“Even if they got all out for 150, I would have been fine” - Gautam Gambhir reckons India were not brave enough in 2023 World Cup final
Former India opener Gautam Gambhir has opined that the Men in Blue were not brave enough in the 2023 World Cup final against Australia and hence faltered on the big day once again. Questioning India’s batting approach in the summit clash, Gambhir stated that they did not do anything to put Australian bowlers under pressure.
Australia beat India by six wickets in the 2023 World Cup final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, November 19. Sent into bat by the Aussies on a tacky surface, the Men in Blue were held to 240. A blazing hundred by Travis Head lifted Australia to their sixth ODI World Cup title.
In an interaction with Sportskeeda, Gambhir was asked for his views on Team India’s batting approach in the final. He commented:
“I have always maintained this - the most courageous team will go on to win the World Cup. I can understand that for some time you want to build a partnership. But 11-40 overs is a very long period of time. India should have accelerated and taken a risk at that stage.
The former opener added that he would have been okay with India getting bowled out cheaply in their endeavor to score at a better pace.
“I actually would have liked India going really aggressive with the top six, seven batters. Even if they got all out for 150, I would have been fine. But you scored 240 and thought you can fight. In World Cup finals, you don’t fight - it has to be either this way or that way.
"That is the approach I would have taken. Either we go 150 all out or 300. That is what India has lacked and this is why India has not gone on to win ICC tournaments,” Gambhir said.
Rohit Sharma (47 off 31) got India off to a blazing start again, but the hosts lost momentum after the dismissal of their skipper. KL Rahul scored 66 off 107 balls, hitting one four.
“If Virat was in, KL should have gone” - Gambhir
Elaborating further on India’s batting effort in the World Cup final, Gambhir stated that Rahul should have gone after the bowling since Kohli was playing the designated anchor role. He also expressed disappointment at India not showing an aggressive intent towards rotating the strike in the middle overs.
“Probably Rohit should have sent that message before the start of the game that even if I get out, we are going aggressive. Virat’s role is to anchor the innings from one end, but rest all the other batters go hard. If you are able to take five singles in an over, that is also called positive cricket. But, if you are playing 4-5 dot balls in an over, the game is going nowhere,” the former opener said.
“If Virat was in, KL should have gone. He should have said that, I am going to take those risks. We might have got out for 150, but imagine if we were brave and had scored 310, you could have won the World Cup. India were not brave enough, courageous enough and that’s where we lost the finals,” Gambhir concluded.
India’s lower order struggled against Australia in the final as the hosts went from 203/5 to 240 all out.