After the suspension of the IPL 2021, the Indian national team will set their eyes on the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand at Southampton in June.
Reflecting on the same, ICC took to Twitter to post Colin de Grandhomme’s statement. The Black Caps’ all-rounder believes that the most difficult task for the Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be to pick eleven players out of the skilful lot at his disposal.
“With the amount of players they’ve got they can cover all bases because they’ve good seam bowlers these days and gun spinners, so I think the toughest thing for them is going to be picking the XI,” read the tweet.
India's biggest problem heading into the #WTC21 Final?
It's a good problem to have 😅 pic.twitter.com/HrjtZF9xKl
— ICC (@ICC) May 5, 2021
The WTC final will be played from June 18 to Jun 22, with an extra day (June 23) kept as a reserve. While the contest was initially scheduled at Lord’s, the ICC decided to move it to Southampton, keeping the Covid-19 situation in mind.
The Hampshire Bowl has an on-site accommodation that can better protect the participants involved in the final. And if the speculations are to be believed, then the UK government can allow a limited number of spectators to witness the grand event in the stadium supposing their phased easing of lockdown goes as planned.
Taking cognisance of the shift in venue, ICC General Manager Geoff Allardice said the new venue promises more safety protocols and also allows the fans to be part of the finals.
“We are confident that in selecting the Hampshire Bowl, we have given ourselves the best possible chance to successfully deliver the final whilst keeping everyone involved safe and healthy and give the fans the opportunity to watch the two best Test teams in the world go head-to-head for the right to call themselves the ICC World Test Champions,” Allardice told ANI.
Allardice further thanked England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for helping ICC make the right decision.
“I would like to thank the ECB for their guidance and advice to enable us to make this decision, which gives us the best possible opportunity to deliver a safe and successful World Test Championship Final,” Allardice concluded.
