 360 points in their first 3 series of the WTC cycle.

India next toured to New Zealand for a 2-match series, Many critics believed it was India’s best chance to win a test series against New Zealand in New Zealand but the hosts thrashed India in both of the matches where the hosts’ tail-enders played a vital role. India faced the same fate when they faced New Zealand in the finals later.

India’s next series was an away tour to Australia where they won 2-1 last time they toured in 2018/19. While the Australian critics said India had no chance to win the series and some said India should celebrate for a year if they beat Australia in Australia with their main batters Steve Smith and David Warner back in their side after serving ban. India started well in the first test after winning a rare toss at Adelaide and got the better of the hosts in the first innings, But the hosts blew away visitors by dismissing them for their lowest total ever in test cricket – 36 runs in the second innings. Australia easily chased down the target of 90 runs to get an upper hand in the series over the visitors who went on to lose their regular captain, Virat Kohli for rest of the series due to his paternity leave. Deputy to Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane led the Indian side in rest of the tour. In the second match at the MCG, The hosts won the toss and batted first, The visitors, India bowled them out on first day for 195 runs and scored 326 runs in their first innings with help of a magnificent century from the S̶t̶a̶n̶d̶-̶i̶n̶ Temporary captain Ajinkya Rahane. India gained a healthy lead of 131 runs and bowled out Australia for 200 in the second innings to set themselves up a chaseable target of 70 runs and leveled the series 1-1.

When no one expected India to fight back without their regular captain Virat Kohli, Most experienced fast bowlers – Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, India went on to draw the third test at the SCG where India needed to chase 407 in the fourth innings. While the Indian openers started with a positive approach towards a win, Their wickets derailed hope to win the match for the visitors. The stalwart, Cheteshwar Pujara, who broke the back of Australians in 2018/19 series, Stood up big and scored 77 off 205 balls to bring stability. While the entertainer, The game-changer, Rishabh Pant had other plans when he came out to bat to give India a ray of hope to win the match and scored 97 off 118 deliveries. But his wicket changed the course of the match again in favour of Australia who needed 5 more wickets to win the match on the final day. But Hanuma Vihari and Ravichandran Ashwin had other plans. While Hanuma Vihari had a hamstring tear and Ashwin suffered back spasms, They showed absolute resilience in last two sessions of the fifth day. The pair added 62 runs for the 6th wicket facing 258 deliveries and saved the match for India.

Heading into the final match of the series at Australia’s fortress, The Gabba, The hosts were pretty confident to win the match and seal the series against an Indian side who had suffered many injury blows in the series, Who lost Mohammed Shami after the first test, Umesh Yadav after the second test and Ravichandran Ashwin, Hanuma Vihari, Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah after the third test had to hand test debut to their net bowlers – Washington Sundar and T Natarajan to field their ‘C’ for the final test. A bowler who had lost his father before beginning of the series and couldn’t even see him for the last time, Mohammed Siraj, With an experience of just 3 matches, was the leader of the Indian pace attack consisting of Him, Navdeep Saini, T Natarajan, Shardul Thakur and Washington Sundar. On the first day of the test, the hosts won the toss and elected to bat first and scored 369 in the first innings before the visitors bowled them out. Australia sent back India’s top 5 for just 161 and were on the driver seat when the debutant Washington Sundar and Shardul Thakur, who was playing his second test stitched a partnership of 123 runs off 217 deliveries brought back India in the game. A partnership, which broke the back of the hosts as said by the Indian head coach Ravi Shastri. Later India were bowled out for 336 in the first innings where the hosts had a lead of 33 runs even before beginning their 2nd Innings. Australia added 294 runs more in the 2nd innings to set India a target of 328 runs to chase in the final innings. After losing Rohit Sharma early in the fifth morning, Youngster Shubman Gill played an outstanding knock and smashed 91 runs before holing out to Nathan Lyon. While the stalwart Cheteshwar Pujara took several body blows on the final day, he scored 56 off 211 deliveries in India’s fightback before Rishabh Pant took the charge. Where no one believed India would go on to win but the visitors pulled a rabbit out of a hat and successfully breached Australia’s fortress, The Gabba to beat the hostsby 3 wickets and seal the series 2-1.

India’s last assignment was against England in a 4-match series at home, which was earlier supposed to be a 5-match affair. India were beaten by the visitors on a flat Chennai deck in the first test where the visiting captain scored a magnificent double-century in the first innings. But the hosts bounced back and beat England in the last three tests on turning tracks to end up as the table-toppers of the WTC points table and officially qualified for the Grand finale.

