India's XI for the final of the World Test Championship has been selected to "take the pitch and conditions out of the equation", according to their fielding coach R Sridhar, who said he expects any change in the squad as announced by the BCCI. was not. The eve of the match, despite the first day of competition washed out.
The disappointment on the opening day of the final between India and New Zealand in Southampton was mitigated somewhat by the provision for a reserve sixth day, which would now start in the event that the title could not be decided in the next four play. days of. And for that reason, both Sridhar and New Zealand vice-captain Tom Latham agreed that there is little need for either side to work out an alternate plan.
"I was expecting this to be the first question," Sridhar said. “I think the XI that has been announced is the XI that takes the pitch and the conditions out of the equation,” he said, adding that Team India has made R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja as well as the two front-runners. Nominated line spinners. Fast bowlers from Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma. "I think this is an XI that can play and perform on any surface in any weather condition. So I believe this XI is everything we will keep in the park. "
"But having said that, the toss is not over yet, so we will... if it needs to be taken, the decision will be taken at the time of the toss."
New Zealand, at this stage, is still keeping its intentions a secret. Kane Williamson's hopes of recovering from an elbow problem may have improved with an extra day of rest when he took a cortisone injection earlier in the week, but his main dilemma revolves around the balance of his attack.
The prospect of further damp conditions for the rest of the week could still persuade New Zealand to drop their spinner Ejaz Patel in favor of a five-man seam and swing attack. Latham, however, said that all such decisions would have to wait until the covers were removed and the team would have an opportunity to assess the nature of the pitch.
"It probably doesn't change a huge amount," he said of the first day's washout. “For us it is all about adapting to the situations we are facing, whether it is tomorrow or whenever.
"With the extra day that we have up our sleeves, the game can still go on for five full days... so it's important that we don't get caught on the hop. We have been in this situation many times before as cricketers , and I think it's about trying to be ready when we're called."
"We haven't confirmed the playing XI yet," he said. "I'm sure Kane and Steady [coach Gary Stead] have some contingencies, but as I say, we have to wait until the canvas is off and we have a chance to play."
Meanwhile, the challenge for both the teams was to focus on the long term goal of winning this one-sided Test and at the same time switch off the short term. Latham conceded that New Zealand's dressing room achieved this mainly through table tennis and darts, but the concurrent women's Test against England in Bristol gave India's men a different competition to trap.
"We have left no stone unturned in the girls' game from day one," said Sridhar. "We've all seen the game. It's going on in our rooms, in our team room, in our breakfast area, and even today as we wait for the rain to stop. We all sat together and watched. We're playing girls' games and encouraging our girls.
"We know they are fighting to get back in the game," he said, after India's 17-year-old opener, Shafali Verma posted her second half-century of the match in response to the team. "We see she put up a strong performance there. We are enjoying Shafali's innings... her mindset is so clear."
"Looking at the wicket, we thought maybe we can play the final there," he joked. "The ball is turning a bit so we are wondering if we can move the final from here to Bristol. What do you think?"
Sridhar, however, had no doubt that India would face their game when the time came for the start of the WTC Finals.
He said, "As inspiration goes, I don't think you need to inspire anyone who is representing their country. And in the finals of the World Test Championship, I think there is no more inspiration than that." is."
"They're a very, very experienced group of players. They've played a few finals, they've won a few tournaments and they've played a few Test matches, each of them in that XI.
"We've all been very close because most of our time we've always been in a bubble, so there's a great camaraderie in this team," he said. "So the easiest thing is to spend time between us. The chats and games they play are always on."