Alam played his last Test in 2009.
In the recent intra-squad match simulation in Southampton, he struck an impressive 85 which eventually earned him a place in the 15-man Indian squad for the final and almost guaranteed his position as the opener.
New Zealand made as many as six changes for the ongoing second Test, some forced and some rotated ahead of the World Test Championship final against India in Southampton from June 18.
New Zealand are coming into the match well-prepared, following their 1-0 series-win over hosts England but for Paine, it won't count for much as he believes the win came against a depleted home side.
New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson said his team is pleased to keep things in the balance after India reached 146/3 on a rain-hit second day of the ICC World Test Championship final in Southampton on Saturday.
India's captain asserted that there was nothing wrong with India's choice of bowlers as they needed to score more runs in order to let their spinners call the shots.
Ben Stokes, who missed England's final two Test matches against Pakistan at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton earlier this month, travelled to New Zealand citing family reasons.
Ganguly will create his own fantasy team for each of the three matches and lock horns with cricket enthusiasts from all over India as part of the 'Beat the Expert' contest.
IMAGES from Day 4 of the 3rd Test played between England and Pakistan at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on Monday.
Australian batsmen David Warner and Steve Smith were booed and heckled by the crowd in their warm-up game against England in Southampton on Saturday.
Quarantine restrictions might hamper the Indian team's preparations for next month's ICC World Test Championship final against New Zealand but bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach Ramakrishnan Sridhar feel that the players' abundant experience will be enough to counter that challenge.
Kohli highlighted that the nuances of the format cannot be fully utilised through just one match, and especially when it's to determine the world champions of Test cricket.
Images from Day 1 of the 5th Test at the Oval in London on Friday
SLC said Perera decided to retire to focus on his family life and to make way for younger players to come into the team.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic last year, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has prohibited bowlers from applying saliva to the ball.
Sehwag took a funny jibe at the ICC for hosting the World Test Championship final in the UK
Veteran India pacer Mohammed Shami says he has found his 'rhythm' during the now-suspended IPL and feels the upcoming UK tour will be a successful one for the team if it is able to replicate the stellar performance of the last six months.
When Jaipur's Maharaja Madho Singh was invited to attend King Edward VII's coronation in 1902, he chartered a ship for Rs 15 lakh for the journey. He also carried 27,000 litres of Ganga jal on board. Prakash Bhandari recalls the maharaja's voyage to attend a British monarch's coronation on a day when Charles III will be crowned king at Westminster Abbey.
India are likely to rest most of their senior players during the T20I series against New Zealand at home, which starts less than a week after the final of the T20 World Cup next month.
Images from Day 2 of the ICC World Test Championship Final between India and New Zealand, at The Hampshire Bowl, in Southampton, on Saturday.
What went wrong for India in the World Test Championship Final against New Zealand?
'Though I am a little scared of needles, but I still got myself vaccinated today. I urge people to please get vaccinated as soon as they can! #GotTheDose #We4Vaccine #CovidVaccine'
Leicester City won at Arsenal for the first time in 47 years on Sunday, with substitute Jamie Vardy's late close-range header enough to secure victory in the Premier League at The Emirates.
Parthiv Patel believes that Virat Kohli's exhibition with the bat will hold the way into India's possibilities in the WTC final.
Sachin Tendulkar leads the cricket world to hail New Zealand's triumph.
Bumrah said his controlled aggression has done wonders to his run as an international cricketer.
Pakistan middle-order batsman Mohammad Rizwan hit a defiant half century on a difficult batting pitch to guide his side past the 200-mark in their first innings and frustrate England in the second Test on Friday.
Rain and bad light have combined to limit action in the second Test between England and Pakistan in Southampton, frustrating players and television viewers hoping for live cricket amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rajneesh Gupta presents the numbers from the Oval Test.
CWI Lead Selector, Roger Harper, said that he is delighted with Gabriel's inclusion to the squad.
Senior spinner Ravichandran Ashwin revealed he had given serious thought about retiring after the England series in 2018 as he felt he was not being adequately backed despite being a proven match-winner for the Indian team.
'What I feel is that India should have played games, you know matches, at least two-three games before the Test match (WTC), to get acclimatised to the conditions.'
India go with Ashwin and Jadeja with three seamers for WTC final
India's white-ball team will be arriving in Sri Lanka on July 5 and they will head back home on July 28.
Pace legend Michael Holding questioned the England and Wales Cricket Board's bio-secure protocol to tackle the COVID-19 threat after England pacer Jofra Archer breached it ahead of the ongoing second Test against the West Indies in Manchester.
New Zealand have now secured a first Test series win in England since 1999 and only their third overall in the country.
A World Cup victory will put Kohli in a league of his own and even those sceptical about his tactical nous, will have no other option but to grudgingly doff their hats at his heady achievements.
England ended day four with a 170-run lead over West Indies as Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley notched up half-centuries in the second innings of the first Test at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on Saturday. Images from Day 4 of the first Test between England and West Indies.
England fast bowler Stuart Broad wants to emulate his pace colleague James Anderson in terms of career longevity, saying he is fit enough to play for some more years. After being ignored for the first Test in Southampton, the 34-year-old pacer returned to the side for the ongoing second game against the West Indies and handed England advantage late in the fourth day with his three-wicket burst.
'I do believe India is very strong because lately we have been winning outside the country. I think our batting is stronger, in bowling they are at par.'
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