Daily Times

Kane Williamson deems that the showdown against India in the World Test championship final, scheduled to be held between June 18-22 in Southampton, to be a ‘fantastic challenge,’ one that he and his team are looking forward to.

India and New Zealand, who finished one and two respectively at the end of the two-year World Test championship cycle, will meet at the Ageas Bowl to determine the winner of the inaugural cycle.

“When we play against India, it has always been a fantastic challenge, and so it is fascinating to be playing against them,” Williamson said in a video posted by the ICC. “It’s really, really exciting to be involved in the final; obviously, to win, it would be that much better.”

Williamson was appreciative of the contests in the WTC in the lead-up to the final, saying the quality of the contests was ‘excellent. “We saw the contests in the WTC has brought real excitement … the games were really tight such as in the India-Australia series and our series against Pakistan as well where you had to really fight hard to get the results, which is really great.”

Neil Wagner reckoned that India’s pace attack could be a real handful for his batsmen and added that England’s conditions play a big role. “India has a lot of quality fast bowlers who have done well in different conditions; they can swing (the ball) under overcast conditions, but when the sun comes out, it (wicket) is flat, and nothing happens ” the pacer said.

Wagner’s contention was echoed by Indian middle-order batsman Hanuma Vihari, who had a first-hand experience of playing in early English conditions during his brief stint with Warwickshire in the county championships. “(English) Conditions can change throughout, and so I am not getting carried away too much, trying to control the controllable. I am excited, but I would want to be in that moment and not get too carried away by the importance of the situation,” the 27-year-old said.

New Zealand will prepare for the final with a two-Test series against England, starting at Lord’s, London, on June 2. On the other hand, India has named a 20-man strong squad for the final and the five-Test series against England, starting on August 4. Virat Kohli’s men are expected to reach the United Kingdom in the first week of June.