Cricket fans throughout the globe follow the game passionately, whether it’s coming out in huge numbers on the grounds or by supporting their favourite teams and players from their homes. The sport not only unites the players from different teams but also unites the fans, who support different teams and different players, and that’s the beauty of this sport.
There were a few moments on the field that took place and made the 2023 year worthwhile. Whether it was the Australian women’s team winning their sixth T20I World Cup title to their men’s team claiming their sixth World Cup title, this year was nothing short of glory for the Aussies but for the whole cricketing fraternity as well.
Here are the moments that shaped Cricket in the year 2023:
Australia women clinch their 6th WT20 World Cup title
The Australian Women’s team under the leadership of Meg Lanning has been nothing short of a force in whichever competition they enter. This year’s Women’s T20 World Cup was no different as Lanning led her team to their sixth T20 World Cup title as they defeated the hosts, South Africa, in the final.
The Glory that the India Women’s team brought in the form of the U-19 T20 World Cup, ACC Emerging Teams Women’s Asia Cup and Asian Games 2023
The Shafali Verma-led U-19 India team went to South Africa for the inaugural U-19 T20 World Cup. With the likes of Richa Ghosh, Shafali Verma, Titas Sadhu, and G Trisha, the India team were nothing short of a force to reckon with. The Indian Women’s team brought glory for the first time in the history of women’s cricket by beating England in the final.
The emerging India women’s team also brought glory in the capacity of ACC Emerging Teams Women’s Asia Cup 2023, where Shreyanka Patil showcased her skills throughout the tournament.
It was icing on the cake when the senior India Women’s team won the Gold Medal at the Asian Games 2023 by defeating the Sri Lanka women’s team in a thrilling game.
Women’s Premier League 2023 set the stage on fire
The year 2023 was nothing short of a revolutionary year in the history of Indian women’s cricket, as the Women’s Premier League was inaugurated with five teams contesting in Maharashtra. The most successful franchise of the IPL, Mumbai Indians, also became successful in the inaugural WPL season, as the Harmanpreet Kaur-led Mumbai defeated the Meg Lanning-led Delhi Capitals in the final.
Australia won their first-ever World Test Championship Final
The Indian team despite reaching the finals of the WTC for the second time, could not convert it into the title as the Aussies came in the way of their dream of lifting the iconic Test Mace. At the ground of the Oval, the Australian team were asked to bat first, and the Indian team were on the backfoot right from the first innings as the Aussies posted a huge total. With this win, the Aussies added another leaf to their cabinet of titles.
The year 2023 determined the importance of the World Cup Qualifiers ft Netherlands and West Indies
While the straight qualification allows just eight teams into the World Cup, the qualifiers determine the other two teams. The Qualifiers are a great opportunity for the associate nations to express themselves and enter into the biggest stage. These Qualifiers were nothing short of a reality check to the West Indies team, who failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time. On the other hand, the Netherlands expressed themselves and even beat the Proteas in the World Cup.
The cricket fraternity saw the retirement of Meg Lanning, Shabnim Ismail, Stuart Broad, David Willey and Quinton De Kock (from ODIs)
Every year a bunch of youngsters come, and the game’s greats leave the sport and their fans in awe. This year, the cricketing fraternity witnessed the retirement of some greats of the game. Stuart Broad and David Willey from England, Shabnim Ismail from the South Africa women’s team, Meg Lanning from the Australia women’s team and Quinton De Kock from South Africa. The fans and the sport will miss their contributions as they are not the ones who can be replaced in just a few months.
Afghanistan’s revolutionary gameplay at the World Cup 2023
The team who qualified directly for the first time in the World Cup and were about to play their only 3rd World Cup, also the one who had only won just one game in the last two editions stunned everyone with their performance. They went on to win four games in the tournament, defeating teams like Pakistan, England, and Sri Lanka, comprehensively and almost reached the semifinals, but Maxwell hampered their dream. With this kind of performance, the Afghan team will gain loads of confidence and will no longer be considered as the associate nation in the sport.
India’s magnificent run in the World Cup
The Indian team had a near-perfect World Cup, as they went on to win 10 games on the trot, entering into the Final of the World Cup unbeaten. Under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma, the Indian team were the most dominating team throughout the tournament and the only game they lost was the final against the Australian team. Three of the Indian players went on to smash 500+ runs in the tournament, and Mohammed Shami became the highest wicket-taker, claiming 24 wickets, recording his best ODI figures, and picking up seven wickets in the semifinal.
Australia won their sixth World Cup title
In the last couple of years, the Australian team has claimed a T20 World Cup title, World Test Championship title and the World Cup title. With their sheer dominance across formats, Australia managed to silence 1.3 billion Indians on the 19th of November, as they defeated the Indian team claiming their sixth World Cup title.
Virat Kohli following the path of the God of Cricket
The right-handed batter is nothing short of a legend in the modern era of the sport. During the World Cup, Virat broke the Everest-looking record of Sachin Tendulkar scoring the maximum number of centuries in the history of ODI cricket. While the little master had 49 centuries in the 50-over format, the King overtook him by smashing his 50th ODI century in the semifinal of the World Cup 2023. Apart from this, Kohli also broke the long-standing record of Sachin by scoring the most runs in the single edition of the World Cup and registered his name at the top with 765 runs.
Maxwell’s Big Show at the Wankhede Stadium
Chasing 292 runs, Australia were on the back foot, considering Afghanistan had specialist spinners, who could have stolen the victory. And the seam bowlers did the job along with Rashid Khan, as the Aussies were seven down for just 91. The only hope was a Big Show from the Big Man, who was still there in the middle with a body not feeling so well, as he was having cramps every time he was hitting the ball. But Maxi played a miraculous innings and smashed 201 runs, taking the Aussies over the line. Only he could have done this, no wonder why he is known as a big show.
Sri Lanka Cricket got a ban from the ICC
The ICC has banned the Sri Lankan cricket board as they violated the norms of the ICC by the intervention of the government in their cricket board. The government of Sri Lanka sacked the board and appointed Arjuna Ranatunga to head the new committee, which was against the laws of the ICC. The team can still play cricket, but they are not allowed to host any kind of an ICC event. They were supposed to host the U-19 World Cup 2024, but now they have been barred from hosting the event.
Women’s Test games
After a long time, there were Test matches played in India. The India women’s team faced England and Australia in the Tests and won both of the games comprehensively. Introducing more Tests in Women’s cricket will allow more players to participate and take women’s cricket to a whole new level.
Dean Elgar, David Warner and Stuart Broad’s fairytale ending to the Test career
Why do players often end their careers on a higher note? Is that the pressure they were carrying with them? Before the Test series against Pakistan, David Warner was going through poor form, but he announced that the series would be his last even before the World Cup 2023. In the very first match, Warner smashed 164 runs, slamming the critics. The same happened with Dean Elgar and Stuart Broad, as Elgar scored 185 against India in the first Test of his last series, and Stuart Broad went on to clip 22 wickets in the Ashes.
feature image source– ICC Cricket
