Ishan Kishan and KS Bharat. (Photo Source: Twitter and BCCI)
With World Test Championship (WTC) Final to be played from June 7, the number one ranked side, India, will be in dilemma in putting forward their best playing 11 ahead of the all-important encounter against Australia. The runners-up from the previous edition of the WTC would be looking to win the championship this time around as the previous time they had to suffer a loss at the hands of New Zealand by 8 wickets.
One of the major selection dilemmas for Rahul Dravid and Co. is regarding the selection of the wicketkeeper for the all-important Test. With the likes of Rishabh Pant out of the action for a while, following a serious car accident, KL Rahul will also be missing out due to a thigh injury that the 31-year-old sustained during the Indian Premier League (IPL). This has certainly narrowed down the option for the selection of a wicketkeeper, and KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan are the only available options for the spot.
Citing this concern, Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik said that Bharat should be the straightforward choice as playing Kishan in the such a crucial fixture as a debutant can be a tricky call. With this slight advantage, the team management cannot play a debutant in the final and hence KS Bharat might find his place in the playing 11.
“I think Bharat will be a pretty straightforward choice because playing Ishan Kishan in his debut and a Test match straight in the World Test Championship Final is asking a bit too much”, Karthik said while speaking on The ICC Review.
India and Australia will be locking horns on June 7, 2023, at The Oval in London. The Rohit Sharma-led side would certainly be looking towards winning the finals and ending a 10-year-old drought of not winning an ICC Trophy. Though India have the advantage of winning a Test series against Australia recently at home, but playing Australia in England will be a different ball game altogether.
Currently, India are the number 1 ranked Test side with 121 ratings, and Australia are just behind them at the number two spot with 116 ratings. So, it’s going to be an epic encounter with the top two teams playing against each other in the WTC Final.
