Follow UsWhile not being overly hyped as a rivalry, India and Australia have had several epic battles over the last decade and a half for ICC (International Cricket Council) titles. They fiercely battled it out in the semi-final way back in 2015 at the ODI World Cup; they have since then faced each other in the World Test Championship (WTC) final earlier this year.
Barring the two instances - the 2007 T20 World Cup semi-final and the 2011 ODI World Cup quarter-final - India have been on the wrong side of things against the dominant Australian sides. But Ahmedabad now poses a bigger challenge for Pat Cummins and the Australian team, who are searching for a sixth ODI World Cup title.
“Yeah, I mean, neither player from both sides were there in 2003, so it feels a long time ago. But we know it’s going to be a packed house. There's going to be 130,000 fans here supporting India. So, it's going to be awesome,” Australian skipper Pat Cummins was ready for the challenge in the pre-match press conference.
“They've been playing really well, undefeated this tournament. But we know at our best we can give them a good shake. We've played them quite a lot over the last couple years with success so it's all building up for a nice final,” he added.
One question that has made the round multiple times for Cummins and the Australian team is how they are planning to tackle the one-sided support against them. A cool and composed Cummins insisted that Australia have no choice but to ‘embrace’ the challenge and stated that a good performance could make the crowd go silent.
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“I think you've got to embrace it. The crowd's obviously going to be very one-sided but it's also in sport there's nothing more satisfying than hearing a big crowd go silent and that's the aim for us tomorrow,” Cummins on dealing with the crowd.
“Yeah, you've just got to embrace every part of it, every part of a final even you know in the lead-up there's going to be noise and more people and interest and you just can't get overwhelmed. You got to be up for it, you got to love it and just know whatever happens it's fine but you just want to finish the day with no regrets,” he added.
Starc's return to form, a blessing in disguise
Luckily for Australia, things are falling into place at the opportune moment, with Mitchell Starc’s return to form. After the opener against India, Starc has looked out of form for most of the ODI World Cup before his showing in the clash against South Africa, where he bowled seven overs on the trot with the new ball and picked up two crucial wickets, setting up the game for the Kangaroos.
“I mean I wouldn't be surprised the way he (Starc) bowled a couple of nights ago up in Kolkata was fantastic - bowled seven straight a couple of key wickets could have easily had a couple of more. Opening partnership between him and Josh Hazelwood's going to be a big one for us,” Cummins was in praise of the bowling partnership at the top for Australia.
“Yeah, we saw what impact they can have in a game when they bowl like they did the other night. So, they're both big game players, played in a few ICC finals now, so know what it takes,” he added.
But even then, Australia’s road to the final isn’t as clinical as their opposition. Not only have Australia lost two clashes in the group stages, but they have looked quite shaky multiple times during their wins as well, which puts India in firm favourites for the finale. Cummins insisted that it is the perfect opportunity for the Men in Yellow to put on a ‘complete’ display against India in the final.
“Yeah, I think with experience, and fortunately some of that experience is playing in World Cups where we've been dominant. We've won before. I think one of the pleasing things is I still don't feel like we've played the complete game. Maybe against Netherlands, but outside of that, we probably haven't. There have been no huge wins,” Cummins said.
“We've had to fight for every win, but we've found a way to win. And different players have stood up at different times. So, I think taking that confidence, knowing that we don't have to be at our absolute best to challenge any team we can find a way through it. Yeah, I'm sure we'll draw a lot of confidence, all the boys draw a lot of confidence from that going into tomorrow,” he added.
"Pitch remains the same for both teams"
Unfortunately, in this tournament, a lot of talks have been over the pitches, which became the centre of attraction during India’s semi-final win over New Zealand in Mumbai. But Cummins was unfazed about those talks, stating that the ‘pitch’ remains the same for both teams.
“Yeah, I mean, it's hard to say. It's obviously the same for both teams. No doubt playing on your own wicket in your own country has some advantages, similar to wickets that you've been playing your whole life. But we've played a lot of cricket over here,” Cummins played down suggestions of pitch favouring India.
“So, yeah, we'll wait and see. I think, of all the venues, perhaps this venue - the toss isn't as important as, say, a Mumbai Wankhede Stadium or other venues. So, we’ll be ready in terms of anything they'll throw at us. Yeah, we'll wait and see, but we'll make sure we have some plans,” he added.
In a team of superstars, Cummins reckoned that Mohammed Shami would be a ‘key’ player for the Men in Blue, given his ability to bowl well against both right-handers and left-handers. Not just that, Shami has a slight wood over Warner, with his round-the-wicket angle often troubling the Australian early on in the innings.
“I mean they're all pretty well-rounded in all departments you know the one guy that didn't play at the start of the tournament who's done really well is obviously Mohammed Shami he's a class bowler to right and left armers, so yeah, he's going to be a big one but again that these are guys we’ve played a lot – so all our batters can draw in moments where they've taken on these bowlers and done well,” he concluded.