India set for bid to stage World Test Championship final in 2027
India want to stage the final of the World Test Championship in 2027 with a formal proposal to be made to the International Cricket Council this summer.
An Indian bid for the WTC final would have major implications for England's summer scheduling and could create logistical problems for the ICC given the country's relations with Pakistan, which have deteriorated further following this week's air strikes in Kashmir.
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The two previous WTC finals have been held in England – the first at Hampshire's Rose Bowl in 2021 before it moved to the Oval in 2023 – while this year's showpiece between Australia and South Africa will take place at Lord's next month.
The Guardian has learned that India expressed their intention to bid for the 2027 final at a meeting of the ICC's chief executives committee in Zimbabwe last month. The Board of Control for Cricket in India is represented by its chief executive, Arun Singh Dhumal, on the ICC Committee, while his predecessor Jay Shah is chair of the ICC, so a formal Indian bid would be regarded as a fait accompli.
While the England and Wales Cricker Board had not assumed it would host the WTC final in perpetuity, the English summer and a strong domestic ticket market regardless of which teams qualify makes it a natural venue. The ECB is understood to be pushing for a quick decision, as it will need time to arrange an additional home Test match for England in 2027 if the WTC final is taken elsewhere.
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The ICC has concerns about taking the WTC final to India however, chiefly the prospect of poor ticket sales should India fail to qualify. Next month's final at Lord's is sold out for the first four days, while the 2023 final at the Oval was also sold out despite England not being involved.
The tension between India and Pakistan brings another complication following Tuesday's air strikes which India launched in response to a terror attack in Pahalgam on 22 April, which claimed 26 lives. India and Pakistan have not played a bilateral series against each other since January 2013 because of political tensions, but they do face each other in men's and women's T20 and ODI World Cups, on the condition they meet at neutral venues.
The Indian government refused permission for their team to travel to Pakistan for this year's Champions Trophy which meant that India played all their games – including the final which they won – in Dubai. India will host the Women's World Cup this autumn, with Pakistan among the teams due to take part, although where they will play their games has yet to be determined.
The dizzying ascent of the Somerset wicketkeeper-batter James Rew has managed another acceleration with the 21-year-old being called into the England Test squad for the first time after Jordan Cox was ruled out of this month's game against Zimbabwe through injury.
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Confirmation that the abdominal muscle strain Cox sustained while playing for Essex against Somerset in the County Championship this week would delay his red-ball international debut feels particularly cruel given that the 24-year-old had been slated to play in the Test series against New Zealand that started last November only for him to break a thumb in training.
Cox had just completed a century when he sustained the injury during Essex's second innings at Taunton, forcing him to retire hurt. Rew later scored 116, his second century of the summer and the 10th of his first-class career – making him the youngest Englishman to do reach a double-figure tally of first-class tons since Denis Compton in 1939 – to win the game for Somerset.
The left-hander was named the Professional Cricketers' Association's young player of the year in 2023 after a breakout season that saw him score 1,086 first-class runs at an average of 57.15, with five centuries. That summer he was described by Jason Kerr, Somerset's head coach, as ' ridiculously good': 'I think it's important we don't get carried away, but I've never seen a young player start their career so well,' Kerr said.
Last season was a comparative disappointment, with two centuries, 771 runs and an average of 36.71, but he started this summer by scoring 152 against Worcestershire and is currently averaging 54.71.
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Rew bats at No 6 for Somerset but has spoken of his willingness to move up the order and may need to do so to break into the England team, with the captain, Ben Stokes, having claimed his favoured position and Jamie Smith likely to bat at No7 and keep wicket.
Since top-scoring with 95 in the final of the 2022 Under-19 World Cup, which England lost to India, Rew has struggled to replicate his county form in an England shirt: he has toured with England Lions in each of the last three winters and averages 18 for them, in 18 innings and with a high score of 56 not out. Simon Burnton
Following this year's Champions Trophy standoff the ICC reached an agreement that until 2027 all matches involving India in an event hosted in Pakistan would be played at a neutral venue, with all matches involving Pakistan in an event hosted by India also to be moved. In addition to this year's women's World Cup this agreement also covers the 2026 men's T20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka.
While a similar agreement for a late venue-switch could be reached in the event of Pakistan qualifying for the WTC final, India's head coach, Gautam Gambhir, this week raised the prospect of halting all matches between the two countries.
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Asked whether India should continue to face Pakistan in global tournaments, Gambhir said: 'My personal answer to this is absolutely no. Until all this stops, there should not be anything between India and Pakistan. No cricket match or Bollywood or other interaction is more important than the life of Indian soldiers and Indian citizens.'
The ICC has not confirmed any outcomes from last month's meetings in Zimbabwe, but as previously reported by the Guardian proposals to divide Test cricket into two divisions were put on hold. The 2025-2027 WTC will therefore continue with the current nine-team, single division format.
The next WTC begins with England's five-Test home series against India on 20 June, five days after the conclusion of the final between Australia and South Africa.
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