WTC Final, India And Australia: All You Need to Know About World Test Championship 2023 Grand Finale

WTC Final: With India and Australia, two eternal rivals, set to face each other in the final battle, the current World Test Championship (WTC) cycle will end this week. The summit clash between India and Australia will commence on June 7 at the Kennington Oval in London. Australia qualified for the showpiece event after securing the top spot on the WTC points table. The Pat Cummins-led side, over the past 18 months, displayed a terrific brand of cricket remaining unbeaten at home in ten matches. India clinched a 2-1 victory in their last clash with the Aussies during the Border-Gavaskar Test series.

With the final match all set to get underway on Wednesday, it is time to take a look at all the details about the current WTC cycle.

Q.What is WTC?

The WTC is a two-year global cricket tournament. The competition aims to produce a world Test champion following the conclusion of a league stage and the final match.

Q.How many teams participated in WTC?

Nine teams take part in the WTC. The nine competing countries are- India, Australia, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, South Africa and West Indies.

Q.Who are the current WTC Champions?

New Zealand are the current WTC champion. The Kiwis had emerged victorious in the inaugural WTC cycle i.e. 2019-21. New Zealand defeated India in the final to win the inaugural edition of the WTC.

Q.How does the points system work in WTC?

A team used to claim 120 points after winning a Test series in the 2019-20 cycle. The points were equally divided across the matches in one particular series. But the old points system got changed this time. Each Test victory offered 12 points, irrespective of the length of the series, during the current WTC cycle.

Q.How many number of series are played as part of a WTC cycle?

Each team were slated to play three WTC home series and as many away series in the current cycle.

Q.Which two teams will face in the WTC 2021-23 Final?

India and Australia will be facing in the WTC final this time at the Kennington Oval in London. This will be the first time that a Test match will be played at the venue in June.

Q.Does WTC Final have a reserve day?

The WTC final also has a reserve day, and it will only be used if there is a loss of play owing to bad weather across all five days of the fixture.

Q.Which type of ball will be used for the WTC Final?

The Dukes’ ball will be used in the WTC final between India and Australia.

Q.What happens if the WTC final ends in a draw or tie

If the WTC final ends up as a draw or a tie, both finalists will be adjudged champions of the current WTC cycle.

Q.What are the Squads for India and Australia for the WTC final?

Team India will be without big names like Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. On the other hand, Australia will miss pacer Josh Hazlewood’s services in the WTC final. Michael Neser replaced Hazlewood in Australia’s WTC squad.

Q.What is the India squad for WTC final

Rohit Sharma (c), Ravichandran Ashwin, KS Bharat, Shubman Gill, Ravindra Jadeja, Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Axar Patel, Ajinkya Rahane, Mohammad Shami, Mohammad Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadakt, Umesh Yadav

Reserves: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar, Suryakumar Yadav

Q.What is the Australia squad for the WTC final?

Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Josh Inglis, Todd Murphy, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

Reserves: Mitchell Marsh, Matt Renshaw