Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan reflected on the performance of the Indian team in the year 2023. He believes that it was a fantastic year for the team as they played an exciting brand of cricket and achieved great things.
Team India was one of the best performers in all three formats in the year 2023. They showed some impressive performances in all three formats and reached great heights. However, they failed to achieve maximum glory.
India started the year with a win in the ODI series against New Zealand and Sri Lanka and then followed it up with a win in the Test series against Australia. They won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by a margin of 2-1 before losing the ODI series against Australia.
However, they failed to win the ICC World Test Championship final. The Rohit Sharma-led team lost the final against Australia and it was a huge heartbreak for them. After that, they traveled to the Caribbean and won the test series there.
India also had a decent outing in the ODI series against the West Indies but lost the T20I series. Rohit Sharma was at his best in the Asia Cup, defeating the likes of Pakistan, Sri Lanka and others.
After that, India beat Australia in the ODI series and entered the ICC World Cup 2023 on a high. They had a sensational performance in the tournament, as they were the most dangerous team in the league phase, winning 10 of the 10 matches.
They defeated New Zealand in the semi-final, but suffered a disappointing defeat in the final against Australia. Although they did not win the cup, many were amazed by the way they played in the tournament and the kind of show they showed.
Irfan Pathan feels it was a great year for the Indian team apart from losing the ICC World Cup 2023. He praised the team for having the highest winning percentage in ODIs. Speaking to Star Sports, he explained:
“It has been a fantastic year for Indian cricket. The way we win games, especially in ODIs. This time we had the highest winning percentage in the history of Indian cricket. I think 2023 has been one of the best in our history. Yes, we will see the defeat in the World Cup final, we still lost the opportunity to win the title.”
IND vs SA: Before Asia Cup 2023, people didn’t think India was the contender – Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan further highlighted the positives for the Indian team in 2023. He pointed out the kind of impact that Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli had for the team.
Irfan Pathan further praised the Indian team and said that no one gave them a chance to win the World Cup before Asia Cup 2023. But they proved everyone wrong. He explained:
“But there have been a lot of positives. We saw Virat Kohli return to his best and Shubman Gill have a record-breaking year. Before Asia Cup 2023, people did not believe that India was the contender. But after the Asia Cup things changed positively and the way we played, I think it was a fantastic year for the Indian team.”
In 2023, cricket shined with highlights for both the men’s and women’s teams. @IrfanPathan and #SunilGavaskar weigh in on #TeamIndia’s dazzling 2023! 🤜🏻🤛🏻#Cricket pic.twitter.com/vjcrdwry6t
– Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) December 31, 2023
Team India is currently facing South Africa in the two-match Test series. They suffered an innings, 32-run loss in the first game and would hope to make a comeback in the second game.