India and Australia, the two teams competing in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 Final, have already begun their preparations. The competition is scheduled to begin on June 7. Australian great batsman Steve Smith is looking forward to batting-friendly conditions at The Oval as excitement for the epic battle.
The 33-year-old also thinks that as the game goes on, Australia might see conditions similar to those in India. The Oval track often offers some of the best batting conditions in the United Kingdom with the right pace and bounce, but as the game progresses, spinners might enter the picture. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, two Indian spinners, are anticipated to benefit from the circumstances.
“Should be an absolute cracker”: Steve Smith
“The Oval can present itself with some spin occasionally particularly as the game wears on so we could face some sort of similarities to what we had in India at certain stages of the game. But The Oval is a wonderful place to play cricket in. Lightning-fast outfield, the square goes the whole way across the ground so it is a nice place to bat when you get in and has some decent pace and bounces for an English surface. Should be an absolute cracker,” Smith told cricket.com.au.
According to recent results, India has a competitive advantage over Australia. In India’s recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the foreign team suffered a 1-2 series loss. The forthcoming final, though, looks to be a nail-biter with Australia hoping to win their first championship and India looking to clinch the crown and break their championship drought.
The 33-year-old added that he anticipates a tremendous crowd attendance for the championship match and that the atmosphere would be absolutely thrilling.
“The WTC is a great initiative. It gives every game we play a lot of relevance and for us to have qualified on top and face India in the final is incredibly exciting. It is going to be India and us at the Oval. I am sure there will be plenty of fans out there, probably more Indian than Australian but I am sure it is going to be great fun and guys are looking forward to it,” he said.
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