World Cup final: Australia win toss, ask India to bat first

Australia captain Pat Cummins won the toss and chose to bowl against India in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

Both teams retained their playing elevens from the semi-finals.

Australia, playing in their eighth final, are looking for a sixth title.

India won the World Cup in 1983 and then again on home soil in 2011.

After winning the toss, Pat Cummins said, "We are gonna have a bowl first. Looks like a dry wicket. Dew is a factor. It gets better to bat on. Tough start to the tournament, haven't really put a foot wrong ever since. It's all set up perfectly. We've played these guys a lot. Same team as the semi-final."

After losing the toss, India captain Rohit Sharma said, "I would have batted first. Looks a good pitch, big game, put runs on the board. It's going to be amazing, every time we play here, the crowd come out in large numbers. The biggest occasion in the cricketing event. We have to stay nice and calm. It's a dream come true to be captaining the team in the final. I know what lies in front of us. We need to play well and get the result. You got to make the right decisions on the field. That's something we've done consistently in the last 10 games. We are playing the same team."

"Pitch number five. Same wicket that was used for India vs Pakistan. It's different from that one because it's been left open for quite a long time. It looks very dry, not much rolling. Looks patchy especially in the areas where spinners will land the ball. I expect it to turn a bit. Dew is uncontrollable. If there's no dew, you could be in trouble. Batting first, getting runs on the board is premium. But India won't be too bothered either way," Ravi Shastri reckoned in his pitch report.

India XI: Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj

Australia XI: Travis Head, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis(w), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins(c), Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

Source: Times of India