Once again, it was Travis Head who shattered India’s hopes of winning an ICC final. After a 168-run knock in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-2023 final, Head stood tall in the World Cup 2023 final with a record-breaking 137-run knock. In the run chase of 241, Head took the game away from India on a pitch where other batters struggled sans Rohit Sharma struggled to score freely. After winning the ‘Player of the match’ award, Head said that the Indian captain is the unluckiest man in the world as he took a stunning catch to dismiss him.
“He’s (Rohit Sharma) probably the unluckiest man in the world. Again, it's (fielding) something that I worked hard on,” Head told the broadcasters after Australia’s six-wicket win with 42 balls to spare.
Head was surprised by his performance as he had not thought of performing like that in a World Cup final.
“Never expected this, not in a million years, truly an exceptional day. Lot better than sitting on the couch at home. Really glad to contribute, the first twenty balls I played gave me a lot of confidence and yea I was able to carry through,” the opener said.
He lauded Mitchell Marsh who scored just 15 runs from 15 balls in the run chase. “The way Mitch Marsh came out and took the game on, he set the tone. That was the energy we wanted and we knew the wicket may get tough,” he said.
The southpaw credited skipper Pat Cummins for opting to field first and executing the plans to restrict India below a par score.
“It was a great decision to bowl first after winning the toss. I felt the wicket got better as the day went on. It took a little bit of spin, it paid dividends. Nice to be a part of it, nice to play a role in all of that,” the 29-year-old said.
While Head registered the highest score by a batter in a World Cup final run chase, he became the third Australian batter to score a century in the final as well. Head was ecstatic to join Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist on the list.
“Definitely third on that list, it's a nice one to join, nice to be here and nice to contribute. I'll just tell the boys that I'm looking forward to the reunion,” he signed off.
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