We all are on the edges of our seats for the first-ever World Test Championship Final between Team India and the Blackcaps which is going to take place at one of the iconic stadiums of England, The Ageas Bowl, Southampton. With Kiwis always known to win hearts, not the knockouts, they would keep an eye this time to grab the beautiful Test mace, however; Kohli & Co. would be looking to take revenge of the World Cup 2019.
Here are some of the key battles that would be interesting to watch:
Ross Taylor vs Ishant Sharma
Being the only present kiwi batsman who has reached the milestone of playing 100 test matches, Ross Taylor is the most experienced batsman in their lineup. When it comes to the Indian team, Ishant Sharma is the only player to play 100 Tests in this squad. It’s the battle between the most experienced batsmen against the most experienced bowler. While Taylor has scored 659 runs against India in Tests which is his third-highest against any particular team, Sharma has dismissed him thrice which is the most by a present Indian bowler. So, it will be a treat to watch this epic battle.
Rohit Sharma vs Trent Boult
This is the battle between teammates who play together in the IPL for Mumbai Indians. With Rohit Sharma being the captain of the side and Trent Boult being one of the leading fast bowlers of their pace attack in the IPL, this battle is going to be a dramatic one. As we all know that Hitman struggles against the left-arm seamers and hasn’t had much success against them throughout his career, Boult would definitely take advantage of his weakness. The right-handed batsman has scored third highest runs against New Zealand in his test career after Windies and Australia. On the other hand, the Kiwi speedster has dismissed the Indian legend only once in Tests and would be looking to get him out in this WTC Final.
Kane Williamson vs Jasprit Bumrah
Kane Williamson is presently the top-ranked batsman in the ICC Men’s Test Rankings while Jasprit Bumrah tops the chart of being the highest-ranked Indian pacer. As Kane has had a brilliant WTC with 817 runs in 14 innings, Bumrah has picked up 34 wickets in the championship. He will enjoy the seam movement in Southampton and would like to revive his moments from 2018 where he picked up four wickets against England. As Kane hasn’t had his best days in his last few innings here in England, Boom-Boom will surely have an upper hand.
Virat Kohli vs Tim Southee
Here’s the most awaited battle of this championship. Yes, It’s King Kohli versus Tim Southee. Southee is the crucial wicket-taker for the blackcaps with 51 wickets and 5 fifers in this WTC whereas captain Kohli has struggled to score a century and hasn’t converted his decent starts into big ones. Kohli’s last hundred was in 2019 against Bangladesh and Indian fans are waiting to watch him score big in this Final. Southee has always enjoyed bowling against Kohli in Tests and has already dismissed the King twice in the bilateral series last year. Till now, he is having an edge over the Indian captain who must have some plans against the top-notch bowler.
Both the teams have some great combinations and have reached the final after their successful campaigns. Whoever wins this iconic match, one thing is for sure that it is going to be a nail-biter.
Feature Image Credits: DNA India
