What Resulted In India's Loss To Australia In World Cup Final?

image-lp7xr6fgIndia lost to under-dogs Australia in WC Final (AP Photo)

The Men in Blue experienced an unpleasant hiccup at the start of their World Cup campaign when the now six-time champions reduced India to a shocking score of 2/3 during the pursuit of a meagre target of only 200. 

Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, and Shubman Gill were back in the hut in no time as Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Starc wreaked havoc with the new ball. Had Mitch Marsh collected the catch of Virat Kohli off the bowling of Hazlewood, the end outcome would have appeared a lot different on paper.

Nevertheless, India were able to capitalize on the missed opportunity as a century-plus stand between KL Rahul and Kohli saw the two-time champions comfortably sail to their target by 6 wickets and 52 balls to spare. Although India went on to win that game very effortlessly, the scars of the trip to Chennai stayed.

Ahead of the blockbuster final, the Indian Express uncovered that the Indian think tank was deeply concerned to see Australia give them a tough fight on a rank turner at Chepauk. Gradually they began contemplating that should the conditions be slightly in favour of the Aussies in the final, the consequences could be a lot dire.

The fear of a heartbreaking World Cup final defeat at the hands of the Aussies prompted the Men in Blue to opt for a sluggish track at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The pitch looked like any traditional sub-continent surface which lacked pace and had the tendency to aid the spinners.

But their decision to opt for a slow surface proved detrimental and we will find out why. Despite plundering 76 runs in the first powerplay, team India found the going to be extremely difficult during the middle phase of their innings as boundaries dried up. The Indian batters failed to settle into any sort of rhythm against the barrage of cutters, slower balls, off-pace bumpers, and hard-length balls.

The Virat Kohli-KL Rahul duo had to endure much tougher hardships under the sun compared to the Travis Head-Marnus Labuschagne duo who relished batting under lights once the dew settled in. The Australian team knew what to expect from the pitch and had done ample homework beforehand. On the other hand, the home side was completely off guard and was surprised to see how the pitch played out during the latter stages of the game.