# Akhil Sivanand 12 November 2023, 10:02 PM IST Photo: AP
A.DIt is every team’s dream to win the Cut World Cup. In the 48-year history of the World Cup, only five teams have won the World Cup. In itself, winning the world title without losing a single match is a dream-like achievement. There are only three teams who have won the Cricket World Cup without losing a match, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Australia. While West Indies won every match in the first World Cup in 1975, they retained the title in the second World Cup in 1979 without losing a single match. Sri Lanka won the 1996 World Cup without losing a single match. Australia won the world title in 2003 and 2007 with complete success.
West Indies had no opponents in the first World Cup held in England. They won all five matches they played in the tournament and won the title. The West Indies continued their dominance in the second World Cup held in England in 1979, but did not win a match that day. Because the match against Sri Lanka was abandoned due to rain without a single ball being bowled.
They won the title by defeating Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Pakistan and Australia twice. In 1996, Sri Lanka won their sixth World Cup undefeated but won two matches without playing. After West Indies and Australia refused to play due to security reasons, Sri Lanka was declared the winner. In the tournament held in South Africa in 2003, Australia won all 11 matches including the final. Australia repeated this feat in 2007. They also won 11 matches in that World Cup held in the Caribbean Islands.
India has walked towards this achievement today. Although India has won the World Cup twice in the history of cricket, India has yet to achieve that feat as an undefeated team. Fans are dreaming that India will get that achievement when the group stage ends in the World Cup, which is being held on home soil. Having won nine out of nine matches in the group stage, India have defeated all the participating teams in the tournament. India is the only unbeaten team in this World Cup. Only semi-final and final matches are left for India. What awaits India beyond two matches is an outright title win. The fans are dreaming that Rohit Sharma and his team, who are in brilliant form in the tournament, can win the semi-finals and finals.
India’s Unforgettable Rush
India’s progress in the World Cup so far has to be described as incredible. Victory in nine out of nine matches in the preliminary phase. The first team to secure a semi-final. The journey so far in this World Cup has been auspicious for India. India’s start in the World Cup was a thrashing in front of the Australian pacers. Batting against the target of 199 set by Australia, India lost three wickets early on. Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were out for zero and the team score was just two runs. With Virat Kohli and KL Rahul coming to the rescue, the Indian innings recovered. The alliance scored 165 runs off 215 balls. While Kohli was dismissed on 85 runs, Rahul remained unbeaten on 97 runs. With six wickets to spare in 41.2 overs, India got their first win in the World Cup. India won the second match against Afghanistan by eight wickets in which Rohit Sharma scored a century. The target of 273 runs raised by Afghanistan was not a challenge for India at any point.
India’s victory against Pakistan was authentic in the third match where batsmen and bowlers alike shone. While Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja were good at each other, Pakistan could not raise the run rate at any point. All out for 191 in 42.5 overs. Although Kohli did not shine in reply, captain Rohit and Shreyas Iyer brought the score to 156 in 21.3 overs. Despite the loss of Rohit’s wicket, Shreyas led India to victory with seven wickets remaining along with KL Rahul. Kohli led from the front with a century and India won by seven wickets in the next match as well. India surpassed Bangladesh’s target of 257 runs in 41.3 overs. Vice-captain and all-rounder Hardik Pandya got injured during the match. It was also in this match that Kohli returned to bowl after six years when Pandya was injured.
India beat New Zealand by four wickets in a match where Mohammad Shami took five wickets and Virat Kohli filled the field with a half-century. India bowled out New Zealand for 273 runs and reached the target with the loss of six wickets in 48 overs. This was the first match in this World Cup where the batting line-up was tested. The star of the game was Shami who took five wickets in the very first match he got a chance to play in this World Cup. In the sixth match, the opponents were the defending champions. India won by 100 runs in the match where Rohit Sharma fought from the front with a century. India managed to score only 229 runs for nine wickets in the allotted 50 overs, but India grabbed the victory on the strength of the bowlers. Batting in reply in the belief that they could easily overcome the small target, England were bowled out for 129 in 34.5 overs. Shami shone with four wickets.
