India haven’t won an ICC tournament for the last 10 years. After the Champions Trophy triumph in 2013, the team has lost as many as four ICC event finals and bowed out in the semi-finals on numerous occasions.
However, the World Cup 2023 final is a great opportunity for the Rohit Sharma-led Indian side to end the global title drought.
India are due to face five-time champions Australia in the summit clash in Ahmedabad on Sunday (November 19). The Men in Blue have been the most dominant side in this World Cup, winning all their nine games in the league stage to qualify for the semi-final, where they defeated New Zealand by 70 runs.
Ahead of the marquee fixture, former India pacer Zaheer Khan has said that skipper Rohit knows how to deal with big occasions.
“Rohit Sharma is someone who is a fantastic leader. In this World Cup he's been intense and relaxed at the same time. That is something which has rubbed off in the whole dressing room. Yet you see him very intense when he goes out to bat, showing that intent from the word go, batting at that strike rate, scoring hundreds. That's what you want from your leader,” said Zaheer while speaking to Cricbuzz.
Rohit has led the Indian team from the front in this World Cup. Opening the innings, he has batted with fearless approach, amassing 550 runs from 10 innings at an impressive average of 55 and a remarkable strike rate of 124.15, including one hundred and three fifties.
“He's someone who has been there and done that so many times. Rohit knows how to deal with big occasions. We've seen at different levels, when you have to win trophies, he knows exactly what it takes. So I think he's going to keep things very simple. I would say keep everything flowing the way it has been,” Zaheer added.
Talking about Australia, the five-time champions started their campaign with two successive defeats before registering eight wins on the trot to make it to the grand finale. In the semi-final, the Aussies edged past South Africa by three wickets in a low-scoring affair at the Eden Gardens.
