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WTC final: India, NZ announce 15-men squads; Rahul, Agarwal fail to make the cut

The WTC final is to be played at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton from June 18-22

williamson-kohli (File) New Zealand captain Kane Williamson (left) and India skipper Virat Kohli | AP

India and New Zealand, today, announced their 15-member squads for the World Test Championship final, to be played at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton from June 18-22.

Notably, India left out K.L. Rahul and opener Mayank Agarwal from the squad. Apart from skipper Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have been included as specialist batsmen, while Hanuma Vihari and Ravindra Jadeja fill the all-rounders’ slot.

India have gone in with two wicketkeepers – Rishabh Pant and Wriddhiman Saha – and five pacers in the form of Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Siraj. Ravichandran Ashwin, who is more than handy with the bat, is the lone specialist spinner in the squad.

Meanwhile, for Kane Williamson-led New Zealand, Ajaz Patel has been selected as the specialist spinner, with Colin de Grandhomme the all-rounder and Will Young the specialist batting cover, while Tom Blundell is the back-up wicket-keeper.

Doug Bracewell, Jacob Duffy, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra and Mitchell Santner are the five players who will drop out from the original 20-player touring squad for the England Test series.

Commenting on the squad selections, coach Gary Stead said, “There’s had to be some tough calls with Mitchell and Daryl victims of the fierce competition we currently have for places in the Test side.

“We’ve gone with Ajaz as our specialist spinner after an impressive outing at Edgbaston and we believe he could be a factor at the Ageas Bowl.

“Colin’s been an integral member of our Test set-up for many years and it was great to see him return at Lord’s after a long injury lay-off. He’s a proven performer at the top level and we back him to do a job with the bat or the ball if called upon.

“Kane and BJ have certainly benefitted from their week of rest and rehabilitation and we expect them to be fit and available for the final.

“India are a world class outfit who possess match winners all through their line-up, so we’re under no illusion about how tough they will be to beat.”

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