India’s devastating defeat to Australia in the 2023 ODI World Cup final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad has left the entire country in shock. The Men in Blue had won their previous ten games going into the summit match. On the crucial day, though, they were unable to match the tactical skill of Australian skipper Pat Cummins, whose every move paid off for his team.
Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar recently analysed his country’s ongoing failings in crucial games and said that if they want to win the trophy, they must own up to the mistakes they made in the final or else their growth will be more sluggish.
The 1983 World Cup victor also recommended that the selection committee make significant decisions in order to compel change.
“In order to advance and take home a trophy, India will need to own up to some of the mistakes they committed in the championship game. While demonstrating unity is important, advancement will lag if faults are not acknowledged. Individuals and the selection committee will need to make some important judgments during the next weeks. In his editorial for The Mid-Day, Gavaskar stated, “Considering the exposure its players and youngsters get playing in the IPL, India’s failure to win the T20 World Cup after 2007 is a huge disappointment.”
India has been struggling in the knockout stages since 2014.
Remarkably, the last time India won a big trophy was when MS Dhoni guided a youthful team to the Champions Trophy victory in 2013. With the exception of the T20 World Cup 2021, the Asian powerhouses have advanced to the semifinals of every ICC competition since that time, however they have failed to win an ICC trophy.
Six months remain until the T20 World Cup 2024, and the BCCI will probably have to make some difficult decisions on the future of a few players in the team. They will also probably want to provide the younger players with some much-needed experience playing international cricket before the tournament. The fact that ace hitters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been rested from the tour’s white-ball leg is symptomatic of the same, as seen by the latest announcement of the South Africa squad.
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