Spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were both named in India’s 15-man squad for the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand, which begins on Friday.
Jadeja, along with Mohamed Shami, Hanuma Vihari and Umesh Yadav, all of whom sustained injuries during the tour of Australia in December and January, return to India’s test squad after missing the home series against England earlier this year.
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel, who starred in the 3-1 test series win against England, and batsman KL Rahul, who underwent surgery for appendicitis in May, missed the cut, after being named in the preliminary 20-man squad. Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur and Mayank Agarwal were also left out.
Earlier yesterday, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson and wicketkeeper B J Watling were declared fit to play the final after the pair missed the eight-wicket victory over England at Edgbaston due to injuries.
The WTC was launched in 2019 to create a pinnacle event for five-day international cricket, following the successes of the Twenty20 and 50-over world cups. Australia and England were in the race before India and New Zealand pulled ahead to grab the top two spots in the final. The championship decider will be played at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.
Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohamed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Mohamed Siraj.

New Zealand clear skipper Williamson, Watling
New Zealand have cleared captain Kane Williamson and wicketkeeper B J Watling to play in the inaugural World Test Championship final against India, while retaining Ajaz Patel as specialist spinner in their 15-man squad. Williamson and Watling missed the eight-wicket victory over England at Edgbaston due to injuries. New Zealand won the series 1-0. Doug Bracewell, Jacob Duffy, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra and Mitchell Santner will miss out on the India clash after being part of the original 20-player touring squad.
Patel took four wickets in the victory at Edgbaston, which gave New Zealand a confidence boost ahead of their clash against India. All-rounder Colin de Grandhomme has been retained, with Will Young providing specialist batting cover and Tom Blundell the reserve wicketkeeper.

Squad: Kane Williamson (capt), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult Devon Conway, Colin de Grandhomme, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, Ajaz Patel, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling, Will Young.