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PremiumIndia vs Australia Live Score, WTC 2023 Final: India and Australia will meet today to play the World Test Championship (WTC). India will be looking to lift the WTC title at the second attempt after losing to New Zealand in the final of the inaugural edition of the championship.
The prestigious encounter will feature the famous Dukes' ball, the preferred choice for Test and elite cricket played in England. The match is scheduled to be played over five days, from the 7th to the 11th of June, with a back-up day available in case of adverse weather conditions.
Both India and Australia are missing some key players ahead of the WTC final. India have lost the services of pacer Jasprit Bumrah, wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul to their respective injury. Meanwhile, Australia have also seen their star player Josh Hazlewood miss the final Test due to a problem with his left Achilles, coupled with a strain in his left side arm.
Most cricket pundits and former cricketers, including Ricky Ponting, Wasim Akram and Ross Taylor, have given the Kangaroos the edge as the match will be played in swinging conditions at The Oval in London.
Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar refuted the claim of Ricky Ponting that Australia will be at a slight advantage at the WTC Final. The Former Indian cricketer emphasised the importance of match practice before significant fixtures. While speaking to India today he said, “For a big match, you need miles under your feet. And most of the Indian players have done that. Even one player who was not in the IPL, Pujara was playing County Cricket and was scoring centuries for fun. So yes, the Indians are in a better position,"
The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) has released the official poster for the India vs Australia World Test Championship Final which will start in the Oval stadium at 3:00 pm
Senior Indian player Virat Kohli has praised Indian captain Rohit Sharma for his special abilities and what he has delivered for India in the test format. In a video posted by ICC, Virat said, "I have always said that Rohit has got more time than anyone else and that is the special ability that he had from day one. When I saw him play the first time, I understood what the hype was all about and why he was rated so highly. What he has done for India in white ball cricket over a long period of time we all knew...the way he has performed in test cricket over the last three-four years is a testimony to his temperament of playing test cricket,"
Excited cricket fans have started gearing up outside the Oval stadium in anticipation of the enthralling encounter between India and Australia.
One of the significant records in Kohli's sights is the career century tally in Test cricket. If the star Indian batter manages to score another century at The Oval, it will be his 29th ton in the test format, putting him on par with the legendary Don Bradman.
However, Kohli would still remain one century shy of Australia's Steve Smith, who currently holds the top spot among active cricketers with 30 Test centuries.
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Former India wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik has suggested the playing 11 that India could opt for in the all-important match against Australia. Interestingly, Karthik has dropped Ashwin from the side and gone for the extra pacer in the form of Umesh Yadav. He also preferred KS Bharat over Ishan Kishan in the wicket keeper's slot.
India have long been faced with the dilemma of playing two spinners or opting for an extra seamer in overseas conditions. Ahead of the WTC final, however, Sachin Tendulkar has some advice for the Indian team's selection for the all-important match.
Speaking to 100mbsports, Tendulkar said, “The Indian team will be happy that they are playing at the Oval. The nature of the Oval pitch is such that it assists the spinners as the match goes on. So, spinners will come into play a little bit. It need not be always a turning track as sometimes the spinners rely a lot on the bounce, sometimes that little bit of zip that they get off the pitch, also on the overhead conditions and it depends a lot on the shiny side of the ball,"
Former Indian team coach Ravi Shastri gave his opinion on the favourites for the WTC Final 2023 while speaking to Star Sports, he said, “Look at the pace attacks. Which side has the better attack? If Bumrah was here, then I would say equal, with Shami, Bumrah and Siraj. But now when you look at that Australian attack - Cummins and Starc, though Hazlewood is gone,"
In a previous conversation with Star Sports, he had also said that the current Indian team is good enough to win the WTC Final and has played ‘very good’ cricket in ICC tournaments but luck has not always gone in their favour.
In terms of one-on-one encounters in the Test matches, Australia holds a 44-32 lead in the 106 matches that the two sides have played so far. However, India have an excellent record against the Kangaroos in recent years, having beaten them on home turf in two successive Border Gavaskar Trophy tournaments.
Apart from players like Cameron Green and David Warner who played in the recently concluded Indian Premier League, and Marnus Labuschagne in County cricket, most of the Australian players have taken rest since the India series.
Speaking brushed aside the fears about the Kangaroos not getting enough game time by saying, "I have always said, with six Test matches (including five in the Ashes), it is better to be slightly underdone than overdone. I am talking from a bower's point of view. So I want to be physically fresh,"
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India and Australia will meet at The Oval in London for the final of the World Test Championship. India comprehensively defeated England by a margin of 157 runs in their last encounter at the Oval. India have won 2, lost 3 and drawn 7 of the 14 matches they have played at The Oval.
Australia, on the other hand, have won 7, lost 14 and drawn 14 of their 34 matches at the stadium.
The prestigious ICC WTC Final 2023 can be watched on all the Star Sports Network TV Channels while the match can also be live-streamed via the Disney+Hotstar App and Website. As per an official ICC release, the match can be viewed for free on the Indian government-owned TV Channel DD Sports.
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BCCI shared the visuals of the Indian cricket team training hard before the WTC Final match at the Oval.
The weather in London is expected to be clear through the first three days and Day 5 of the WTC Final. The ESPN reports suggest some likelihood of rain during Day 4, and the reserve day may come into play.
In case the match between India and Australia ends in a draw, then both India and Australia will share the trophy.
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Star Indian middle-order batter Virat Kohli has warned his team about the dangers that lie ahead of the WTC Final against Australia. Speaking to Star Sports, Kohli said, “I think The Oval will be challenging, we won’t get a flat wicket and batters need to be cautious. We will need to concentrate on our focus and discipline,"
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Former Australia Captain Ricky Captain has given his take on the WTC Final match which will be played today. Ponting regarded Australia as favourites for the test match given India's injury concerns and selection dilemmas.
"Australia are just favourites..India have got a couple of little uncertain areas in their team I think in terms of how selection and injuries are concerned. With KL Rahul not being there, (Jasprit) Bumrah obviously not being there, Umesh Yadav’s had a bit of an injury cloud over his head, which keeper do they want to take – do they go with Ishan Kishan of KS Bharat?" Ponting was quoted as saying by ICC
Former Pakistan Captain Wasim Akram has said that Australia are ‘slightly favourites’ for WTC 2023 Final. However, Akram cautioned that a lot would depend on who wins the toss and pitch condition.
Akram also heaped praise on Australia's left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc, drawing comparisons with Pakistan's Shaheen Afridi. The former Pakistan captain advised Starc not to drop his pace in the WTC final against India, saying pace is crucial in Test matches while variations play a big role in T20 matches. Click here to read the full report
Pat Cummins (C), , Steve Smith (VC), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (WK), Josh Inglis (WK), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Michael Neser.
Standby: Mitch Marsh, Matthew Renshaw
Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat.
Standby: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar and Suryakumar Yadav.
