WTC Final 2023: The Coach Who Made India the World Champion Selected the Playing XI, Kept the Gujarat Star Out

New Delhi. If any other cricket series is being discussed between IPL then it is WTC final. For the WTC final to be held at the Oval from June 7, India has announced its 15-member team on April 25 itself. In this team where Ajinkya Rahane has returned. Whereas Suryakumar Yadav, Ishaan Kishan, Kuldeep Yadav have been shown the way out. As soon as the BCCI selected 15 players for the WTC final, the talk of playing XI started. Former coach Lalchand Rajput, who made India the world champion, has also selected the playing XI for this match.

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Australia’s Pace Attack Looks better than the Pace Attack of India

The final of WTC i.e. ICC World Test Championship is to be played between India and Australia. Former Team India coach Lalchand Rajput spoke exclusively to News18 Hindi about this. Comparing both the teams, he also said that Australia’s pace attack looks better than India’s. That’s why India will have to compensate it with batting.

While choosing the playing XI, Lalchand Rajput said that there is no confusion among India’s top-5 batters. Shubman Gill will handle the responsibility of opening along with captain Rohit Sharma. Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli will come at number three and four respectively. Ajinkya Rahane’s upper hand looks heavy at number five. Especially considering his current form. In such a situation, it is possible that KL Rahul may not get a place in the playing eleven.

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Test Match Means that You May have to do 100-150 Overs of Wicketkeeping

Lalchand Rajput also rejected the speculations of wicketkeeping with KL Rahul. He said that the ball moves a lot in England. There is also late movement. Then a Test match means that you may have to do 100-150 overs of wicketkeeping. In such a situation, the Indian management will go with KS Bharat. Not with KL Rahul.

Lalchand Rajput’s view is clear about the Indian spin attack as well. They say that India will enter the WTC final with 2 spin all-rounders. These will be all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin. Akshar Patel, who played for Gujarat in Ranji, is performing amazingly for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2023. He also performed brilliantly against Australia. But it is difficult for the team management to give preference to Akshar Patel over Ravindra Jadeja.

Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj Seem Certain to Play

On the question of pace attack, Lalchand Rajput said that India will go with three fast bowlers. In today’s date, playing of Mohammad Shami and Mohammad Siraj seems fixed. The third fast bowler can be Shardul Thakur. Due to his batting, Shardul can get preference over Umesh Yadav and Jaydev Unadkat.

Indian Playing XI (Expected): Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj.

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith (vc), David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Josh English, Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Scott Boland.