WTC Final: India win toss, opt to field first against Australia

Team India Captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl first in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia at The Oval in London on Wednesday.

The Indian Test team is set to face Australia in one of the games that could define their legacy and the prowess they have gained in recent times as they made their way into the World Test Championship 2023 final by defying the odds.

India have included four seamers (Sahrdul Thakur, Mohammad Shami, Mohammad Siraj and Umesh Yadav) and one spinner (Ravindra Jadeja) in their playing XI.

After the toss, Rohit Sharma said, “We are going to bowl. The conditions and also the weather being overcast The pitch won’t change too much. Four seamers and one spinner. The spinner is Jadeja. It’s always tough to leave Ashwin; he’s been a match-winner. He (Rahane) brings a lot of experience; he’s played 80-odd Tests.”

Pat Cummins also said, “We would have bowled as well. Hopefully, on days four and five, there’s a bit of spin. If you think it suits his bowling, he’ll be a key weapon. We’ve been here for about 10 days. Pretty fresh; the weather has been nice; we haven’t missed a session.”

So far, Australia has scored 29 runs with the loss of one wicket in the 12th over.

India (Playing XI)

Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Srikar Bharat (w), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, and Mohammed Siraj.

Australia (Playing XI)

David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (w), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland.