The Indian team was so dominant through the tournament that there was widespread belief that it would emulate Ricky Ponting’s sides of 2003 and 2007 by winning all its 11 matches and clinch the title. To the dismay of one hundred thousand fans at the Narendra Modi Stadium, and a billion through the country, the Cup slipped. It was yet another example of the fact that there are no guarantees in life, and in sport, that on any given day a hot favourite can be trounced.
What naturally emerges from this is that anything can be achieved if there is self-belief, backed by hard work, no matter what the odds, as the Australian side proved on the day. It’s about never giving up, giving ones’s best, and the seemingly improbable can happen.
Let’s look at the facts. India breezed through their nine league matches and the semi-final. They won the first five matches batting second, the closest being the four-wicket victory over New Zealand with 12 deliveries remaining. In their opening fixture, India defeated Australia by six wickets.
They won the next five batting first, the closest being by 70 runs in the high-scoring semi-final, again versus the Kiwis. None of the other four triumphs was by less than 100 runs. India annihilated Sri Lanka by 302 runs, the second-highest margin in the World Cup after Australia’s drubbing of Netherlands by 309 runs a few days earlier. Eventual semi-finalists South Africa were hammered by 243 runs.
The Indian bowlers dismissed the opposition under 100 in two consecutive matches, Sri Lanka for 55 in 19.4 overs, and South Africa for 83 in 27.1 overs. It was an awesome display by a top-class allround team at the zenith of their form, with all bases covered. They had a great blend of experience and youth. They had quality at the top of the order, and the middle, and they had depth. They had pacemen of the highest pedigree, and a variety of spinners among the best in the world. And they were playing like champions.
Australia had lost their first two matches to India and South Africa. They managed to beat New Zealand by just 5 runs. Then came that extraordinary match against Afghanistan in which Glenn Maxwell played an astounding innings. Australia were on the ropes, reeling. Debilitated by cramps, Maxwell just stood and swung, barely moving his feet, while skipper Pat Cummins hung on at the other end. The inexperienced Afghans were shell-shocked. They did not know how to stop Maxwell. It was like lobbing tennis balls, and Maxwell swinging away like a golfer (and yes, he did fall off a golf cart during the tournament!). In such a desperate situation, a batsman can hit a couple of fours and sixes, but not a double-century. It was just meant to be. As Mohinder Amarnath observed, “They kept bowling in his hitting arc.” In the semi-final, chasing a modest South African total of 212, Australia were lurching at 193 for seven in the 40th over. Again, the resolute Cummins with fellow paceman Mitchell Starc for company, eked out a win.
Then came the final. It was obvious. India were the favourites by a long way. The wickets had been largely dry for India’s matches. So was this one, but it looked a bit odd; it was patchy. It seemed two-paced to begin with. The ball appeared to hurry on to Shubman Gill as he played his distinctive straight pull, and it kept low to Shreyas Iyer, though he might have been better off playing forward. Two young guns gone cheaply.
Meanwhile, captain Rohit Sharma gave his usual rousing start. But the Australians were like tigers on the field. They strived to their utmost to prevent the ball from piercing the in-field. As long as Rohit was on the charge, things looked good for India. Then the man of the moment Travis Head pulled off a stunning overhead catch, sprinting backwards, and Rohit had to depart. As the balls lost their hardness, and the wicket slowed under the baking sun, Virat Kohli and K.L. Rahul found it extremely difficult to go past the square. The boundaries dried up.
The wicket got so slow that when the usually belligerent Suryakumar Yadav tried to play his patent shovel shot, he was through his stroke before the ball arrived. To their credit, the Indian batsmen played out the 50 overs. Perhaps, if they had tried to hit out, they might have been bowled out for 170 or 180. A total of 240 was not bad on this track. India had easily defended 229 for nine against reigning champions England.
The new balls darted around as usual under lights. India got three quick breakthroughs. There were fond hopes that the brilliant Indian attack would bundle out the Aussies. Came the dew, not too much, but enough. The ball came on better to the bat, and it did not turn. Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav were accurate, and economical, but could not dismiss the determined Australians. All this while, Travis Head took charge, and took the game away from India. Makeshift wicketkeeper K.L. Rahul, who was brilliant through the tournament, was shoddy this time. Leading wicket-taker Mohammed Shami, who had been on target all through, strayed a bit outside leg at the start. Perhaps the Indians were edgy.
Be that as it may, the Australians won yet another World Cup, six out of thirteen. They deserved their victory every bit, so superb were they in the final. The crestfallen Indians were nonplussed. They had done their best through the tournament, but had fallen short of their high standards in the final. It was also quite obvious that they had been caught on the wrong side of the conditions – the wicket and the weather.
Among the top 10 run-getters of the tournament, there were four Indians, and two each from South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, the other semi-finalists. Virat Kohli was not only the highest run-getter in this tournament, but in any World Cup. He also had the highest average. The second-highest run-getter was Rohit Sharma.
Among the 19 bowlers who took 14 wickets and above, there were five Indians, four Australians, three South Africans, two each from New Zealand and Pakistan, and one each from Sri Lanka, England and the Netherlands. Mohammed Shami was highest wicket-taker, and in just seven matches. He also had the best average among the regular bowlers. Jasprit Bumrah was joint fourth-highest wicket-taker along with the young Gerald Coetzee. Even as regards individual performances, the Indians were streets ahead. Surely they should have won the World Cup. It slipped. It was not meant to be.
Indra Vikram Singh's space 