New Zealand crowned World Test Champions after a dramatic final.

On June 23rd, New Zealand marked a historic win against India as they were crowned the first World Test Champions after a seemingly dramatic final on the sixth day of the test match.

The tournament’s favourites Indians ended up being the runners-up as they lost their grip in the 2nd innings of the test match. Two days washed out of the five-day test match as miserable rain poured over the pitch in the Hampshire Bowl, Southampton.

Despite the rain and a bowler-friendly pitch, India managed to score 217 runs in the 1st innings, a par score in those conditions.

Kyle Jamieson, the man-of-the-match, outshined in both the innings and his figures speak for themselves 5/31 and 2/30 in the first and second innings. He dismissed Virat Kohli in both innings ended up being the game-changing factor. He also scored those crucial, quick-fire 21 runs with the bat that helped the Blackcaps get an edge over the men in blue by getting a lead of 32 runs in the first innings.

The men in blue were looking good at the end of the fifth day as they managed to knock out the Blackcaps for a score of 249. India also surpassed the lead of the Kiwis by scoring 64/2 and getting a 32 run-lead.

Team India was looking promising at the start of the sixth day, then what followed was a series of disasters; they struggled to score any runs after the dismissal of Kohli and Pujara. The wickets kept falling one after the other without any significant margin. Rishabh Pant gave a ray of hope by aggressively scoring 41 runs when the team needed it the most. The bowling attack of the Kiwis was unbeatable. Pant soon fell prey to a brilliant delivery by Trent Boult.

The Blackcaps showed absolute masterclass and turned the tables, limiting India to a score of 170. They now needed only 139 to get the Test Mace.

India tried every possible combination of bowlers and went head-to-toe to conquer the Kiwis. Despite India’s efforts, New Zealand’s skipper Kane Williamson played a captain’s innings and led his side to a well-deserved victory after two years of their heartbreaking loss in the 2019 World Cup final.

India could have turned the odds in their favour, but their fielding was not up to the mark as they dropped Ross Taylor at 26, who went to score 47 and played a crucial partnership with the skipper. There were several other dropped catches and misfields due to which India was left far behind in the chase.

New Zealand got the better of India and marked a stunning 8-wicket victory. The Kiwis were always the unlucky side in the case of the ICC Tournaments, finally did justice to the hard work that they been longing for, for decades.

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