India’s success off the field has not been matched by their performances on it at World Cups over the last decade but with a near-perfect buildup, familiar conditions and recent history on their side, the hosts are favourites to end their title drought at ICC World Cup 2023.
Rohit Sharma and his men head into the 50-overs showpiece event as the world’s top-ranked ODI team and with the hopes of a cricket-mad country of 1.4 billion on their shoulders.
Following are facts and figures about tournament hosts India, who begin their World Cup campaign against Australia on Sunday:
World ranking: 1
Captain: Rohit Sharma
Coach: Rahul Dravid
Top-ranked batsman: Shubman Gill (2)
Top-ranked bowler: Mohammed Siraj (1)
Squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ishan Kishan, Surya Kumar Yadav
Best result: Winners (1983, 2011)
2019 result: Lost to New Zealand in the semi-final
GROUP FIXTURES
Oct. 8: v Australia, Chennai
Oct. 11: v Afghanistan, Delhi
Oct. 14: v Pakistan, Ahmedabad
Oct. 19: v Bangladesh, Pune
Oct. 22: v New Zealand, Dharamsala
Oct. 29: v England, Lucknow
Nov. 2: v Sri Lanka, Mumbai
Nov. 5: v South Africa, Kolkata
Nov. 12: v Netherlands, Bengaluru
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