Team India and Australia players were seen wearing black armbands during WTC final 2023 (Twitter Image)
Team India and Australia players were seen wearing black armbands and a moment’s silence was observed in solidarity with the victims of Odisha train crash
Team India and Australia paid solidarity to the victims of the Odisha train crash which claimed the lives of more than 280 people as the two teams came out for the national anthems ahead of the World Test Championship (WTC) final wearing black armbands.
Indian captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl against Australia, choosing to go with four seamers and just 1 spinner in Ravindra Jadeja as India decided to leave Ravichandran Ashwin on the bench.
As the two teams made out their way onto the ground for the national anthems, players of both sides were seen wearing black armbands, and a minute’s silence was observed to pay solidarity to those deceased, and those who were severely injured from the train clash in Odisha.
IND vs AUS, WTC Final LIVE: David Warner, Usman Khawaja Get Australia Innings Underway
The disastrous train crash in Balasore on 2 June, with three trains colliding with each other that left nearly 288 people dead and as many as over 1000 injured. 21 coaches of Coromandel Express derailed and 3 f them collided with an incoming train on the adjacent track.
Following the tragic train crash, Indian and Australian players were seen wearing black arm bands for the WTC final which got underway at the Oval in London from June 7, Wednesday.
Talking about the WTC, Rohit decided to leave out Ravichandran Ashwin, shedding light on his decision to leave out the number 1 ranked Test bowler in the world, the Indian captain said it was never an easy decision.
ALSO READ| IND vs AUS, WTC Final 2023: How Much Prize Money Will the Winners and Runners Up Receive?
“It’s always tough, he’s been a match-winner for us over the course of so many years. But you got to do the things that’s needed for the team and eventually, we came up with that decision,” said Rohit after winning the toss.
Meanwhile, Australian captain Cummins elected to bring in Scott Boland in place of Josh Hazlewood who was injured in the days leading up to the final.
Teams:
India: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Srikar Bharat(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj
Australia: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey(w), Pat Cummins(c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland