With less than 24 hours left for the much-anticipated World Test Championship (WTC) final to get underway between India and New Zealand at the Rose Bowl in Southampton, former India opener Gautam Gambhir has named his favourites for the elusive title. India and New Zealand were the top two sides respectively in the WTC points table after the conclusion of the group-stage matches.

The two teams are already in England and have been preparing for the all-important summit clash. While New Zealand recently played a two-match series against England and registered a 1-0 win, the Indian players were involved in an intra-squad match at Southampton. Gambhir singled out India’s bowling attack for praise ahead of the final and said the Indian bowlers are capable of taking 20 wickets against any team.

“I have always believed that it is bowlers who win you the Test matches. To win a Test match, you need to take 20 wickets, and I think the current Indian bowling line-up can trouble any team at any surface,” Gambhir was quoted as saying by India Today.

India certainly have one of the best bowling attacks in the world with an arsenal of fantastic pacers and two brilliant spinners in Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin. India are likely to head into the final against New Zealand with three pacers – Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Shami, and both Ashwin, Jadeja to also add balance to their batting line-up.

Gambhir picked New Zealand as his favourites for the final and explained that the Kiwis will hold an edge over India having played two Tests against England in the run-up to the summit clash. He also stated that New Zealand’s confidence will be high as they won the two-match series 1-0.

“It is difficult to predict the favourites in the one-off final. But I feel New Zealand will have a slight advantage because they have played two Test matches in England, and most importantly, they have won it,” said Gambhir.

“You can play as many intra-squad matches, but there is no substitute to match practice. As a result, new Zealand will be better prepared for the WTC final,” he added.

India have already announced their final 15-man squad for the final which features both Ashwin and Jadeja along with five pacers. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill are confirmed to open the batting for India in the final while Rishabh Pant will keep the wickets