India and Australia will compete in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final of 2023 from June 7 to June 11 at the Kennington Oval in London. Both teams’ players are putting in long hours of training in anticipation of the crucial conflict.
Earlier this year in India, the home team won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy game between the two champions, 2-1. The outcome also supported Rohit Sharma and Co. ‘s participation in the WTC championship match. The outcome will probably not matter much when the teams square off at the Oval, though.
The Pat Cummins team is thought to be the favourites to win the WTC final because the conditions in England are more conducive to Australia’s style of play than to India’s. However, given their recent success in Test cricket against Australia, Team India will be confident in putting on a strong performance.
India must be cautious of a few match-winners from the opposing team, though, as they have the ability to steal the WTC championship with their individual brilliance in the one-off Test.
Here are 3 Australian players who could be hurdles for India at The Oval
1. Steve Smith
The same holds true for India with Steve Smith as it does for Australia with Virat Kohli. India is a match that the Australian run machine has dominated. In 18 Tests against one of his favourite opponents, Smith has amassed 1887 runs, including eight hundreds, for an average of 65.06. In a Test match against India, the former Australian captain scored 192 runs, a record.
It wouldn’t be incorrect to say that Smith seems to perform at his best in India. During the home series in 2014, he racked up 769 runs at an enormous average of 128 points per game.
Smith also scored three hundreds while on the 2016–17 tour, with an average of 71–28. His performance in the most recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he only managed 145 runs at an average of 29, was an outlier.
Smith will be confident that he can perform well in the WTC final in addition to his stellar record against India. The 34-year-old has played in 16 Test matches in England, appearing in six of them and amassing 1727 runs at an astounding average of 59.55.
2. Nathan Lyon
Another player eager to resume his fight against Indian batters is veteran Australian off-spinner, Nathan Lyon. Despite the fact that Shane Warne was unquestionably No. When it comes to Tests, Lyon ought to be Australia’s No. 2 behind the spin wizard. A single spinner for all formats.
Over the years, the 35-year-old has delivered a number of game-changing performances against India. He has 116 wickets at an average of 32 points and 40 runs per wicket in 26 Tests against the Indians, including as many as nine five-wicket hauls.
Even when not taking wickets, Lyon has rarely given Indian batters a chance to breathe easily, usually keeping a tight line and length.
In the four-match Test series played at home in 2014–15, Lyon claimed 23 victims, and on the tour of India in 2016–17, he took 19 more victims. With 21 wickets in four Test matches during the home series in 2018–19, the offie once again impressed.
The tireless bowler had a rare bad series in the 2020–21 Border–Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, which the hosts lost by a score of 1-2 and only managed to claim nine victims. Lyon, on the other hand, roared once more with 22 kills in the series in India earlier this year, which included a fantastic 8/64 in Indore.
3. Mitchell Starc
Australian left-arm seamer Mitchell Starc has the ability to dismantle even the best batting lineups on his best day.
Of course, there are times when he appears rather pedestrian, which is why for the time being, critics have refrained from calling him great. However, if Starc pulls off his act flawlessly, he could deal a serious blow to India’s hopes of ending their WTC title drought.
Unexpectedly, the 33-year-old has a poor Test match history against India. He only managed to take 44 wickets in 17 games, averaging 38.68.
Even against India in Test matches, he has yet to record a five-wicket haul. In the same match that India’s second innings was dismissed for 36 runs in Adelaide in December 2020, Starc recorded a career-best 4/53.
Josh Hazlewood’s absence would place more pressure on Starc to perform well against India in the WTC final. With regard to his underwhelming Test record against India, he will also have something to prove. He will be a rather risky option for Rohit and the company as a result.
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