SOUTHAMPTON, England (AP) — New Zealand captain Kane Williamson won the toss and elected to field under overcast conditions against India in the world test championship final on Saturday.
The first day of the inaugural WTC final was washed out due to rain Friday, but a reserve day is available with an extra half-hour of play to be added over the next four days at the Rose Bowl on England’s south coast.
With the floodlights on, Williamson hoped to make use of the first hour as the Black Caps have packed their lineup with four frontline fast bowlers and added Colin de Grandhomme as the all-rounder.
Wicketkeeper-batsman B.J. Watling will be playing in his last test match as he had announced his retirement from test cricket.
“Really great occasion for him to play his last game, and I’m sure he’ll enjoy it,” Williamson said.
In contrast to New Zealand’s all-out seam attack, India has gone with two specialist spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja with Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah as the fast bowling options.
Captain Virat Kohli said he would have bowled first, too, had he won the toss, but he was happy to bat.
“Big final,” he said. “(Put) runs on the board and it’s always a bit of an advantage. The two spinners can bowl in any conditions and if there’s a bit of dampness, they’re really accurate and can make use of it as well.”
If the outcome is a draw, the trophy will be shared.
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Lineups:
India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
New Zealand: Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson (captain), Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, B.J Watling, 7 Colin de Grandhomme, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Southee, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult.
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