Who will use the home dressing room in the WTC final?
India and New Zealand have made it to the finals of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship (WTC). The mega clash is set to take place at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on June 18. With the encounter taking place at a neutral venue, the ICC had to come up with a way to decide on who gets to use the home dressing room.
Team India have been awarded the right to play as the home team for the WTC final as they finished above New Zealand in the WTC points table. India topped the table with 520 points while the Blackcaps came second with 420 points.
Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who is part of the Indian squad, revealed some of the perks of being the home team at Southampton
"The away dressing room is small ensuring no one feels comfortable.As we have finished in first position, we have been given a home dressing room. The viewing area of visiting team is usually smaller." Ashwin said in his latest blog on YouTube.
Team India played an intrasquad match in preparation for the WTC final
The Indian players have completed their mandatory quarantine, and they have begun full-fledged training. The Men in Blue played an intrasquad match yesterday, in preparation for the big-ticket clash against the Blackcaps.
Rishabh Pant caught the eye in the practice game as the wicketkeeper-batsman scored a fifty and played some of his usual aggressive strokes. Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane also looked in good touch out in the middle.
Young Gujarat seamer Arzan Nagwaswalla was also seen in action with the ball. With Nagwaswalla being a left-arm seamer, the Indian batsman will be keen to get used to the angle as Trent Boult is a guaranteed starter for the Kiwis in the WTC final.
India will have to rely on such practice matches to acclimatize to the conditions and get used to the Duke balls, which is often a tough challenge for the batsmen. New Zealand, meanwhile, are currently in action against England, where they are in a commanding position on the third day of the second Test match.