The final match of ICC World Test Championship 2021-2023 will take place between Australia and India at The Oval. Both teams would look to win the prestigious Test Mace by winning this match. These are away conditions for both of them and the pitch will be looked at with great interest.
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Australia topped the points table after almost two years of league stage. The batting duo of Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne will yet again be very vital for them. Captain Pat Cummins, along with left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc, will look to trouble the Indian batters. However, the team will undoubtedly miss the services of pacer Josh Hazlewood.
India lost the last WTC final against New Zealand and becoming the champions this time around will be their sole purpose. This will be captain Rohit Sharma’s first ever ICC Trophy final as skipper of the side. Batter Shubman Gill is in great form, whereas all the eyes will be on former captain Virat Kohli yet again.
IND vs AUS Pitch Report of The Oval London For WTC Final
This is for the very first time that a Test match is being played in June at The Oval. Generally, this stadium hosts a red-ball game towards the end of the English summer. Readers must note that this is generally England’s one of the best tracks to bat on.
However, the last Test played here was in September 2022 was a low-scoring encounter and all the 31 wickets were taken by fast bowlers. The pitch for the WTC final is also looking a little greenish in the viral photos which may be a sign that the pacers will have their say in the match this time round as well.
Two days to go for the #WTCFinal and this is how the pitch looks like 🔎
What is your playing XI gonna be? 🧐 pic.twitter.com/wLyYHr4vcy
— DK (@DineshKarthik) June 5, 2023
Both teams are playing a Test against each other for the very first time at a neutral venue. Hence, they might face some troubles in getting used to the English conditions. Cheteshwar Pujara and Smith played County Championship Games for Sussex, whereas Labuschagne and Michael Neser represented Glamorgan.
India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin uploaded a video on Youtube where he was with The Oval’s pitch curator whom he refers to as “Leez”. The conversation between them highlighted that it will be a pitch with a good amount of bounce.
“Today some of our guys got hit on the practice pitches. It bounced a lot. So, is it going to be similar?,” Ashwin asked Leez.
“It will be bouncy, that is one thing I can guarantee,” said Leez.
The average first-innings score here has been 343 runs, whereas the average fourth-innings score has been just 156 runs, which is over 100 runs less than the highest successful Test run-chase at this venue. If it’s a bright morning in London, both captains are likely to be tempted to bat first upon winning the toss.
