The World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 final is a one-off contest, so there is speculation over what will happen in case the India–Australia Test match is not played out to a finish.
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India and Australia will clash in the World Test Championship 2021-23 final from June 7 to June 11, 2023, at the Kia Oval. India went in with a four-man pace attack and left out R Ashwin, and have won the toss and opted to bowl.
Australia, meanwhile, drafted in Scott Boland for the injured Josh Hazlewood. India opened the bowling with Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj against David Warner and Usman Khawaja.
Siraj had Khawaja caught behind for a duck in the fourth over. At the time of writing, Australia were 8-1 in five overs, with Warner (5) and Marnus Labuschagne (2) at the crease.
Follow the live scorecard of the match here.
India XI: Rohit Sharma (c), KS Bharat (wk), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj.
Australia XI: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith (vc), Alex Carey (wk), David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head, Cam Green, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland.
The World Test Championship final will be a five-day affair, and – unlike limited-overs formats – it may end in a draw even if the weather does not play spoilsport.
The probability of a tie, of course, is much lower (it has happened only twice in the history of Test cricket). While different from a draw, a tied Test match, too, will mean that the final will end without a winner.
WTC 2023 final: Who wins the trophy if the IND vs AUS World Test Championship final is drawn or tied?
In case of a draw or a tie, India and Australia will share the World Test Championship mace.
Even if the match is abandoned, the trophy will be shared.