On 19 November, India lost to Australia by six wickets in the final match of the ICC Cricket World Cup. With Australia’s victory in this match being held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, this is the sixth time that this team has won the World Cup.
The special thing about this entire World Cup was that Team India had become everyone’s favorite team by achieving tremendous victory in every match till the semi-finals. Before the final, everyone had accepted India as the world champion, but in the final match, Australian fielders and bowlers gave such an amazing performance that Team India got defeated in front of Australia. This defeat has not only disappointed more than one lakh Indian supporters present in the stadium but there is an atmosphere of sadness in the entire country.
The black soil of the pitch was also blamed as one of the reasons for Team India’s poor batting. In fact, during the match, the commentators were continuously repeating that due to the black soil pitch, the players were finding it difficult to score runs. In such a situation, let us know in this report, what was it in the black soil that Team India’s hands and feet were tied?
First of all, let us know how cricket pitches are prepared in India?
To prepare a cricket pitch, first of all a place is chosen in which there is a space of about 100 feet long and 10 feet wide in the middle of the field. The length of the pitch is always kept in the north-south direction. So that the sun’s rays do not fall into the eyes of the batsman during the match.
After this, a pit about 13 inches deep is dug on the designated ground. First of all, a drainage system is prepared in this pit. For this, a slope is prepared and a pipe is inserted to drain the water. So that when it rains, the water accumulated in the pitch can be easily removed.
After this the fixed pitch is prepared in three layers. The first layer is four inches in which river sand is kept. The second layer is also 4 inches, which is called loamy layer. 90 percent sand and 10 percent clay powder is used in this layer. After this the last and third layer is 5 inches. In which red, black or yellow soil is used. This soil is called clay soil and when the soil comes to the ground level, grass is planted in it. After the grass is planted, one inch of soil with high clay material is added on it.
How difficult is it to play a match on black soil?
The final match held on 19 November was played on pitch number 5 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, this pitch is made of black soil. Before the final, a match was played between India and Pakistan on the same pitch. It is not so easy to score runs on this pitch because the ball stops on the black soil pitch. However, spinners have an advantage in getting turn on this pitch.
Why does the ball stop on black soil?
Actually, black soil absorbs a lot of water and when water absorption is high then the soil will also swell. After watering black soil becomes very soft and when dried it becomes very hard. When black soil dries it attains high density. That means this soil becomes like the one found in Australia.
According to experts, Indian soil is about 2 microns whereas Australian soil is about 1 micron. Being 1 micron, black soil proves to be very helpful in bouncing the ball.
By the time the Australian team came out to bat, the pitch had become flat. Due to dew, the ball was slipping from the hands of the Indian bowlers. The outfield also became faster than the first innings.
How many types of soil are found in India
There are 8 different types of soil found in India, which have different fertilizer capacity. These soils include alluvial soil, black soil, red and yellow soil, forest soil, desert soil, laterite soil, saline soil and peat soil.
Did the pitch betray you?
Former Pakistani bowler Wasim Akram, while talking to the expert, said, “This kind of pitch was not seen anywhere in the entire tournament.” India’s guess regarding the pitch was completely wrong. However, due to low score during the match, Indian bowlers were under pressure. On the other hand, Australia had scored 30 runs in the first two overs itself.”
He said that this black soil pitch was very dry, but it becomes slow after 50 overs. Throughout this, Australia bowled completely according to the strategy. The team also paid full attention to fielding. India lost 30-35 runs due to Australia’s fielding. Wherever the ball went, Australian players were present.
what happened in yesterday’s match
With the beginning of the match, the Australian team won the toss and took full advantage of this opportunity and put Team India to bat. At the same time, bowler and team captain Pat Cummins troubled the Indian batsmen a lot by bowling cutters one after the other.
In the last few overs, which are called death overs, Joss Hazlewood and Cummins did not allow the opposing team to increase the run rate by bowling slower balls and cutters.
Australia’s better fielding
Team Australia’s fielding was also a big factor in India’s defeat and Australia’s victory. Australia did such excellent fielding, the catch of Rohit Sharma taken by Travis Head while fielding on Maxwell’s ball was miraculous. This was perhaps the first match of the World Cup 2023 in which only one four was hit in 24 overs.
How many runs did India score in this match
In the World Cup final, India scored 240 runs after completion of 50 overs, Australia was given a target of 241 runs to win. KL Rahul scored the most runs in this match, scoring 66 runs in 107 balls. Virat Kohli also scored a half-century in the final match and scored 54 runs. Whereas for Australia, Mitchell Starc took maximum 3 wickets.
Was there pressure on Team India from the home crowd?
Many times playing in front of one’s own crowd becomes a burden on the team. During this match, many big guests including the country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi were present in the field. Apart from this, amid the expectations and noise of 1.25 crore spectators, sometimes players start thinking more about the results than the game.
On the other hand, the performance of Team India in this World Cup had raised the expectations of the country to the sky. Whether desired or not, pressure is created. Whereas the Australian team plays the game like a game. There is no pressure on them regarding victory and defeat like India does.
