Australia won the Cricket World Cup for a record sixth time, ending India’s dominant run in its home tournament with a six-wicket victory in a low-scoring final thanks to Travis Head’s 137.
A strongly partisan crowd inside the 132,000-capacity Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, was silenced as player-of-the-match Head combined with Marnus Labuschagne (58 not out) in a 192-run partnership to chase down the target of 241.
“Never in a million years did I think that would happen,” Head said as his teammates celebrated their victory against an Indian team that had reached the final as the only undefeated team in the tournament.
“What a wonderful day. “I am delighted to be part of this.”
The Indians, led by captain Rohit Sharma, had won all 10 of their matches heading into the final and were seeking a third trophy in their fourth appearance in a title match that virtually paralyzed a country of 1.4 billion people.
India, despite its enormous wealth, has not won a world title since the 2013 Champions Trophy.
“Rohit Sharma was probably the unluckiest man in the world,” Head said.
Australia finished the 2023 tournament on a nine-match winning streak, after starting with back-to-back losses to India and South Africa. India won the World Cup in 1983 and 2011. Their last major success was winning the International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy in 2013.
