ICC on Monday said it is confident that the World Test Championship final will be held as scheduled in Southampton despite the United Kingdom adding India to its travel ‘red list’ amid the surge of Covid-19 cases in the Asian country.
The International Cricket Council on Monday said that it is confident of hosting the World Test Championship final as scheduled despite the worsening COVID-19 situation, especially in India.
ICC Discussing With The UK Government The Impact Of Countries On Red List
The final of the inaugural edition of the Test Championship will be played at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton from June 18 to 22 between India and New Zealand. Notably, the United Kingdom added India to its travel ‘red list’, banning arrivals from the country as the Asian country is experiencing a second wave of Covid-19 pandemic. However, the ICC is confident of staging the event as planned.
“We are currently discussing with the UK Government the impact of countries being on the ‘red list’,” an ICC spokesperson said.
New Zealand was the first team to make the ICC World Test Championship final and they were joined by India following their series win over Australia and then England. New Zealand has a strong team in the likes of skipper Kane Williamson, pacers Trent Boult, Kyle Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson and Tim Southee, batsmen Ross Taylor and Tom Latham and wicket-keeper BJ Watling.
New Zealand named a 20-member squad for their tour of England, including the World Test Championship final against India. Led by Kane Williamson, the squad includes three uncapped players – Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway and Jacob Duffy. The squad will then be trimmed to 15 for the World Test Championship final at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton starting on June 18, as per ICC regulations.
New Zealand players involved in the IPL will be managed depending on their team’s exit from the tournament. Four members of the squad namely Kane Williamson, Trent Boult, Kyle Jamieson and Mitchell Santner are a part of the IPL 2021.
ICC: ECB Have Demonstrated Staging International Cricket Amidst Covid-19
Amidst the rise in the number of coronavirus cases in the world, India A’s tour of England was put on hold. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) settled down on an agreement with each other to postpone India A’s tour of England, which was scheduled alongside the senior side’s tour in June this year.
India will travel to England in June to take part in the final of the inaugural World Test Championship. They will take on Kane Williamson’s New Zealand. After the final, the Men in Blue will play five Test matches against England beginning on August 4. West Indies and Pakistan participated in 3 Tests each in England amidst Covid-19 pandemic.
“The ECB and other Members have demonstrated how we can stage international cricket safely in the middle of a pandemic, and we are confident that we can continue to do that and that the World Test Championship Final will go ahead as planned in June in the UK.”
India sealed a memorable 2-1 Test series win in Australia earlier this year that propelled them closer to the final berth. A 3-1 win over England at home sealed the deal for India as Virat Kohli has another chance to win his maiden ICC trophy with the senior national team.
New Zealand full squad for England:
Kane Williamson (c), Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Tom Blundell, Ross Taylor, BJ Watling (wk), Tom Latham, Daryll Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Colin de Grandhomme, Neil Wagner, Tim Southee, Trent Boult, Mitchell Santner, Ajaz Patel, Doug Bracewell, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Will Young