Picture Credit: Jaipal Singh
Hours before the start of the ICC World Test Championship final, chairman of the selection committee of the Indian cricket team, former India cricketer Chetan Sharma, has backed Team India to win the ICC World Test Championship trophy. Sharma said that if the rain stays away, India will definitely register a win over New Zealand. His remark comes even as a few cricket experts believe New Zealand will have an upper hand with the seaming conditions at Southampton.
Meanwhile, Sharma also opened up becoming the first Indian bowler to take a hat-trick in international cricket. He remembered that he had actually injured himself a week before the World Cup, where he achieved the feat. The 55-year-old made these revelations in an exclusive chat with SportsTiger.
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No Siraj, Vihari in Playing XI
Meanwhile, India announced their Playing XI for the crucial clash against New Zealand beginning on Friday. While the team was along expected lines, the management decided to leave out Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha and Hanuma Vihari from their 15-member squad. This implied that both Ravichandran Aswhin and Ravindra Jadeja found a place in the Playing XI along with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma. Owing to the seaming conditions and cloud cover prediction, it was being speculated that the team may go for a 4-pacer attack but they have backed their own strength for the big game.