In the 2023 World Cup final, Team India faced yet another heartbreaking defeat. The match took place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, November 19, where they lost to Australia by six wickets. Despite winning all nine matches in the league stage and defeating New Zealand in the first semi-final, the Men in Blue couldn’t overcome the Aussies when it mattered most. The disappointment of coming second best once more overshadowed India’s previous successes in the tournament.
After being sent into bat after losing the toss, Team India was restricted to 240 runs by Australia’s excellent bowling effort. Mitchell Starc took 3/55, while skipper Pat Cummins led from the start with 2/34. Josh Hazlewood also made an impression with 2/60 numbers.
India reduced Australia to 47/3 in the chase as David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, and Steven Smith all fell cheaply. Team India’s aspirations were dashed, however, when Travis Head (137 off 120) and Marnus Labuschagne (58* off 110) added 192 runs for the fourth wicket.
Despite the dismal final performance, the Indian cricket community praised the Men in Blue for their outstanding overall performance in the World Cup and asked them to keep their spirits up. Here are some comments to India’s World Cup loss in 2023.
Despite the loss on Sunday, India’s quest for an ICC title continues. They last won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013, led by MS Dhoni.
India Aimed for 270-280, Says Rohit Sharma After World Cup Loss
After India’s loss in the 2023 World Cup final, skipper Rohit Sharma stated that they did not score enough runs. Rohit claimed that they were aiming for a total of 280 points.
“I thought when KL and Virat were batting, we were looking at 270-280 at that point but we kept losing wickets.”
Rohit Sharma
Rohit praised Head and Labuschagne for their excellent combination, which effectively eliminated India from the final. He stated:
“Australia stitched a big partnership after losing three wickets. With 240 on the board, we wanted early wickets but credit to Travis Head and Marnus. They put us completely out of the game.
“I thought the wicket got better to bat under lights. I mean we knew it would be under lights, but I don’t want to give that as an excuse. But credit to those two guys (Head and Labuschagne) in the middle for stitching that big partnership for the Aussies.”
Rohit Sharma
India were 76/1 in the 10th over while batting first. However, once Rohit was dismissed for 47 off 31 balls, they lost their footing and were restricted to a below-par total.
