KS Bharat will keep wicket ahead of Ishan Kishan in ICC WTC final for India, believes Dinesh Karthik

KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan will travel UK as India's wicket-keepers for the ICC WTC final against Australia.

Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has picked KS Bharat as the wicketkeeper for the Indian team for their upcoming World Test Championship (WTC 2023) final to be played from June 7 at the Oval on London against Australia.

The runners-up from the previous edition of the WTC would be looking to win the championship this time around as the previous time they had to suffer a loss at the hands of New Zealand by 8 wickets.

On June 7, 2023, India and Australia will square off at The Oval in London. The Rohit Sharma-led squad would almost surely aim to win the finals and end a 10-year slide of not winning an ICC Trophy. Though India has recently won a Test series against Australia at home, playing Australia in England will be a very other ball game.

“He will be a pretty straightforward choice”- Dinesh Karthik on KS Bharat

One of the most difficult decisions for Rahul Dravid and his team is who would play wicketkeeper in the crucial Test. With Rishabh Pant out for a long due to a horrific automobile accident, KL Rahul will also miss out due to a thigh injury acquired during the Indian Premier League (IPL).

This has significantly restricted the alternatives for selecting a wicketkeeper, with KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan the only eligible candidates.

In response to this worry, Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik stated that Bharat should be the obvious decision, as fielding Kishan in such an important match as a debutant can be a difficult one.

With this minor edge, the team management cannot field a newcomer in the final, hence KS Bharat may find himself in the starting lineup.

"I think Bharat will be a pretty straightforward choice because playing Ishan Kishan in his debut and a Test match straight in the World Test Championship Final is asking a bit too much", Karthik said while speaking on The ICC Review.

India is currently the top-ranked Test side, with 121 ratings, and Australia is slightly behind them in second place, with 116 ratings. As a result, the World Team Championship Final will be an epic battle between the top two teams.