Southampton Confirmed As Venue For World Test Championship Final

The World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand in June has been moved from Lord's to Southampton because of the pandemic, Indian cricket chief Sourav Ganguly said. The inaugural c

"It was decided long time ago. Due to Covid and they (in Southampton) have the hotel absolutely close," he told the India Today TV channel late Monday.

"When England resumed play after Covid, they had a lot of matches in Southampton due to the same reason."

England played all their home Tests last year in biosecure 'bubble' conditions at Southampton and Manchester's Old Trafford ground, which also has hotel facilities.

The Test championship was initially launched in 2019 but had to be drastically changed after the coronavirus crisis erupted last year, forcing the cancellation of several tours.

India confirmed their place in the final last week by beating England 3-1 in their Test series.