ICC WTC: India, NZ to be joint winners if final ends in a draw or tie

India and New Zealand will end as joint winners in case of a draw or a tie in World Test Championship (WTC) final, which will also have a reserve day to make up for any lost time during regular days of the final, the International Cricket Council announced on Friday.

"The playing conditions confirm that a draw or a tie will see both teams crowned as joint winners as well as the allocation of a Reserve Day to make up for any lost time during the regular days of the Final -- scheduled to be played from 18 to 22 June, with 23 June set aside as the Reserve Day. Both of these decisions were made in June 2018, prior to the commencement of the ICC World Test Championship," said a statement from ICC.

The ICC added that the reserve day has been kept only in the event of lost time and not to get a result.

"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. 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," the statement added.

The WTC final will be played between June 18 and 22 in Southampton.

In the event of time being lost during the match, the ICC match referee will regularly update the teams and media about the way in which the reserve day will be used. The final decision on whether the reserve day needs to be used will be announced at the scheduled start of the last hour on the fifth day, the ICC added.

The match will be played using Grade 1 Dukes cricket balls.

The final will also see the implementation of 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 before the next ball is 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.

--IANS

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