WTC final: Barring 15 players, Team India releases rest of squad from bio-bubble

Cricket fans worldwide are busy with India and New Zealand locking horns in the ICC World Test Championship final at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. For the very first time, a world title is at stake in a Test match, and both teams must leave no stones unturned to emerge victorious. Notably, Team India went to England with a 20-player squad for the WTC final and the following Test series against England.

On June 15, however, the squad was trimmed by five for the summit clash with Mayank Agarwal, Shardul Thakur, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar and Axar Patel not getting a place. These players have been reportedly allowed to leave the bio-secure bubble in order to not get mentally exhausted ahead of the long tour of England.

Team India to reunite ahead of England series

As per a report in Mid-Day, all the released members alongside the four reserve players have headed to London. Post the WTC final, the entire Indian team and support staff will take a three-week break and regroup before the first Test against England in Nottingham, which gets underway on August 4.

Speaking of the World Test Championship final, Day 1 of the summit clash got washed out due to rain but a significant amount of action was available on the second day. New Zealand captain Kane Williamson unsurprisingly opted to bowl with the track having assistance for the pacers. The likes of Trent Boult, Tim Southee, Kyle Jamieson and Neil Wagner exploited pace, swing and bounce from the surface, keeping the batters on their toes.

Nevertheless, the Indian batsmen embraced the challenge and showed remarkable resilience against the red cherry. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill added 62 runs for the first wicket before the Kiwi pacers removed both openers and Cheteshwar Pujara in quick succession. Nevertheless, skipper Virat Kohli and his deputy Ajinkya Rahane joined forces, and the duo made sure India didn’t lose any more wicket at the end of the day’s play.

At stumps, India were 146/3 and would be the happier of the two sides. However, the track is still tricky, and Virat Kohli’s men can’t afford to be complacent. Conditions would be overcast on Day 3 as well, and the New Zealand pacers would be licking their lips to take the ball in hand. One should also not forget the weather factor as a significant part of the game has been spoiled due to rain. The weather is likely to intervene on Day 3 as well. Hence, fans must keep their fingers crossed.