WTC Final: Decoding the stats of Kennington Oval
Cricket fans must mark their calendars as India and Australia are set to cross swords in the high-voltage ICC World Test Championship final. The two sides played some dominating cricket in the 2021-23 cycle and finished in the top two. Meanwhile, the Kennington Oval in London will host this affair, starting on June 7. Here we look at the ground's stats.
How are the pitch conditions?
The track here is pretty decent to bat on as the toss-winning skipper often chooses to bat first here. However, if the conditions are cloudy, pacers can inflict some serious damage with the new Dukes ball. Spinners might also get some significant help from the third day onward. Hence, an exciting contest is on the cards between the two cricketing powerhouses.
Here are the stadium stats
The venue has hosted as many as 105 Tests so far. 343 is the average first-innings score here as teams batting first have won 38 games. While 29 matches landed in the favor of sides batting second, the remaining 38 Tests resulted in draws. In August 1938, England posted 903/7 (declared) against Australia here, the second-highest team score in Tests to date.
Australia and India's record at this venue
In 38 Tests here, Australia have seven wins, 17 defeats and 14 draws here. Since 2000, the Aussies have won two of their six Tests here and both have been innings victories. Meanwhile, India have two wins, five defeats, and seven draws in 14 Tests here. The team recorded a 157-run triumph in their last Test outing here, against England in September 2021.
Here are the key performers
Steve Smith has smoked 391 runs in five Test innings here at 97.75. Rohit Sharma has played a solitary Test here, scoring 127 and 11. Virat Kohli has clobbered 169 runs in three Tests here. Ravindra Jadeja has 11 wickets and 126 runs in two Tests here. Nathan Lyon has returned with nine wickets in three Tests here.
India and Australia's journey to the WTC Finals
India started their WTC campaign in England where they managed a 2-2 draw. They later defeated New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and ultimately Australia to qualify for the final. They finished with a point percentage of 58.80 and took the second spot (127 points). Meanwhile, Australia defeated England, Pakistan, and South Africa to top the points table with 66.67 points percentage (152 points).
