The first World Test Championship comes to a close over the next five days, or given the weather forecast for Southampton where the match is taking place that will most likely be six, when India and New Zealand face off for the title at the Ageas Bowl.
This match was originally schedule to take place at Lord’s but the Covid-19 pandemic put paid to that and the two sides head back to the original saviour of the game in the Ageas Bowl, scene of cricket’s return last year. This is a one-off Test match where a sixth day is on the schedule if it is needed. A draw sees the title shared.
India
The last time we saw India in the Test sphere they were doing a job on England in home conditions. They now head to England to attempt to do the job of injecting significant life back into the Test match game. With the focus that will be on this match in that part of the world which is enduring the pandemic still, Test cricket could really be revived this week, especially if the Indians win the match and become the inaugural champions.
In days gone by India would have had no chance in English conditions, especially filthy wet ones like they might encounter throughout the course of this match, but they have more about them in the seam department these days and that will give them a chance. The one thing India never lack for is quality batsmanship and on a pretty flat Ageas Bowl deck those batsmen are likely to come to the fore for them. One concern would be their preparation for this match is just an inter-squad game.
New Zealand
If anyone needed a reminder why New Zealand are in this final at the expense of other more established top nations, or even questioned if they deserve to be in it, they found out over the last two weeks when the Kiwis dominated England in a two match Test series. The fact they were able to make six changes from the first game to the second highlights the strength in depth that they have and they are entitled to be a real threat in this match, especially with genuine competitive laps under their belt.
New Zealand have a good balance between solid batting and a very aggressive bowling attack. They are aggressive in a number of ways as well. They bowl full with the new ball looking for swing and then they have the pace and heavy artillery against the old ball to still cause problems. The one thing they do lack is a genuinely top class spin option so the rain that is around this week might just be perfect for them as it could take away the temptation to pick a spinner.
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Team News
In normal times you would say that the India team would pick itself but whether they want to go in with two spinners when there are flash flood warnings in the area for the opening day of the match remains to be seen. If they don’t then you would think R Ashwin would sit out for the extra seamer which would probably be Mohammad Siraj.
New Zealand gave themselves a headache with how well they performed at Edgbaston last week but you would imagine the only change from the first Test against England will be that Trent Boult plays instead of Mitchell Santner.
Betting
I was looking forward to getting stuck into this match but the weather forecast the way it is makes it so much more of a lottery than I was hoping for so that dampens my enthusiasm a little I have to admit. I will still bet on the game because although the forecast is terrible for the opening day it should clear up enough for a result to be possible, especially in what will be good bowling conditions initially. Obviously though this match is going to be toss affected which puts me off getting too involved in it.
The bet I like is the player performance of Kyle Jamieson which sits at 115.5 and that is a line I think he can cover in these conditions. There is said to be pace and bounce in the pitch and that is conditions that will be music to the ears of the big seamer but he won’t need to cover this target exclusively with the ball though because he is a perfectly competent batsman who should be able to knock off a few runs on a good pitch, especially if the batsmen have seen off the new ball. I think realistically we could get away with only needing four wickets here and that is well within range for a man who should excel in these conditions.
Tips
Back K.Jamieson’s Performance – Over 115.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Betfair
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