India scored the biggest victory in the history of ODI cricket against Sri Lanka in a game in which they dominated both batting and bowling. Team India scored 357 for eight in 50 overs and bundled out Sri Lanka for 55 in 19.4 overs. Although Rohit was lost early on, Gill and Kohli kept the score going. Another highlight of the match was Shreyas’ rise to form at number four while Gill was out on 92 and Kohli on 88. India secured the semi-final with a 302 run victory in the match played by Mohammed Shami with five wickets. In the preliminary round of the World Cup, India secured first place in the match against South Africa. India won by 243 runs in the game played by Virat Kohli with his 49th ODI century and Ravindra Jadeja with five wickets. Chasing India’s 327, South Africa were bowled out for 83 runs. In addition to Kohli, Shreyas and Rohit shone, Shami and Kuldeep Yadav supported Ravindra Jadeja with two wickets. Finally, in the last group match, after scoring a huge score first, India bowled out the Netherlands and won by 160 runs.
Power Rohit, King Kohli
Captain Rohit Sharma leads from the front and Virat Kohli forms the backbone of the team as India progress unbeaten after winning all the matches in the preliminary round. Rohit Sharma’s fast start at the opening wicket has often become the foundation of the Indian innings. Rohit is expected to play in every match except Australia and Sri Lanka. It was also seen in the match against South Africa in Kolkata. Rohit’s batting was careful on the slow pitch. It was 40 runs off 24 balls. The batting foundation was laid for Virat and Shreyas who came later. Rohit scored 503 runs in nine innings, although he managed to score a century only against Afghanistan in this World Cup. Ishan Kishan, who appeared in the first two matches, and Shubman Gill, who followed, provided support. Ishan Kishan, who disappointed in the first match, gave excellent support to Rohit with 47 runs in the second match against Afghanistan. Gilawatte also shone in the matches against Bangladesh and England.
Kohli started the run chase in this World Cup by holding India’s hand which started with a collapse against Australia in the first match. Credit to Kohli and KL for winning by three wickets for just two runs in Chepok. Rahul too. Kohli, who has two centuries and four half-centuries, has been out three times after crossing 80 in this World Cup alone. Earlier, Kohli pitched his tent only against Pakistan and England. Kohli carried the team throughout the match in which captain Rohit faded away. Kohli is currently the top scorer in the tournament. The player scored 594 runs from nine matches. On the other hand, in matches where Kohli returned quickly, Rohit played the field. And Shreyas Iyer and K.L. With the middle order, including Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, rising to the occasion, victory stayed with India in each match. Like Rohit and Kohli, Rahul if Shreyas doesn’t play and Shreyas comes into form if Rahul fades has made things easier for India. It is also unique that Team India’s tail end has never been tested.
Bumrah, Siraj and Shami trio
When entering the World Cup, India was afraid of a batting collapse. With this, Shardul Thakur was included in the team as an all-rounder. But after four matches, when Hard Pandya went out with an injury, the Indian team gained real strength. With Pandya out, the management was forced to change the team structure. With the addition of Mohammad Shami to the bowling line, India’s bowling attack became deadly. In his first match of this World Cup against New Zealand, Shami welcomed by taking five wickets. Shami, who took four wickets for England, repeated his five-wicket performance against Sri Lanka. The pace trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj and Mohammad Shami is deadly. And with the spin attack of Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja, the Indian bowling line-up becomes a nightmare for the batsmen.
In the first five matches, India were chasing smaller opponents by letting them bat and restricting them to small scores. Australia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh and New Zealand scored 199, 272, 191, 256 and 273 against India. India’s score when batting first was 229 against England, 357 against Sri Lanka and 326 against South Africa. England were all out for 129, Sri Lanka for 55 and South Africa for 83. No match of India has completed 100 overs. The team was not all out in any match. Only three teams have crossed 200 against India. Only Afghanistan, Bangladesh and New Zealand have batted 50 overs against India. Afghanistan and Bangladesh were the only ones not to get all out against India. Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, England, Sri Lanka, South Africa and Netherlands were all out against India. In nine games, India lost 86 wickets. Another feature of this world cup is not bad performance in fielding along with bowling.
The goal is the crown with complete victory
India are the only unbeaten team in the group stage. The remaining eight teams have tasted defeat. Sri Lanka and South Africa lost miserably to India. South Africa’s defeat was shocking. The team scored over 300 in five out of eight matches and were bowled out for 83 against India. New Zealand is the opponent of India in the semi-finals, which has defeated the opponents one by one. What awaits India beyond two matches is an outright title win. Fans will want nothing less than such an achievement in their home country. The fans are dreaming that Rohit Sharma and his team, who are in brilliant form in the tournament, can win the semi-finals and the finals and get that achievement. Fans believe that Rohit and his team will lift the trophy on November 19 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. They are waiting for it.
2023-11-12 16:32:26
#wins #world #title #India #continue #unbeaten #streak
