IND vs NZL Fan2Play Fantasy Cricket Tips, Playing 11, Pitch Report and Injury Update for World Test Championship Final

Match Details

India and New Zealand will cross swords in the much-awaited ICC World Test Championship final, which will get underway on June 18 at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.

The day’s play will get underway at 3:00 PM IST and 9:30 AM GMT.

Preview

With the two teams being phenomenal in red-ball cricket lately, predicting the favourites for this clash won’t be easy. Many odds are indeed in the Kiwis’ favour, with conditions in New Zealand and in England being pretty similar. Moreover, the Blackcaps recently defeated 1-0 in the Test series. However, their confidence would be sky high, and Team India can’t afford to put a foot wrong.

On the other hand, Virat Kohli’s men didn’t get a Test series for preparation. However, they sweated it out in an intra-squad practice game and have subsequently finalized a 15-man squad for the ultimate encounter. Although the conditions are expected to favour New Zealand, one should not forget India’s knack of defying the odds.

Predicted Playing XIs for IND vs NZL

India

Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma

New Zealand

Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (c), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, BJ Watling (wk), Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult, Ajaz Patel

Captaincy Picks for IND vs NZL

Virat Kohli

Arguably the finest batsmen going around, Kohli has a plethora of experience of playing in England conditions. Hence, one should not be surprised if the Indian skipper plays a sensational knock in the final. Kohli’s solid technique allows him to tackle the swinging red cherry with precision and his attacking approach pushes opposition teams on the back foot. Notably, the talismanic batsman scored 593 runs in five games in the 2018 Test series in England.

Tim Southee

With the Southampton track expected to favour the fast bowlers, Tim Southee could create many problems for Indian batters. The third-ranked Test bowler isn’t known to set the speed-o-meter on fire, but his ability to swing the ball both ways has tormented many batting line-ups. Moreover, Southee took a six-wicket haul in his last Test outing against England. Hence, he would be raring to replicate his heroics.

Fan2Play Fantasy Cricket Tips

2-Player Team

Rishabh Pant (C), Trent Boult

3-Player Team

Ajinkya Rahane, Tim Southee (C), Kane Williamson

4-Player Team

Virat Kohli (C), Neil Wagner, Jasprit Bumrah, Ross Taylor

11-Player Team

Rishabh Pant, Ross Taylor, Ajinkya Rahane, Kane Williamson, Virat Kohli (C), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee (VC), Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah

Disclaimer: This team is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While selecting your team, consider the points mentioned and make your own decision.