Team India is gearing up to compete in the 2023 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia. The summit clash presents yet another opportunity to Rohit Sharma & Co. to end its ICC trophy drought which has elongated to a decade now. Two years ago, under the leadership of Virat Kohli, India came close to winning the inaugural edition of WTC. But it was another case of so near yet so far for India as New Zealand conquered The Rose Bowl and shattered over a billion dreams.
WTC final 2021
After Kohli lost the all-important toss in Southampton, New Zealand skipper Kane Willaimson elected to bowl without any hesitation. With dark clouds hovering over the stadium and overcast conditions, it was a no-brainer. Indian batters' biggest nightmare came to fruition as they had to bat first on a fresh wicket against a quality Kiwi bowling attack that can exploit conditions better than any bowling attack in the world.
Rohit Sharma (34) and Shubman Gill (28) gave India a solid start under the challenging conditions. A 62-run alliance for the opening wicket meant that the new ball threat was negated brilliantly by the Indian openers. Once Kyle Jamieson end Rohit's vigil at the crease, India suffered a mini collapse. From 62/0 to 88/3, India lost their top three batters. Captain Kohli (44) and vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane (49) steadied India's ship with a 61-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Just when Kohli was ambling towards another Test half-century, Jamieson broke the Indian captain's defiance.
Niel Wagner dismissed Rahane soon after and India never recovered. The lower order hardly displayed any resistance as the Kiwi bowlers ran riot. From 149/3 to 217 all out, Kohlil & Co. were dismantled. Jamieson was the star of the Blackcaps. The right-arm pacer bagged a five-wicket haul and got ample support from Boult and Wagner, both of whom bagged two wickets each. Tim Southee chipped in with a wicket as well.
New Zealand secure a slender lead of 32 runs
Led by Devon Conway's 54-run knock, the Blackcaps scored 249 runs in their first innings and secured a lead of 32 runs. Captain Williamson played a knock of 49 runs while Tom Latham added 30 runs. After New Zealand got off to a good start, Indian bowlers pegged things back with regular wickets but their inability to dismiss tailenders quickly came back to haunt India. From 192/7, New Zealand added 57 runs from the last three wickets.
For India, Mohammed Shami was the pick of all bowlers. The right-arm pacer bagged four wickets. Ishan Sharma chipped in with three wickets while Ravichandran Ashwin (2) and Ravindra Jadeja (1) were amongst the wickets as well. Surprisingly, Jasprit Bumrah went wicketless for India.
India's famed batting line-up collapses, again!
In their second innings, India were bundled out for just 170 runs as Southee-led New Zealand bowling attack ran through the defenses of Indian batters. Rishabh Pant top scored for India as the wicketkeeper-batter played a subdued knock of 41 runs. Rohit Sharma added 30 runs while the rest of the batters failed to even breach the 20-run mark.
Needing just 139 runs to win the match, New Zealand rode on a gutsy unbeaten 96-run partnership between Williamson and Ross Taylor to win the inaugural edition of WTC. The Kiwi captain remained unbeaten on 52 runs while Taylor scored 47 not out.
An eight-wicket win for New Zealand ended India's quest for another ICC trophy.
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