India’s ex batting coach Vikram Rathour speaks on India vs Australia ODI World Cup 2023 finals and disregards all pitch allegations. Rathour denied allegations of using a doctored pitch for the ODI World Cup 2023 final against Australia.
The pitch at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium faced scrutiny after India’s surprising loss in the final.In the 2023 World Cup, India entered the tournament undefeated, boasting a ten-match winning streak. Batting first, India was bowled out for 240 runs in 50 overs.
In response, Australia easily chased down the target in 43 overs, with Travis Head scoring an impressive 137 off 120 balls. Consequently, Australia won the match by six wickets, claiming the ODI World Cup title for a record sixth time.
“They played better cricket than us” Ex Batting coach Vikram Rathour says
After India’s unexpected exit, fans criticized captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid for selecting a slow pitch. Vikram Rathour addressed the pitch doctoring allegations, saying the team thought the pitch would get slower, but it actually improved for batting.
“I’ve heard this story that the pitch was different, which I don’t agree with at all. In the final, the pitch improved as the game progressed; we expected it to get slower, which it didn’t, so why did that happen? Yes, we could have scored more runs.” Vikram said.
“There are so many ifs and buts, but one thing is sure: you need a little luck to win a tournament. And that day, Australia were luckier than us. They played better cricket than us. And that’s the reason they won.” He added.
Vikram Rathour warns the management about transition
Vikram Rathour, who served as India’s batting coach through the T20 World Cup 2024, discussed the team’s upcoming transition phase. He emphasized the importance of the team management handling this transition “in a controlled manner.”
Rathour’s remarks highlight the need for a strategic approach during this period to ensure stability and success. His insights reflect a focus on maintaining consistency and control as the team navigates changes and prepares for future challenges.
“It is never going to be easy to replace people of Rohit and Virat’s calibre,” Rathour told PTI. “The recently-concluded [T20I] series against Zimbabwe gave us some glimpse into how the T20 team will look like in future. But we still have a few years in Test and ODI cricket to get to that point.”
The young team India, captained by Shubman Gill won India’s Tour of Zimbabwe 4-1. This showed the talent of the young players as well as highlighted their skills in international games.
“I won’t be too concerned about it [the transition],” Rathour said. “We have a lot of depth in Indian cricket. There are lots of very talented and skilful players who are coming through the system. The only thing we need to make sure is the transition is done in a controlled manner. It needs to be gradual.”
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