WTC 2023: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has finally announced a 15-member team for the eagerly awaited World Test Championship 2021-23 final, set to take place at the Oval in London from June 7 to 11. Rohit Sharma has been appointed as the captain of the Indian squad, which will compete against Australia. The announcement was made today i.e. on Tuesday, April 25th.
New additions to the squad for WTC 2023 final
After delivering some exceptional performances in domestic cricket and the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, veteran batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been included in the team’s lineup. Meanwhile, all-rounder Shardul Thakur has also secured a spot in the 15-player squad. The team’s pace attack will consist of five bowlers, including left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat, who has retained his position in the team. Other notable pace bowlers include Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Umesh Yadav.
Captain Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill are likely to open the innings, with KL Rahul also making the cut for the squad. However, wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan, who previously played in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, has not been included in the team. Despite his below-par performance in the 4-Test series against Australia at home in February-March, KS Bharat has been selected as the preferred wicketkeeper-batsman for the squad.
Having scored a total of 634 runs, including two centuries, one of which was a double hundred, in seven matches for Mumbai during the Ranji Trophy 2022-23 season, Ajinkya Rahane has been in superb form. He has carried this momentum forward to his performance for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, where he has been scoring at an impressive strike rate of nearly 200.
Battle for India’s middle order
It is possible that Rahane and KL Rahul may be competing for a spot in the middle-order, while India’s top-order is expected to be anchored by Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara, forming a solid foundation for the team’s batting lineup.
Australia also recently revealed their squad for the World Test Championship final, which included the return of Mitchell Marsh, along with the retention of David Warner, despite his recent struggles. This announcement was made earlier this month.
Complete India Australia squad for WTC 2023 Final
India Squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, K L Rahul, KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat.
Australia Squad: Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vice-captain), Mitchell Starc, David Warner
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