The final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 is just around the corner, with India and Australia gearing up for the mammoth event. Here’s everything you need to know.
Competition schedule
Sunday, November 19 – Final: India vs Australia
A repeat of the 2003 final, in which Australia won by 125 runs in Johannesburg, the two will meet at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, where more than 100,000 fans will witness the history.
How the teams qualified
India through the group stage and finished top with a maximum of 18 points after winning all nine matches. India’s net run rate of 2,570 was by far the best in the group stage.
In the semi-final against New Zealand, Rohit Sharma led a blazing start with the bat, firing up with fellow opener Shubman Gill, before Virat Kohli cruised to his 50th ODI century and passed Sachin Tendulkar. With an imperious 397, New Zealand largely showed some reprieve from Daryl Mitchell for a century, but fell 70 runs short.
Kohli, Iyer and Shami guide India to World Cup final | Match highlights | CWC23
Centuries from Shreyas Iyer and Virat Kohli and a seven-wicket haul from Mohammed Shami helped India reach the final.
Australia recovered from defeats to India and South Africa in their opening matches, to sit in last place in the table, before winning their remaining seven matches to qualify with 14 points.
Pat Cummins’ side were slight underdogs in their rematch against South Africa in the semi-final, although the Aussies made an emphatic start and held South Africa 24/4. David Miller’s century gave the Proteas hope, although it was Cummins and Mitchell Starc who would swing their bats aloft in victory and hold out in a thrilling three-wicket win.
Australia overcomes South Africa’s battle to reach final | Match highlights | CWC23
Australia defeated South Africa by three wickets.
The teams
Indian selection: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Prasidh Krishna, Suryakumar Yadav.
Australian selection: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis, Sean Abbott, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitch Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa, Mitchell Starc.
Family tree of the World Cup
Tournament hosts India are looking for a first major ICC global tournament win in 12 years and will have the crowd on home soil on their side, just like in 2011.
Australia are the most successful nation in the history of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and would make it six wins if they were to triumph in India.
Reserve day
If a result is not achieved due to weather conditions, a reserve day can be reserved.
Prize money
The tournament has a pot of $10 million. The winner of the tournament will take home $4 million, while the runner-up will win $2 million.
Teams also collected $40,000 for each group stage win.
How to watch
Disney Star, the ICC’s global broadcast partner, and its licensees will broadcast the match worldwide.
In India, Star Sports Network will be the place to watch as cricket’s first-of-its-kind vertical feed coverage produced by ICC TV and supported by Disney Star continues, giving fans an easier and more intuitive viewing experience on mobile phones, allowing users to consume content on the go.
Fox Sports and Kayo will be home to Australian coverage, along with select matches on Channel Nine and 9Now. Fans in the UK can watch the action live on Sky Sports Cricket, Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports Mix, Sky Showcase and digitally via the SkyGO and Sky Sports App. Primetime, free-to-air highlights will be available for the first time on Channel 5 and My5 App.
WillowTV will be the channel to watch for fans in the US, while coverage will also be available via the ESPN+ app. SuperSport and its app will broadcast the action in South Africa and to the 52 sub-Saharan territories. For fans in New Zealand, Sky Sport NZ is the place to be for Men’s Cricket World Cup matches.
In the UAE and across the MENA region, all matches will be streamed live on STARZPLAY, with broadcasts available on CricLife MAX in the UAE.
A full list of broadcasters can be found below.
Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
The world’s largest sports stadium hosted the tournament opener on October 5, India’s victory over Pakistan on October 14, and is the venue for the tournament final.
The redevelopment of the 132,000 capacity venue was completed in 2021, hosting a day-night Test between India and England as well as the last two IPL finals.