Australia clinched the Cricket World Cup for an unprecedented sixth time on Sunday, stunning the pro-Indian crowd at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium with a six-wicket triumph in the low-scoring final. Travis Head’s remarkable 137 and a resilient 192-run partnership with Marnus Labuschagne (58 not out) guided Australia to victory, chasing down the target of 241 after a shaky start at 47-3.
The Narendra Modi Stadium, packed with 132,000 spectators, fell silent as India’s dominant run in the tournament came to an end. Despite Australia’s early struggles, Head and Labuschagne’s determined stand helped their team reclaim its status as the king of one-day international cricket, securing their sixth World Cup title to add to victories in 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007, and 2015.
The nail-biting final moments saw Head dismissed on the penultimate ball of the match while attempting to secure a title-clinching boundary. Glenn Maxwell stepped in and, with two runs off his first ball, sealed the victory, prompting fireworks above the world’s largest cricket venue.
India, undefeated in all ten matches leading up to the final, sought their third World Cup trophy in their fourth appearance in a title match. However, they were outperformed in every aspect by Australia, managing only 240 all out on a slow pitch after losing the toss. The only significant contributions came from Virat Kohli (54) and Lokesh Rahul (66), both scoring half-centuries.
Travis Head’s century in the final marked a historic moment, making him only the fifth player to achieve this feat in a men’s World Cup final and the third Australian after Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist. His exceptional performance included a crucial diving catch to dismiss Indian captain Rohit Sharma (47).
Australia concluded the tournament with a remarkable run of nine consecutive victories, bouncing back from initial defeats to India and South Africa. The triumph in Ahmedabad solidified Australia’s reputation as a cricket powerhouse and added another chapter to their storied World Cup history.