 "ICC Cricket World Cup 2023: India vs Australia")
The ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 is all set to take place in Ahmedabad on November 19. India and Australia will clash for the title at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Over 100,000 fans are likely to witness the history being made live at the stadium.
The much-anticipated match will see a host of events and a long list of dignitaries in attendance. Here's all you need to know about the ICC World Cup 2023 final:
India vs Australia: Will Men in Blue extract a revenge?
These two teams last clashed in a World Cup final on March 23, 2003. Ricky Ponting scored an unbeaten 140 runs, leading his team to lift the coveted trophy in Johannesburg. Sourav Ganguly-led Indian side lost the match by 70 runs. A little over two decades later, India will aim to settle this old score with the Aussies on Sunday.
The Rohit Sharma-led team has already arrived in Ahmedabad ahead of their title clash.
Special flypast by Indian Air Force
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The Surya Kiran aerobatic team of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will carry out a flypast over Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad ahead of the final match. According to IAF officials, just like some other major sporting events like Formula One car racing, there will be a flypast carried out by the IAF.
All arrangements made at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport
Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Friday said it had made all necessary arrangements to host the guests arriving to watch the finals.
A press release from the airport said that all passengers must allocate additional time for travel-related formalities and mandatory security protocols.
A spokesperson for SVPI Airport said all security teams in the terminal and landside were kept on a stand-by with dynamic resource allocation based on passenger load to ensure smooth transit through the airport. The airspace would be closed for the IAF show and its preparations on November 17 and 19 from 1:25 pm to 2:10 pm.
Hotel, airfares soar ahead of World Cup 2023 final
Business Standard on Friday reported that hotel tariffs in Ahmedabad for Sunday had crossed Rs 1 lakh. Some premium hotels like ITC Narmada and Taj Skyline were already fully booked.
Flight ticket prices to Ahmedabad, meanwhile, have also climbed steeply. According to data from the travel website Ixigo, airfares for domestic flights to Ahmedabad on November 19 have increased significantly from those 15-45 days ago. On the Delhi-Ahmedabad route, airfares rose by 44 per cent from Rs 9,756 to Rs 14,036 in the said period. Similarly, airfares increased around 47 per cent (from Rs 5,515 to Rs 8,099) on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad route. Airfares for the Goa-Ahmedabad route recorded as much as 66 per cent (from Rs 7,188 to Rs 11,933).
Dua Lipa to perform at the closing ceremony
Pop star Dua Lipa will reportedly perform at the World Cup 2023 final in Ahmedabad. Although no official confirmation has been made by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Lipa hinted this in a recent video. Ahead of the India-New Zealand semifinal match on November 15, Lipa interacted with some players of both teams. Asked about the song she was going to perform at the event, Lipa mentioned her song "Physical".
Aditya Gadhavi of Khalasi fame is also expected to perform at the opening and closing ceremonies of the match.
World Cup 2023 final: Who will attend the match?
According to several media reports, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the match. Deccan Herald (DH) reported, citing sources, that Modi would land in Ahmedabad on Sunday afternoon and was likely to stay overnight at Raj Bhavan, Gandhinagar.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has also been invited to attend the match.
According to DH, among others expected to watch the match are former cricketers Kapil Dev, M S Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, and Yuvraj Singh, besides actors Rajinikanth, Kamal Hassan, Nagarjuna and Ram Charan.
What happens if the match is washed out on Sunday?
If the play is interrupted due to rain on Sunday, umpires will allot extra time and reduce the number of overs to ensure a definitive result. Each team will have to play a minimum of 20 overs.
But if the rain continues, the match will be moved to a reserve day. On that day, the play will resume after the last ball delivered on the scheduled day. The number of overs will not be reduced.
If the match gets washed away on the reserve day as well, umpires will decide the match using ‘super over’. If even that is not possible, the trophy will be given to the team with higher points on the points table.
World Cup 2023: Complete squads of India and Australia
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, K L Rahul (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan (wk), Prasidh Krishna, Suryakumar Yadav.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Steve Smith, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis (wk), Sean Abbott, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitch Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa, Mitchell Starc.
