From Rohit-Gil’s poor display to Ashwin’s dismissal, ‘these’ are India’s mistakes in the WTC Final

India had to settle for the runner-up position in the World Test Championship for the second time in a row. India were beaten by Australia by 209 runs in the final match of WTC 2021-23 on Sunday (June 11). In this match which started on Wednesday (June 7), India tried to win. But the mistakes made by the team cost them dearly. In this article we will try to understand the 7 main reasons behind the defeat of the Indian team in the final of the WC.

The Indian team this time played in the WTC final for the second time in a row and lost. Last time India had to accept defeat by New Zealand and this time by Australia. In the match played at The Oval Stadium in England, the Australian team was in a stronger position than India from the very first day.

Seven Major Reasons for India’s Defeat
1. Rohit Sharma –
If anyone has the biggest share in the defeat of the Indian team, it has to be the captain Rohit Sharma himself. Rohit won the toss and batted first in this match. Cricket experts say that batting in the fourth innings in Tests is a big challenge, but still Rohit took this bold decision and the team paid for it. Also, Rohit did not include spinner Ravichandran Ashwin () in the playing eleven. Ashwin, who is known as the best Test bowler in the world, was excluded from the team due to the pitch, which cost India dearly. Because even the fast bowlers in the team were not seen doing anything special. On the other hand, Australian spinner Nathan Lyon took a total of five wickets in this match.

It is the captain’s responsibility to get the best out of the bowling attack. However, it was seen that Rohit failed in this matter. Even at crucial moments like the WTC final, the Indian bowlers could not restrict the opposition’s runs. Somewhere in this, Rohit also fell short. In the first innings, Travis Head and Steve Smith, while in the second innings, Alex Carey and Mitchell Starc could make important contributions for Australia.

2. Cheteshwar Pujara –
Cheteshwar Pujara (), who is not playing in the Indian Premier League 2023, has been in tremendous form in county cricket. In the 2022 county season he made 1094 in eight matches. While playing as captain this year, he scored three centuries in four innings in the county. After a brilliant performance in county cricket, Pujara was included in the squad for the WTC finals. However, he disappointed the fans in this important match. Pujara, who will be batting at number three for the team, was dismissed for 14 runs in the first innings and 27 runs in the second innings of the match. It was also seen to have a slight effect on the overall performance of the team.

3. Shubman Gill –
Shubman Gill was the highest run-scorer in the recently concluded IPL 2023. Gill has recently established himself as the future of the Indian team. In such an important occasion like the final match of WTC, everyone expected a big knock from him. However, he lost his wicket by scoring 13 runs in the first innings and 18 runs in the second innings. Although his three centuries during the IPL season have fueled the fans’ disdain for him, his performance in the WTC finals was quite disappointing.

4. KS Bharat –
KS Bharath was included in the squad for the WTC final as India’s regular wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant was injured. However, Bharat has not been seen performing well for the occasion. In this important match against Australia, he lost his wicket for 5 and 23 runs respectively. He has scored 129 runs at an average of 18.43 in eight innings from five Tests played so far. Interestingly, there is no half century in this. In this way, it seems that he has completely failed to fill the gap of Pant in the team.

5. India’s bowling attack –
The bowlers of the Indian team got off to a good start in the WTC final. Australia had lost three important wickets in the first two and a half hours. However, after that, the line and length of the bowlers deteriorated. Mohammad Siraj, Mohammad Shami and Umesh Yadav have vast experience in Test cricket. But still they seemed to fail against the Australian batsmen. The bowlers seemed to have no strategy after the first three wickets. Travis Head and Steve Smith scored individual centuries to literally make the Indian bowlers sweat. Australia’s lead in the first innings was maintained till the end and India had to accept defeat.

6. Wrong Shot Selection –
On the one hand, their batsmen were brilliant for the Australian team in the WTC final. On the other hand, there was no name on which ball the Indian batsmen would lose their wicket. Captain Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane also lost their wickets after playing the wrong shot. Pujara was seen hitting quite an upper cut in the match, which lost his wicket. Rohit got out while sweeping Nathan Lionel. Virat Kohli has often lost wickets while hitting cover drives, a mistake he made in this match as well. Ajinkya Rahane, who is known for his accurate shot selection, was also seen making mistakes in this match.

7. The recently concluded IPL –
Only two players from the Australian team that won the WTC 2021-23 were seen playing in the IPL. These two players were David Warner and Cameron Green. On the other hand, except for Cheteshwar Pujara, the entire Indian team was represented in the IPL. Due to the IPL, the team reached England late and the players did not get much time to practice here. In T20 cricket, players have to show aggressive play. On the other hand, in Tests, one has to play with moderation. It was difficult for the Indian players to prepare themselves from T20 to Test in such a short period of time. The performance of the team was also seen to be affected by this. (Seven Mistakes India Made in WTC Finals 2023)

Important News –
Top 5 Indian batsmen in WTC Finals, Rahane, who makes a comeback after 18 months, heavy on the veterans
Money rains on Australia as soon as it wins WTC Final, India gets a reward of ‘so many’ crores despite losing