The Indian team is still trying to win the ICC championship, and their 209-run defeat to Australia is just the latest in a string of poor showings on the international stage.
There are no signs that the puzzle surrounding India’s poor showing in ICC WTC Final competitions will ever be solved.
The men from the subcontinent lost in the championship match to Australia for the second time in two consecutive editions.
The New Zealand team had stopped India from winning the Test mace two years prior. The core of the narrative of India’s downfall sees the team repeating similar mistakes.
In the WTC final, Australia faced a 209-run victory over India
Mysterious Absence of R Ashwin.
Ravichandran Ashwin arguably studies his opponents better than any other man in the world.
In order to make stronger comebacks, the off-spinner has learned from each error he has made throughout his career.
Ashwin reportedly began getting ready for the World Test Championship final during the Indian Premier League.
The management of the Indian team had its justifications. But Ashwin’s absence against a team with five left-handers was beyond perplexing.
The omission of Ashwin from India’s starting XI was so shocking that even the legendary Sachin Tendulkar struggled to accept it.
“IPL Fatigue.”
The Indian Premier League is heavily criticized whenever India performs poorly in an ICC competition.
The fact that Indian players had to compete in the WTC final soon after the T20 league’s conclusion may have had an impact.
Despite the fact, there is no denying that the cricketing world is rapidly transforming into a franchise-based ecosystem.
Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and a number of other players who were committed to representing their franchises through the IPL 2023 season’s final months struggled to find their form against an Australian team that was more motivated.
The likes of Steve Smith, Travis Head, Scott Boland, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and a few others from Australia, in contrast, didn’t even play in the 16th IPL season.
In the future, Indian players would need to prioritize, as the WTC finals would likely take place in June, not too long after the IPL seasons ended.
Faulty top-order.
Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Rohit Sharma all punched below their weight in this game, scoring a combined total of 193 runs.
Only Ajinkya Rahane’s 89 and Shardul Thakur’s 51 in the first innings allowed India to reach a 296-run total that preserved its honour.
Even though they got off to strong starts in the second innings, players like Rohit, Pujara, Kohli, and Rahane were unable to turn them into significant scores.
The averages of Indian batters have dropped significantly in recent years. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly correctly noted after the game.
Get the latest cricket news here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.
