Former India player Suresh Raina gave credit to Pat Cummins’ captaincy and tactics for Australia’s win in the 2023 World Cup final. Raina added that Cummins and his boys outplayed India in the title clash with some stunning planning as well. Australia defeated India by six wickets in the 2023 World Cup final to lift the title for the sixth time. Cummins made a bold decision to field first after winning the toss and that proved right for them as the Aussies restricted the hosts, India to 240. Travis Head then hit a superb century as Australia reached the target in 43 overs.
In his column for ICC, Raina praised Cummins’ captaincy and his tactical brilliance. “What swung the game in Australia’s favour was Pat Cummins’ captaincy. The way he brought Glenn Maxwell in to the attack to get the wicket of Rohit Sharma with a brilliant catch from Travis Head was very smart. Adam Zampa was great too, as was Cummins himself in dismissing Virat Kohli. They outplayed India and were very solid in their planning.”
The veteran also applauded Australia for their fielding effort in the final, sharing that they saved at least 30-40 runs with their diving and stunning fielding as well.
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“Another big factor was Australia’s fielding, I think they saved 30 to 40 runs. From ball one, they were saving a lot of singles and boundaries. There was Travis’ catch and some excellent work in the deep from David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne,” Raina elaborated. “I think Cummins showed real temperament in his captaincy. He changed his bowlers knowing he could put pressure on each India batter even though they were all in such good form. His tactics made all the difference, and his planning and execution was perfect.”
However, Australia started the World Cup 2023 with defeats to India and South Africa. But, they beat South Africa in the semis before beating India in the final. Although the team failed to win this season, Raina believes that they can win it in 2027. The 2027 Men’s ODI World Cup will take place in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
“We will see the Indian team doing well again because they know how to reach the latter stages of tournaments now. It just takes a bit of time to understand how to manage those pressure situations, especially when you’re at home. Sometimes when there’s a lot of pressure you can lose your focus, and I think that’s a lesson they will learn from this,” Suresh Raina concluded.
