WTC Final: Why are India and Australia players wearing black bands?
Siraj took the first wicket. (Source: @BCCI)
The World Test Championship (WTC) Final between Australia and India got underway at the Oval in London with India winning the toss and electing to field first on a lively pitch. The players of both teams as well as the umpires were seen wearing black bands as they stepped out to take the field.
The bands are in solidarity with the victims of a horrific train crash that happened in the Indian state of Odisha. The accident, in which, three trains were involved, saw close to 300 people losing their lives and nearly 800 getting injured. The accident happened five days ago on June 2, 2023.
Preparation to faceJust Stop Oil
As the match gets going, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has prepared for the eventuality of a protestby climate activist group Just Stop Oil hitting the game.
The move from the ICC comes as a guard for a worst-case scenario where the game and the strip used could betargetted by the activists.
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Just Stop Oil is a coalition of environmental groups which are fighting to raise awareness about climate change at various sporting events in the UK. Protests have earlier hit the World Snooker Championship and Premier League football, to name a few. The ICC, in case the disruption hits, wants to guard the pitch which has been tended over the days for the WTC Final and decided to prepare a backup pitch.
The ICC has also altered its playing conditions for the final by adding a clause for the use of another pitch in case the one inuse gets damaged or is dangerous to play on. The ICC, however, will assess the existing pitch first to see if repairs can be done and if the match can getstarted from the point it was stopped without affecting any of the participating teams.
The new pitch will be used only if the original one can't be repaired. Although, if it is not possible to use the substitute pitch as well, the match will then be abandoned and would be deemed a no-result.
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