The highly anticipated final of the ICC Men's Cricket World
Cup on 19 November 2023 was played by Australia and India
at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. It was a
significant event when India got the opportunity to host the
World Cup. India reached the final by winning all 10 matches
in a row, raising hopes of a third title, while Australia won 8
matches out of 10. This was the second time that India and
Australia played each other in a World Cup final, the first in
2003.
As an ardent cricket fan, I was incredibly excited for this
match. I woke up early that day to do all my scheduled
homework and preparations so that I could watch the entire
match. My siblings and I decorated the living room to create a
lively atmosphere. We were all dressed in blue Indian
leotards with Indian flags painted on our cheeks. Watching
the match on TV was so moving that I felt like I was in the
cheering crowd. The stadium was full of Indian supporters
which reflects the enormous enthusiasm for cricket in India.
The toss was at 1:30 PM, Australia won and elected to bowl
first. The game started at 14:00.
India started their innings quickly with captain Rohit Sharma
hitting 47 off 31 balls, but then lost Shubman Gill, Rohit and
Shreyas Iyer in quick succession to find themselves at 81/3.
Virat Kohli and K.L. Rahul added 67 from the fourth over
before Kohli was on 54. India continued to add runs slowly
but Rahul was dismissed for 66 to leave India on 203/6 and
the rest of the batsmen unable to score quickly, the innings
ended for Kuldeep. Yadav was dismissed off the last ball of
the 50th over for 240.
Australia started their innings badly, losing three batsmen for
47 runs in the first seven overs. However, Travis Head and
Marnus Labuschagne put on 192 runs in 36 overs. Australia
fell two runs short of victory when Mohammed Siraj
dismissed Head on 137. Glenn Maxwell was the next batsman
and took two wickets off the next ball to give Australia a 6
wicket win.
It was really frustrating to see the Australians lift the WC.
Their clinical and consistently dominant performance was a
slap in the face to the passionate performance of the world
game's greatest winners. Every member of the Australian XI
played their part in dominating the match, despite the high
expectations of the crowd and the presence of the Prime
Minister in the stands. As the campaign slogan went, "It Takes
a Day", the day belonged to Australia and they proved their
ability to perform in the circumstances that mattered.
