WTC final: Australia, India lock horns for the coveted mace
Australia and India square off in the finals of the ICC World Test Championship at the Oval, starting on June 7. This will be the second WTC final, with India being involved in both of them. Two years ago, they fell short of the mace, which was bagged by New Zealand. This time, they are determined to break their trophy drought.
Pitch report, timing and streaming details
This will be the first time The Oval will host a Test in June. The conditions will depend on the weather, while the pitch will assist the bowlers early on and get better to bat as the match progresses. Notably, 343 is the average first innings score here. Star Sports will telecast the match live, while fans can live-stream it on Disney+Hotstar.
A look at the head-to-head record
India and Australia have locked horns in 106 Test matches in total. Australia have the upper hand despite India's exceptional recent record against the Kangaroos. The Aussies have won 44 times, while India have tasted victory 32 times. A total of 29 matches have ended in a draw. They were also involved in a tie back in 1986 in Chennai.
A massive blow for Australia!
The Aussies faced a massive blow when an Achilles injury ruled Josh Hazlewood out of the WTC final. They have brought Michael Neser, who has played in the County Championship and knows the conditions well. However, Australian skipper Pat Cummins confirmed that pacer Scott Boland will feature in the XI at the Oval. The latter will play his maiden Test in England.
Selection headache for Team India
India will have to take a call on playing two spinners, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. They might even replace the former with Shardul Thakur, who will be the fourth seamer. However, given Ashwin's form against the Aussies and the weather conditions at the Oval, many believe having him will be beneficial. India must also make a call on KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan.
A look at the Probable XIs
Australia's probable XI: Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wicket-keeper), Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, and Scott Boland. India's probable XI: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma (captain), Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj.
Here are the key performers
Kohli needs 21 more to complete 2,000 Test runs against Australia. He will become the fifth Indian batter to complete this milestone. Lyon has scalped 116 Test wickets against India, the second-highest tally by a bowler versus India. Khawaja is the second-highest run-scorer in the WTC 2021-23 cycle. He has amassed 1,608 runs at 69.91. Pujara averages 50.82 against Australia (2,033 runs).
Dream11 Fantasy Cricket options
Fantasy option 1: Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey, Virat Kohli (c), Cheteshwar Pujara, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Ravindra Jadeja, Cameron Green, Pat Cummins (vc), Mohammed Shami, and Mitchell Starc. Fantasy option 2: Usman Khawaja, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Steve Smith (c), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mohammed Shami (vc), and Mohammed Siraj.
