The iconic Lord’s cricket ground is all set to host the showpiece final of the ongoing cycle of the WTC in the summer of 2023. The International Cricket Council is expected to officially formalise the venue as the designated host for the final in its next month’s AGM.
“I think it is scheduled for Lord’s, that was always the intention. It’s June so that rules out a number of other venues and we’ve got to get certainty around where it’s hosted. We’re out of Covid now so subject to arrangements being made and being able to be hosted out of Lord’s I think that’s the intention,”
ICC chair Greg Barclay said on BBC’s Test Match Special show.
Lord’s was earmarked to host the final of WTC’s inaugural edition in 2021. But the ground lost the hosting rights after necessary restrictions were implemented amidst the onset of a Covid-19 outbreak.
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With Southampton’s Ageas Bowl providing on-site hotels and thus proving a more suitable, safe facility to maintain a biosecure bubble, the ground down south of England hosted table-toppers India and New Zealand over six days of a rain-marred fixture.
The governing body is optimistic about executing a Lord’s finale for Test cricket’s marquee event with the easing restrictions at the heels of the pandemic. Barclay said the Test championship has brought a greater sense of relevance to the traditional format, with nine of the world’s best nations vying for a coveted trophy over a two-year cycle that culminates with a much-anticipated final.
Barclay, however, retained a pragmatic outlook when it comes to the reach of the WTC in driving a change in cricket’s landscape going forward. With multiple boards finding the format a loss-making exercise, Barclay stressed, we shall continue seeing less and less of Test cricket outside India, England and Australia.
That said, the WTC will remain an integral part of Test cricket’s future itinerary, with a marquee final scheduled for 2025, 2027, 2029 and 2031, too.
