With the World Test Championship (WTC) final set to begin on June 18, Michael Vaughan took to social media to warn India about their upcoming opponents New Zealand. Kane Williamson's side are currently on the back of a Test series win against England, despite the absence of their captain, who is recovering from an injury. Warning Virat Kohli's outfit, Vaughan tweeted, "NZ are a high class team .. Read the situation with the Bat in hand,skilful with the ball & catch brilliantly .. Really fancy them to beat India next week .. #ENGvNZ".
The win against England also helped New Zealand topple India from top of the ICC Test Rankings.
The WTC final will be held at The Ageas Bowl in Southampton, and New Zealand will be hoping to use their good form against India in the summit clash.
On the other hand, India will be going into the match without any recent proper match practice other than an ongoing intra-squad game. The Indian cricketers were last seen in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, which was postponed indefinitely midway through the season due to a rise in COVID-19 cases.
The tournament was also hard-hit with some high-profile cases too. SunRisers Hyderabad's (SRH) Wriddhiman Saha tested positive for the dreaded virus and has recovered. The wicketkeeper-batsman is also part of the Indian team for the WTC final.
After the WTC final, India will also face England in a five-match Test series.