Salman Butt sends warning bells to Team India days ahead of much-awaited WTC Final

Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt has come forward and revealed why New Zealand have the upper hand against India in the upcoming ICC World Test Championship final that will be contested at the Ageas Rosebowl in Southampton between June 18-22.
The top two sides in the longest format of the game will be locking horns in a one-off Test match for the biggest prize in red-ball cricket.

Salman Butt reveals why New Zealand have an edge over India in WTC Final

While interacting on his official Youtube channel, one of the die-hard fans of the game asked Butt about what could prove to be the decisive factor of the contest for Kohli & Co. and the Kane Williamson-led side to which he replied saying that according to him, the application of technique could decide the fate of the match if the conditions are truly English.

Giving further clarification on the same, he mentioned that if the English weather plays its part and should there be seam movement off-the-pitch, then it will show which team has stronger basics as well as better technique application.

"Another difference will be how their bowling line-ups shape up because line and length play a massive role usually. When you play on a pitch that provides assistance to the pace bowlers, then line and length are crucial. If you are off the mark, runs will be scored," he added.

Last but not least, the cricketer-turned-cricket pundit added that since the match will be played in the month of June and as the Kiwis would be better prepared for the English conditions thanks to the two Test matches against England earlier in the month, he backed the BlackCaps to hold an edge over the current top-ranked Test side as Williamson's team would have the momentum because of having played two successive Tests heading into the decider of the inaugural edition of ICC WTC while the Indian team would be waiting to compete with them without any practice. 

Can New Zealand rewrite history in Southampton?

The  Black Caps will be hoping to make amends by winning a major silverware for the first time in 21 years. The Kiwis had made it to the deciders of the previous two editions of the World Cup (2015 & 2019) but could not succeed in going all the way. In fact, they had agonizingly fallen short in the 2019 edition where both England and New Zealand were tied at the identical score of 241 after regulation time as the English team eventually went on to left their maiden World Cup trophy due to an infamous boundary count rule.

New Zealand had won their last ICC title way back in October 2000 by lifting the ICC Knockout Trophy that was contested in Kenya under the leadership of Stephen Fleming. Coincidentally, they beat a spirited Indian team led by the charismatic Sourav Ganguly in the tournament decider.