Australia’s gun fast bowler Pat Cummins believes the English conditions will suit New Zealand more than India in the upcoming World Test Championship final, which will be played at the Ageas Bowl, Southampton from June 18. In fact, New Zealand is already in England and they have been preparing for the two-match Test series against England.
Thus, the Kiwis will have the advantage as they will be able to get acclimatise to the conditions. On the other hand, the Indian team is currently completing their quarantine process in Mumbai and they are expected to travel to England on June 2. The Virat Kohli’s men will be able to begin their practice only after they reach England.
Pat Cummins said in a Q/A session on his YouTube channel, “It will be a good match. There has been a lot of rain in England and from the conditions point of view, it is closer to New Zealand’s. It is going to be interesting as both teams haven’t played a Test match for a couple of months. It is a one-off so anything can happen. But the conditions would suit New Zealand more than India”.
On the other hand, Cummins also shared his experience of bowling on flat Indian pitches. The World No.1 Test bowler stated that it is a challenge as the Indian pitches mostly aid the spinners.
“My opinion is probably different to that of a lot of batsmen around the world. Sometimes they are spin-friendly but otherwise, they are pretty flat. There is not as much pace and bounce as you might find in Australia or South Africa or as much seam and swing as in England. But it is a challenge and you need to adjust to that. Your role may be that of keeping the runs per over as low as possible,” Pat Cummins asserted.
There is no doubt that it will be an interesting battle between India and New Zealand as both teams have a quality bowling line-up and it may come down to which team bats better.