3 Selection dilemmas for Team India ahead of the World Test Championship final

On June 18th, 2021, India and New Zealand will battle it out in the hugely awaited final of the World Test Championship (WTC). The Indian side thrashed the visiting England team 3-1 on home soil to book a spot in the final against Kane Williamson and his men.

New Zealand has won the last 6 Test matches that it has played, and will surely be a tough opponent to overcome. Also, the summit clash of the World Test Championship (WTC) will be played at Southampton in England.

India has a plethora of options at its disposal, and the biggest headache that Virat Kohli and the rest of the team management will face is selecting the playing XI for the WTC final. In this article, let us take a look at 3 selection dilemmas that the Indian side will face before choosing the team that will take on the Kiwis in the final of the WTC.

3. 2 spinners or 1 spinner?

One problem that the Indian side will definitely confront is whether they would like to play 2 spinners or go in with just a single spinner. And, if the Indian side decides to go in with a single spinner, who out of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will take the field?

Both Ashwin and Jadeja have been assets for the Indian side. Jadeja has scored 4 fifties in his last 8 Test innings, and also took 4/62 in the last Test match that he played at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

On the other hand, Ravichandran Ashwin scored a century in the 2nd Test against England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The Tamil Nadu off-spinner was also in menacing form for India with the ball in hand and took a whopping 33 wickets in the 4 Tests that he played against England at home.

So, is it the left-arm spin of Jadeja, or the right arm spin of Ashwin? Or will both of them play? What will India do?