Team India entered the final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 on the back of 10 successive victories. The Men in Blue defeated all nine opponents comprehensively in the league stage before beating New Zealand in the first semi-final.
However, Rohit Sharma’s men were completely outclassed by Australia in the title clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on November 19.
Speaking on Star Sports, Pakistan pace legend Wasim Akram said having high expectations from the Indian team was natural but it was wrong from the fans, social media and television channels to declare them as World Cup winners even before the final.
"I can understand that as a nation it will be tough to get over it because your team played so well throughout the tournament. They won 10 matches on the trot, there was consistency. But television, social media, fans... you all already made India the winner of World Cup. You accept your mistake too, I'm sorry. You increased the hope of the people because they were playing so well. It's not entirely your fault. They were playing very good cricket. But it came to just one bad game. Credit goes to Australia," Akram stated.
On a slow pitch, Indian batters failed to get going and managed to post only 240/10 in 50 overs after being asked to bat first.
In reply, Australia rode on Travis Head’s stunning hundred (137 off 120) and Marnus Labuschagne’s unbeaten half-century (58 off 110) to overhaul the target with seven overs to spare.
Wasim praised the Aussies for executing their plans to perfection while bowling in the middle overs.
"In the middle overs from 11-40, there were very few boundaries because of the way they bowled. They didn't bowl a single pace-on delivery to Suryakumar Yadav. Fine-leg and third man were literally behind the keeper. So they had better plans," he said.
Akram also revealed that Pakistani fans haven’t forgotten the 1999 World Cup final loss against Australia as yet.
"First of all, the Indian team played really well. It feels like a shock (that they lost in the final), they are down but it's alright. I still get asked about the loss in the 1999 World Cup final. When will our fans forget this? The fans of India and Pakistan have an elephant's memory. It's been 30 years since we lost that final and they still ask me why I opted to bat after winning the toss. So, don't take social media seriously, half of it is just drama,” he remarked.
The former Pakistan captain asked the Indian fans to move on from this setback and cheer for their team in the T20 World Cup, slated to be held in USA and West Indies in June next year.
"As a nation, you have to move on, there's another World Cup coming in six months," Wasim said.
