The World Test Championship started on August 1st, 2019 soon after the ICC 50-over World Cup. The tournament started with the Ashes in England, and in June, the final will be played in the same country between the 18th and 23rd. India and New Zealand will take on each other in the summit clash at the WTC final.
The venue will be the Rose Bowl Stadium in Southampton. So far, we have seen six Test matches take place in the stadium and seven centuries have been scored. However, if you take a look at some of the recent games, most of the team scores have been around the 300-mark. Nevertheless, there are talented batsmen on both sides, and we could witness a few centurions. In this article, we discuss five cricketers who could score a century in the WTC final.
1. Kane Williamson
The No.1 Test batsman in the ICC chart, Kane Williamson is coming with good form into the final. In his last three games, the Kiwi skipper has scored two double-centuries, which have taken his overall stats in the WTC to 817 runs from 14 innings.
Although Williamson’s away record is not exactly noteworthy at the moment, he is a big-game player, and New Zealand can expect their skipper to be firing on all cylinders. He may not have done exceedingly well against India, but due to being part of the IPL, he is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of India bowlers, and this could play a big part in the matchups.
2. Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli‘s last century came way back in 2019 against Bangladesh. His last overseas hundred was in 2018 at the Perth Stadium. In ODI’s too, Virat is not striking hundred like he used to.
Yet, come the WTC final, Virat will be India’s premier weapon to tackle the incessant tormenting deliveries by the Kiwi pacers. Virat has scored two centuries till now in England and also enjoys a good average of 42.75 at Southampton. More importantly, he will be driven to take India home and also end his barren run with a century in the event.
3. Henry Nicholls
The stats do not seem to be in favour of New Zealand’s No.5 batsman right now. While Henry Nicholls does not have experience of playing in an international Test in England, the player’s record against India is not great. In three games, he has been able to just score 61 runs.
However, the player’s recent form is good. He has two scores above 150 in his last three games. Henry is currently stuck with Rishabh Pant and Rohit Sharma as the No.6 Test batsman in the ICC chart. Hence, he looks likely of scoring a century in the summit game.
4. Tom Latham
At the WTC, Tom Latham has scored 680 runs from 18 innings and has been one of the better performers for New Zealand. Known for his valuable contributions at the top, it is Latham’s stability at the top that has helped the other players do well.
If the left-hander can somehow brace the initial burst from the Indian bowlers, Latham will be in a good situation to score a hundred. He is equipped with solid technique to play moving deliveries, something that will be of use against the experience of the Indian quicks.
5. Rishabh Pant
In his debut series in England itself, Rishabh Pant scored a century, a rare distinction for wicket-keeper from Asia. In the home series against England, too, Pant got a century. Of course, his heroics in Australia where he helped India cross the line at the Gabba is still fresh in our memories.
Pant’s approach is completely different from other cricketers in this list. His fearless game may actually come good in a game, where the nerves would be weak. Hence, he could be one of the players who could score a century in the WTC final.
