It’s been a 10-year-long wait for an ICC silverware, 12 for a 50-over World Cup… and the wait continues as Australia braved a partisan crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium to make light work of India when it mattered the most and walk away with the 2023 World Cup champions title ~ their sixth in the 50- over format.
For those cricket fans in their mid-30s, who were in their teenage years and cried themselves to sleep the night of 23 March 2003, Travis Head rubbed salt to India’s wounds with a match winning century to take the Kangaroos home by six wickets, bringing back memories of Ricky Ponting’s feat in Johannesburg two decades back. India’s performance on Sunday was only a pale shadow of their dominant self throughout the sporting extravaganza, that started with a six-wicket win against the same opponents in Chennai and went on to win 10 games on the bounce before falling short on the big stage.
On the eve of the encounter, Australia skipper Pat Cummins had famously said: “(There’s) nothing more satisfying than hearing a big crowd go silent.”
He walked the talk on D-Day by restricting India for a sub-par 240 to seize the momentum right after the first powerplay! In the second innings, India managed to reduce Australia to 47 for 3, but the joy was shortlived as Travis Head anchored the chase with a calculated century. India’s initial change in tactic worked well as Mohammed Shami, used as a first change till Sunday’s final, was employed to operate with the new ball, and he delivered with the key wicket of David Warner before Jasprit Bumrah pegged back the Kangaroos with the wickets of Mitchell Marsh and Steve Smith to loud chants of the crowd.
Finding Australia in a spot, Kohli started goading the crowd to pile up the pressure but Head held his nerves to bring up his half century off 58 deliveries, and found the perfect second fiddle in Marnus Labuschagne to steer the team out of a precarious position.
A couple of boundaries off left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav got Head to 97 before he crossed over for a double to reach 99 and one ball later sprinted for another single to complete his fifth ODI century – one he may never top! Immediately after, Head mounted the pressure on the Indians, launching Ravindra Jadeja for a flat six even as Labuschagne satisfied himself labouring between the 22 yards to bring up a sedate unbeaten 58 off 110 balls, as the fourth wicket partnership of 192 runs eventually took the Aussies to the finish line.
With two needed for Australia’s win, Mohammed Siraj ended Head’s 137-run match winning knock that came off 120 deliveries, laced with 15 fours and four sixes. Glenn Maxwell hit the winning runs with a double off the next ball as the Australian players rushed into the middle to celebrate their World Cup win. Earlier, pin-drop silence followed the first 10 overs of India’s innings…
The reason, Rohit Sharma departed after unleashing carnage, and the home team slumped to 81 for 3. A similar lull prevailed 18 overs later, when Virat Kohli just stood there while the Australians swarmed after Cummins silenced the intimidating crowd with the fourth Indian wicket for a score of 148.
Electing to field on a sluggish track, Australia weathered the early storm by dismissing Rohit, who got the crowd on its feet with a 31-ball 47, and immediately removed Shreyas Iyer for single digits to put more pressure on the home side, already reeling from the loss of Shubman Gill as early as the fifth over.
Maxwell, who had been hit for a six and a four off the previous two balls, induced Rohit to miscue the fourth ball of his over into the off side for Head to latch on by running back from cover for a photofinish moment. The stark silence continued for the next few minutes, because in the next over as Iyer (4) nicked one behind off Cummins to take the long walk back.
The quick dismissals of Rohit and Shreyas forced the new pair of Kohli and KL Rahul to curb their natural instincts and steady the ship