India and Australia will have little time to waste when the World Test Championship final begins at The Oval in London on Wednesday.
While Test matches offer enough time for players to get into their groove, the WTC final is a peculiar challenge – a one-off match to decide the title winner of a championship that ran for two years.
Some have suggested a best-of-three final for such a long drawn out championship, but that is for the administrators to decide in the future. This week, it will come down to five days of intense battle between two closely matched teams at a neutral venue.
Rohit Sharma's India finished the current cycle as the top-ranked team, ahead of the Aussies. India made it to their second straight WTC final, having lost the inaugural title match to New Zealand in 2021, and will be desperate to get their hands on an ICC trophy – which will be a first for them in a decade.
The challenge will be particularly acute for Indian players, most of whom only recently landed in England for red-ball preparation after the conclusion of the Indian Premier League.
Getting used to Dukes balls is a challenge in itself. Doing that at fairly short notice ahead of a championship match against the world-class pace attack of Australia is a whole new ball game.
Captain Rohit Sharma admitted getting used to the conditions will be tricky, and advised his batsmen to show patience.
"England, in general, is pretty challenging conditions for the batters, but as long as you are prepared to have a good grind you can have some success as a batter," Sharma said.
"One thing I realised batting here was you are never in actually, because the weather keeps changing a lot. So you've got to keep concentrating for longer periods of time and that is the challenge of this format.
"You'll get that intuition when it is your time to take the bowlers on and that is when you should be ready for it."
Sharma will be hoping star batsman Virat Kohli, the ever-reliable Cheteshwar Pujara and the highly impressive Shubman Gill put their best foot forward this week.
His counterpart Pat Cummins will be leading a new-ball attack that is armed to the teeth. Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc has a habit of raising his game in finals, and has been preparing for months for the English summer, which also includes the Ashes series right after the India match.
Cummins confirmed fellow fast bowler Scott Boland will play the final against India after experienced seamer Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the one-off contest with a side strain and an Achilles issue.
The Australia skipper said picking Boland ahead of Michael Neser as the third pacer was "no surprise" considering the variety the Victorian offered.
"We're big on everyone bowling slightly differently," Cummins said on the eve of the match.
"Scotty is a seam bowler on a good length, but he just offers something slightly different to Hazlewood, and Starc being a left hander is bit different.
"I don't think there's ever a pecking order. You think about the three guys that you want to go out and play."
For Boland, who has 28 wickets from seven Tests with an extraordinary average of 13.42, it will be his first Test in England.
While India haven't won any world title for 10 years, Australia too have extra motivation to go for glory – the Test mace is the only thing missing from their stellar trophy cabinet.
“It's a trophy we haven't won in Australian cricket," Cummins said.
"Test Cricket for me is always the pinnacle. I've had some great series wins over the years, but to play in this tournament ... I think it could be the most special."
India will have to make do without pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who is struggling with a long-term back injury, wicketkeeper-batsmen Rishabh Pant, who was hurt in a road accident, and KL Rahul.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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The Gentlemen
Director: Guy Ritchie
Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Babumoshai Bandookbaaz
Director: Kushan Nandy
Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami
Three stars
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Nations League
League A, Group 4
Spain v England, 10.45pm (UAE)
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Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Best Academy: Ajax and Benfica
Best Agent: Jorge Mendes
Best Club : Liverpool
Best Coach: Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool)
Best Goalkeeper: Alisson Becker
Best Men’s Player: Cristiano Ronaldo
Best Partnership of the Year Award by SportBusiness: Manchester City and SAP
Best Referee: Stephanie Frappart
Best Revelation Player: Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid and Portugal)
Best Sporting Director: Andrea Berta (Atletico Madrid)
Best Women's Player: Lucy Bronze
Best Young Arab Player: Achraf Hakimi
Kooora – Best Arab Club: Al Hilal (Saudi Arabia)
Kooora – Best Arab Player: Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al-Nassr FC, Saudi Arabia)
Player Career Award: Miralem Pjanic and Ryan Giggs
TO ALL THE BOYS: ALWAYS AND FOREVER
Directed by: Michael Fimognari
Starring: Lana Condor and Noah Centineo
Two stars
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
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Price: From Dh98,800
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Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium, Malayisa
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia on October 10
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COMPANY PROFILE
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
The biog
Most memorable achievement: Leading my first city-wide charity campaign in Toronto holds a special place in my heart. It was for Amnesty International’s Stop Violence Against Women program and showed me the power of how communities can come together in the smallest ways to have such wide impact.
Favourite film: Childhood favourite would be Disney’s Jungle Book and classic favourite Gone With The Wind.
Favourite book: To Kill A Mockingbird for a timeless story on justice and courage and Harry Potters for my love of all things magical.
Favourite quote: “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” — Winston Churchill
Favourite food: Dim sum
Favourite place to travel to: Anywhere with natural beauty, wildlife and awe-inspiring sunsets.
Company Profile
Founder: Omar Onsi
Launched: 2018
Employees: 35
Financing stage: Seed round ($12 million)
Investors: B&Y, Phoenician Funds, M1 Group, Shorooq Partners
BRAZIL SQUAD
Alisson (Liverpool), Daniel Fuzato (Roma), Ederson (Man City); Alex Sandro (Juventus), Danilo (Juventus), Eder Militao (Real Madrid), Emerson (Real Betis), Felipe (Atletico Madrid), Marquinhos (PSG), Renan Lodi (Atletico Madrid), Thiago Silva (PSG); Arthur (Barcelona), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa), Fabinho (Liverpool), Lucas Paqueta (AC Milan), Philippe Coutinho (Bayern Munich); David Neres (Ajax), Gabriel Jesus (Man City), Richarlison (Everton), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), Willian (Chelsea).
Three ways to get a gratitude glow
By committing to at least one of these daily, you can bring more gratitude into your life, says Ong.
- During your morning skincare routine, name five things you are thankful for about yourself.
- As you finish your skincare routine, look yourself in the eye and speak an affirmation, such as: “I am grateful for every part of me, including my ability to take care of my skin.”
- In the evening, take some deep breaths, notice how your skin feels, and listen for what your skin is grateful for.
Champions parade (UAE timings)
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8pm Deansgate stage showing starts
9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral
9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street
10pm City players on stage
11pm event ends
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BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
(All games 4-3pm kick UAE time) Bayern Munich v Augsburg, Borussia Dortmund v Bayer Leverkusen, Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin, Wolfsburg v Mainz , Eintracht Frankfurt v Freiburg, Union Berlin v RB Leipzig, Cologne v Schalke , Werder Bremen v Borussia Monchengladbach, Stuttgart v Arminia Bielefeld
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
