'Jadeja at No. 7, Ashwin at No. 8': Laxman suggests India's batting order for WTC final against New Zealand

Former India cricketer VVS Laxman on Tuesday spoke about the batting order which India should follow in the World Test Championship final against New Zealand. The two teams will feature in the finale and all eyes will be on Virat Kohli & co., who would be battling against a lethal New Zealand pace attack amid tough batting conditions.

Kohli's men lost the two-match Test series against New Zealand in 2020, and the conditions in Southampton are expected to favour the Kiwi speedsters as well.

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Hence, India's batting order is expected to play a big role in the match, as it may determine the result. Speaking at a press conference organized by Star Sports before the WTC final, Laxman said that he would go with five batsmen in India's line-up, with Jadeja batting at No. 7.

"I would go with five batsmen, Rishabh as the wicket-keeper batsman at number six, and I've got a lot of belief in Jadeja at number seven and Ashwin at number eight," he said.

"Jadeja is a more than capable batsman who can now play match-winning knocks under pressure. So, I would back Jadeja to bat at number seven."

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Meanwhile, India on Tuesday announced its 15-member squad for the World Test Championship Final, to be played at the Ageas Bowl Stadium in Southampton, against New Zealand from June 18.

The absence of the Karnataka duo of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal from the 15 means India will stick with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill for the openers’ slot. The lack of runs for Gill in the home series against England, and the subsequent IPL, meant there were a few murmurs about Agarwal's return to the playing XI. But those have been quashed for now.