The Cricket World Cup, through its group-stage games, has been very entertaining and has had many surprises: The rise of Afghanistan, the failure of England, and Australia’s comeback. With that being said, there was one thing that remained constant and that was India ruling over their competition. 

India in this World Cup, moved through the group stage with a perfect 9 wins from 9 games as the number one seed. To say this India team is dominant would be an underestimate, it is arguably the strongest performance from a team ever seen in Cricket World Cup history, with India having the best bowling and batting in the tournament. Although many had India being the strongest team coming into the World Cup they still had a few glaring concerns and that raises the question of how exactly they are managing to pull off this team performance?

A lot of the team’s current success can be attributed to its captain and coach, Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid respectively. Rohit Sharma has been a brilliant leader for a while, winning a record six titles in the Indian Premier League (Domestic league), but this is his first real shot to captain the international team on this stage. Sharma’s team selection and aggressive mindset have transformed an aimless Indian team into one of the best ever seen in the sport. He also leads by example, destroying opposing teams’ bowlers from the start of the inning and reducing the pressure on everyone else. On the topic of batting, another Indian batsman currently has the most runs scored in this World Cup and that is Virat Kohli. Virat Kohli’s insane run this tournament has led him to break multiple records, including that of Sachin’s most runs in a single tournament. 

The other side of the game, bowling, also has record breakers in the form of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. Bumrah has always been an excellent bowler, disregarding the injuries he sustained before the competition and performing up to standards. Mohammed Shami, on the other hand, I do not have words to describe the level he is at right now. Shami, as an injury replacement, has made an absolute mockery of other teams. Through six games, he has 23 wickets(outs) which is absolutely unheard of in this sport and he now leads the World Cup in that category. In India’s semi-final game against New Zealand, he single-handedly changed the course of the game twice, taking an earth-shattering 7 wickets in one game. 

With that all being said, can Sharma and co. lead India to a World Cup victory at home? Can team India finally bring the trophy home? Can Rohit and Kohli go into the sunset with a World Cup title under their names? Can this team continue their effortless dominance? The answer to these questions will come shortly as the World Cup final is played on Sunday, where me and around a billion other India fans will sit attentively, watch, and pray.

Sources:

Ganguly, Sudipto. “India Win Toss, Bat First against New Zealand in Semi-Final.” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 15 Nov. 2023, www.reuters.com/sports/cricket/india-win-toss-bat-first-against-new-zealand-semi-final-2023-11-15/.