India, boosted by the sun that has been drying the Hampshire Bowl pitch over the past few days, will hope to dent their biggest threat, New Zealand’s swing bowlers, in the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) final that commences on Friday.
But unlike the Kiwis, who beat England 1-0 in a two-Test series this month, India is devoid of any match practice here and will head into a game of magnitude without any competitive match practice. Virat Kohli’s men, therefore, will have to recall all the past experience of playing in England.
India had played Kiwis in the WTC cycle, losing 2-0 in an away series last year. The Kiwis pace bowlers turned out to be unplayable as they ran through India’s batting order.
Ahead of the WTC final, there has been talking about how New Zealand’s pace bowlers could again trouble the Indians.
However, Hampshire Bowl pitch’s history of helping spinners as well as the bright sunshine that would leave the surface dry could offer encouragement to Indians who are likely to field two spinners in Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin.
Whatever be the nature of the pitch, India will have to start well whether they bat or bowl.
The New Zealand pace bowlers are seasoned and are aware of weaknesses in Indian batting. The Duke’s cricket ball, which moves more than the Kookaburra, and throughout the day in England, will give them an advantage against an India team that has not played any warm-up.
Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill have just got together and given hope to India who had been struggling to find a reliable opening pair. But the two are untested in English conditions at the Test level, especially against the new ball. Sharma has played just one Test in England and that was way back in 2014. Gill is yet to play a Test in England.
Besides, Southee and Boult are extremely accurate.
Pitch curator Simon Lee has said he will give a pitch with pace and bounce and that could leave Kyle Jamieson smiling.
India too has an extremely good battery of pace bowlers, who have experience in England. In spin, they are much superior to the Kiwis.
The difference could lie in captaincy. While Kohli is aggressive and has, at times, made blunders that have cost India matches in the past, Williamson is reserved but remains in control of the match without showing any emotion. Williamson’s weapon is patience and that has allowed players around him to express themselves freely.
The two teams have played 59 Test matches with India winning 21 and losing 12. But 16 of those wins have come at home, in 34 Tests. In New Zealand, India has lost 10 and won only five of the 25 Tests they have played.
On a neutral venue though, the conditions could decide the course of the match. India will be hoping they get something similar to home.