The final, which was supposed to be hosted at the Home of Cricket, The Lord’s, was shifted to the Hampshire bowl, Southampton due to Covid-19 Quarantine and other restrictions. The first day of the rain-marred final got washed out and the match began on day 2 where Williamson-led Kiwis won the toss and elected to field first in their home-like-gloomy conditions. In a start-and-stop final, New Zealand bowled out India for 217 runs in the first innings and scored 249 in their first innings. While the play officially got into the “Reserve Day” or the “Sixth Day”, The kiwi bowlers bowled out India on a good batting surface for 170 runs and set themlseves up for a chaseable target of 139 runs on the final day with 53 overs in their hand. India faced the same fate against New Zealand what they had faced 16 months back in New Zealand and lost the final.

India’s vice-captain, Ajinkya Rahane ended up as the country’s leading run scorer with 1159 runs to his name, Also the 5th highest in the tournament. While Ravichandran Ashwin picked up 71 wickets to end up as the highest wicket taker for India and overall in the tournament.

India finished their first ever ICC World Test Championship campaign as runners-up of the tournament and hence won an award of 800,000 $ (Approx 5.9 Crores INR) from the ICC.

Also Read: 3 Reasons Why India Lost The ICC World Test Championship Final

1. New Zealand – 1,600,000 $ (Approx 11.8 Crores INR)

The winners of the first ever “ICC World Test Championship” – New Zealand. The Kiwis began their ICC WTC campaign against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka 2 months after losing the World Cup 2019 final to England. New Zealand’s only overseas victory in the first cycle of WTC league stage came in their series against Sri Lanka in the second test, which helped them draw the series 1-1 and gain 60 points. In their second assignment, The kiwis toured Australia where they were whitewashed 3-0 by the hosts. Which also ended up as their last overseas series in the WTC cycle. The lucky Kiwis next faced India in a 2-match home series where they beat the visitors 2-0 to gain 120 more points in their account. New Zealand supposed to tour Bangladesh next in August 2020, which got postponed due to worldwide Covid-19 pandemic. Later, New Zealand hosted West Indies and Pakistan for 2-match series against both the opponents and clean-swept both the series to add 240 points to their account. New Zealand ended up the league stage with 420 points to their name at a PCT ot 70%, They finally qualified for the Finals when Australia cancelled their tour to South Africa leaving out India and England to compete for another spot in the final. Many believe New Zealand got lucky due to the revised PCT system, More home games and other circumstances to make it to the final.

Just ahead of the final, New Zealand played a 2-match series against England in England, which helped the Kiwis to be match-ready against India the big final. But no matter what, The Kiwis played a perfect game in the finals against India.

The finale which was supposed to begin on 18th June 2021, Got delayed as the first day got washed out due to persistent rain as predicted. On day 2 of the final i.e., on 19th June, The toss took place where the Kiwis won the toss and elected to field first in gloomy home-like conditions. The play got underway and India managed to score 146 losing 3 wickets in 64.4 overs which were bowled in the day due to early stumps caused by rain and bad-light. On day 3, India were bowled out for 217 post lunch session and by the end of the day, The Kiwis had an upper hand in the game scoring 101 runs losing two wickets in 49 overs. Day 4 had the same fate as the first day of the match where rain played a spoilsport. On the fifth day, Indian bowlers struggled to pick wickets in first session and then bowled out the opposition for 249 at Tea. In the third session of the fifth day, India managed to score 64 runs losing both the openers by end of the day with a lead of 32 runs. With a loss of two days of play, The reserve-day or the ‘Sixth-day’ of the final officially came into the play where both the teams battled it out on a sunny day for a result in their favour. The kiwi bowlers, Especially Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee ran through the Indian batting lineup on the sixth morning of the game to bowl out India for a mere 170 runs. New Zealand needed only 139 in about 53 overs to be crowned as the first ever World Test Champions and on the biggest day of New Zealand’s Cricketing history, The smiling assassin, The Captain, The Nice Guy of the World Cricket, Kane Williamson stood strong and scored a magnificent half-century and stitched up a century partnership with veteran Ross Taylor and chased down the target in 45.5 overs with a loss of only two wickets in their openers. All-rounder Kyle Jamieson won “Man of the match” for his all-round performance in the final. He took 7 wickets in the match including a 5-fer in the first innings and scored a fine 21 in the first innings.

Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson scored 918 runs in the 10 matches he played in the ICC WTC, ending up as the country’s leading run scorer. While veteran pacer Tim Southee completed with 56 wickets to his name as New Zealand’s highest wicket-taker in the inaugural tournament.

The winners of the first ever ICC Test Championship, New Zealand were awarded 1.6 Million Dollars (Approx 11.8 Crores INR) by the ICC.

Also Read: Teams With Most ICC Test Championship Mace Wins (2003-2019)