‘Very fear lag rha hai’ – Fans react as Match officials announced for Test Championship Final between India and Australia

The much-awaited Test Championship final match between India and Australia is not so far as the grand contest set to take place between June 7 and 11 at The Oval, while June 12 is marked as a reserved day. Almost every player from both teams has started preparing for it, but some are still busy in the ongoing 16th edition of the Indian Premier League. However, they will soon leave for England as the league will be over on May 29.

Both teams have also announced their squads for the thrilling clash. Meanwhile, the apex cricket body has also revealed the match officials. Richard Illingworth from England and Chris Gaffaney from New Zealand will be the on-field umpires. Another experienced English umpire Richard Kettleborough will act as a third umpire and provide the required support to the on-field umpires. 

Former Sri Lankan cricketer and now umpire Kumar Dharmasena will be the 4th umpire, while Richie Richardson from West Indies will be the match referee. Gaffaney and Illingworth both are a part of the Emirates Elite Panel of Umpires as both have extensive experience at the international level. Gaffaney will umpire his 49th Test match at The Oval, while Illingworth will take charge of his 64th. 

New names included in the Indian squad 

Meanwhile, the Indian team included some surprising names in the squad as many key players are injured and unable to take place in the contest. Ishan Kishan replaced Rishabh Pant, Ajinkya Rahane made a comeback in the Test squad by replacing KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah will also miss out on the match, and Umesh Yadav is likely to get an opportunity.

India’s squad for Test Championship final: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Kishan (wk).

Australia’s squad for Test Championship final: Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner.

Here’s how fans reacted:

https://twitter.com/GaneshC62660412/status/1663126249118789632?s=20

https://twitter.com/MANISHV32482061/status/1663129934037155840?s=20

https://twitter.com/GauravSama82843/status/1663136040750825472?s=20

https://twitter.com/DakshAggarwal90/status/1663138633187049474?s=20

Shukar Hai kettleborough on Field umpire nhi hai

— Ankur Yadav (@MastRehtaHu) May 29, 2023

https://twitter.com/jaikaran24/status/1663125781244162048?s=20

https://twitter.com/Ranjan_Ashish96/status/1663126564857602050?s=20

Indians to Richard Kettleborough pic.twitter.com/VEB93dIETn

— Elijah Mikaelson (@mrEMikaelson) May 29, 2023

https://twitter.com/Cricfever1129/status/1663130050399723520?s=20