‘Mace ki moti side Australia ko milegi or patli India ko’ – Test Mace to be shared between India and Australia if WTC 2023 final ends in draw

On June 7 at The Oval, India and Australia squared off in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 final. India won the toss and opted to bowl first but the Australian batters established a firm grip on the match on the first day of the championship. Australia had amassed 327 runs by the end of the first day’s play while only losing 3 wickets. The Indian bowlers were clueless in front of left-hander Travis Head and former Australia captain Steve Smith despite bowling well in the first session. 

Indian bowlers will look to bundle up the Australian batting line as soon as possible on the second day of the match. After which, the Indian batters will be eying to put up a massive total in order to get a huge lead. However, it won’t be easy as Australian bowlers know their job in these types of conditions.

Given that rain plays a significant role in London, the blockbuster contest has a high likelihood of ending in a draw. If the game ends in a tie or a draw, the two teams will share the Test Mace. Australia won’t be declared the winner if the match ends in a draw despite leading the WTC points standings. In case the weather chooses to wreck the event, a backup date of June 12 has been reserved. 

How will the reserve day be used?

The game will be deemed a draw if there is no resolution even after the reserve day. However, it is only applicable if there are net playing time losses throughout the course of the final’s five scheduled days. Each Test is played for a total of 30 hours, or six hours every day. The reserve day only starts if the time lost during regulation play on each day is not made up on that same day. 

If the game misses an hour of play due to the rain but makes it up later in the day, it counts as zero net time lost. The match will not have enough net playing time, however, if play is stopped for the full day due to rain and just three hours are made up over the next four days. that is when the reserve day starts.

Here’s how fans reacted:

https://twitter.com/PHemant123/status/1666651370538291200?s=20

https://twitter.com/Mian_azeem_0101/status/1666657044277895170?s=20

https://twitter.com/guru_sharmaji/status/1666646858108907521?s=20

https://twitter.com/iJigneshVirani/status/1666643436429012992?s=20

Kal tak India ki Jeet ki kah rhe the, aaj draw par aa gye

— khushanshu (@no1khush) June 8, 2023

Draw ni hota india ki betting aate hi bowling pitch ho jayegi

— Sandeep Prince (@Sandeepp190) June 8, 2023

Baarish krwa do Jesus bhai

— Jack Sparrow (@Virat18fann) June 8, 2023

https://twitter.com/tyson_cr7/status/1666645161613377537?s=20

Ab to Baarish bachaye hume

— shashank madhyastha (@goalkeeperhumai) June 8, 2023

Only way India can get mace under rohit captaincy

— Guntur Kaaram (@yoursjashwanth) June 8, 2023