India vs New Zealand: Virat Kohli to receive ICC Test Championship mace after Indore match

The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Tuesday it would present the Test championship mace to India skipper Virat Kohli after the end of the third and final Test against New Zealand at the Holkar Stadium in Indore. [caption id=“attachment_3045686” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The Test Championship Mace will be presented to India skipper Virat Kohli. Getty Images[/caption] India is assured of the top spot, but will officially overtake Pakistan at the top only when the rankings are updated at the end of the series. On behalf of the ICC, former India captain and ICC Cricket Hall of Famer Sunil Gavaskar will make the presentation immediately after the awards ceremony for the series. The mace was produced by the then British Crown Jeweller, Asprey and Garrard, in 2001, which was commissioned to make a distinctive prize designed to stand out from other cricket trophies. The designers produced a 90cm silver and gold-plated trophy based on a cricket stump as its shank, topped by an orb that represents the cricket world – both geographically and through the inclusion of the emblems of all 10 ICC Members that have played Test cricket. The stump and the orb combine to portray the mace, regarded as a symbol of authority and prestige. This is regarded as an appropriate combination given the rich history of Test cricket and its image as the most traditional and purest form of the game. It was valued at $36,894 (30,000 pounds) in 2001 and automatically passes from one team to another as results confirm a change of leadership in the ICC Test team rankings chart. The mace sits on a wooden base with a silver-plated plaque in front with room for engravings of the sides to hold it.