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Journalism of Courage
Today, the country comes to a standstill as India take on Australia in the final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. The final match, to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, is a culmination of the tournament that began on October 5, with 10 teams, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and Sri Lanka competing to be crowned champions.
Today’s momentous occasion was marked by Google in the form of a doodle. The doodle shows a cricket pitch with the World Cup trophy at its centre and sparks flying.
The Rohit Sharma-led Team India is aiming to win their third World Cup after previous triumphs in 1983 and 2011. Australia will be looking to win an unprecedented sixth World Cup after winning the tournament in 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2015.
The final is a repeat of the 2003 World Cup when Ricky Ponting’s Australia beat Sourav Ganguly-led India by 125 runs. Batting first, Australia scored 359/2 with Ricky Ponting scoring an unbeaten 140, Damien Martyn scoring 88 and Adam Gilchrist making 57. In reply, India were bundled out for 234 in 39.2 overs with Virender Sehwag making 82 and Rahul Dravid 47.
At this year’s tournament, India beat Australia by six wickets at the M A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on October 8.
Follow all the action from the Cricket World Cup 2023 on our special World Cup section. You can also find the latest stats, like the top scorer and the highest wicket-taker of the current edition, upcoming World Cup fixtures and the points table on the site.
Batting first, Australia were bowled out for 199 in 49.3 overs. In reply, India chased the target in 41.2 overs with six wickets remaining. Virat Kohli made 85 runs and K L Rahul scored 97 after an early collapse saw Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer getting out on a duck.
India finished as table toppers during the round-robin stage of the tournament with nine wins out of nine while Australia finished third behind India and South Africa with seven wins and two losses. India beat New Zealand by 70 runs in the semifinal while Australia beat South Africa by three wickets to set up an epic clash in the final.
