The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Friday announced the playing conditions for the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final, scheduled to be held between June 18-22 between India and New Zealand in Southampton.
The ICC also said that both the sides will be crowned as joint-winners if the match ends in a draw or a tie.
A provision for reserve day is also included to make up for lost time throughout the course of five days of the game.
“The Reserve Day has been scheduled to ensure five full days of play, and it will only be used if lost playing time cannot be recovered through the normal provisions of making up lost time each day,” the ICC said in a statement.
“There will be no additional day’s play if a positive result is not achieved after five full days of play and the match will be declared a draw in such a scenario,” it added.
The world governing body of cricket also said that in case of a DRS appeal, the captain of the fielding team will have the freedom to consult with the umpire if a genuine attempt was made by the batsman to play the delivery.
The match referee will provide both teams regular updates on lost time, if any, and a final call on whether the reserve day is to be used will be taken at the start of the final hour on final day of the Test.
Significantly, the contest will be played with Grade 1 Dukes ball.
Overall, the WTC final will also see the implementation of the following changes to international playing conditions that came into effect with the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League series between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka:
Short Runs – The Third Umpire will automatically review any call of a ‘short run’ by the On-field Umpire and communicate the decision to the On-field Umpire prior to the next ball being bowled.
Player Reviews – The fielding captain or the dismissed batsman may confirm with the Umpire whether a genuine attempt has been made to play the ball prior to deciding whether to initiate a player review for LBW.
DRS Reviews – For LBW reviews, the height margin of the Wicket Zone has been lifted to the top of the stumps to ensure the same Umpire’s Call margin around the stumps for both height and width.