India's journey in the ICC World Cup 2023 came to a disappointing end with a loss against Australia in the finals. Despite delivering a stellar performance throughout the tournament, Rohit Sharma's Indian team faced a defeat that left millions of fans disheartened. In an unprecedented move, the BCCI directly approached the Indian captain and coach, seeking explanations for the team's unexpected loss. The revelation made by coach Rahul Dravid during this meeting has sparked a wave of surprise and intrigue.
BCCI officials, Secretary Jay Shah, Vice President Rajeev Shukla, and Treasurer Ashish Shelar, held a private meeting with Coach Dravid and Captain Rohit Sharma. According to Dainik Jagran, Dravid was interrogated regarding the factors contributing to India's loss in the final match on November 19. Surprisingly, the coach attributed the defeat to the unfavorable pitch conditions at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Dravid indicated that the pitch did not offer the anticipated amount of turn, which adversely affected India's batting performance. Rohit Sharma echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that the pitch conditions were not conducive to achieving the high scores the team had expected.
It is important to note that the final match was played on the same pitch used in the league match against Pakistan. Although India had easily won the league match while chasing, batting first in the finals presented challenges that resulted in their inability to post a significant score.
Australia surprised India by choosing to field first after winning the toss, as they anticipated that the pitch would become more favorable under the lights. Their prediction turned out to be accurate. The Indian batsmen faced difficulties in finding their rhythm during the initial innings, resulting in a modest total of 240 runs. In response, Australia, despite losing three early wickets, triumphed thanks to an outstanding century by Travis Head, who carried them to victory.
READ| WPL 2024 Retentions: Full list of players retained, released, and available franchise purses
