India's Kettleborough curse drags on: Men in Blue's miseries continue in ICC events; fans blame umpire jinx
By Sunita Iyer | First Published Nov 19, 2023, 10:08 PM ISTIn the aftermath of Australia's decisive 6-wicket victory against India to lift the ODI World Cup 2023 title, the haunting curse of umpire Richard Kettleborough on India in ICC showpiece events has once again come to the forefront.
India's aspirations for a third World Cup title were shattered after an unexplained collapse led to a six-wicket defeat against a relentless Australia on Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, casting a pall of gloom over the cricket-enthused nation.ย Australia secured their sixth World Cup title, extending their historic dominance in the tournament that commenced in 1975. Opting to bat first, India managed a subpar 240 despite notable contributions from Rohit Sharma (47 off 31 balls), Virat Kohli (54 off 63), and K L Rahul (66 off 107).
1987 ๐ 1999 ๐ 2003 ๐ 2007 ๐ 2015 ๐ 2๏ธโฃ0๏ธโฃ2๏ธโฃ3๏ธโฃ ๐
๐ฐ๐๐๐๐๐ฐ๐ป๐ธ๐ฐ ๐ฐ๐๐ด ๐ฒ๐ท๐ฐ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ธ๐พ๐ฝ๐ ๐ pic.twitter.com/QtzBty5Ewl
The winning moment ๐คฉ ๐ฆ๐บ pic.twitter.com/duTWfUCjFM
โ ICC (@ICC)Latest Videos
Travis Head, replicating his stellar performance from the WTC final against India in June, played a pivotal role with a match-winning 137 off 120 balls as Australia successfully chased down the target in 43 overs. Although Australia faced a momentary setback, losing three wickets for 47, a formidable 192-run partnership between Head and Marnus Labuschagne (58 not out) sealed the victory.
A century in the Final!
Take a bow, Travis Head ๐ pic.twitter.com/cMStdnUV4Y
Australia's exceptional bowling and fielding significantly contributed to their emphatic win, with the evening dew further favoring batting on a slow and dry surface.
Despite entering the final as the only unbeaten side with 10 consecutive wins, India faltered at the last hurdle. The last time India claimed a world title was in 2011, and their last ICC trophy was the Champions Trophy triumph in 2013.ย Since then, India has faced heartbreak across various formats, consistently faltering in crucial knockout encounters.
The list includes the T20 World Cup final in 2014, the ODI World Cup semifinal in 2015, the T20 World Cup semifinal in 2016, the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2017, the ODI World Cup semifinal in 2019, the group-stage matches against Pakistan and New Zealand in T20 World Cup 2021, the T20 World Cup 2022 semifinal, and the ICC World Test Championship finals in both the 2019-21 and 2021-23 cycles.ย
Out of India's eight matches in various ICC events since the 2013 Champions Trophy, Kettleborough was part of the umpires' panel in seven and was the on-field umpire in six occasions.ย In the aftermath of Australia's decisive 6-wicket victory against India, the haunting curse of umpire Richard Kettleborough on India in ICC showpiece events has once again come to the forefront.
Here's a look at how upset Indian fans reacted after Australia lifted the ODI World Cup 2023 title:
Richard Kettleborough and
Love story continues.๐๐ pic.twitter.com/m10fPOj2yf
No need to blame any individual player...
We lost it collectively...
If there is anyone to blame, it's Richard Kettleborough
Nothing good ever happens to India when this guy stands as umpire in knock out matches. pic.twitter.com/AGkUhgTogE
The umpires call that went Australia's way, it was Richard Kettleborough turning it down. ๐ https://t.co/b8Csdp87pA
โ DEV PATNAIK ๐ฎ๐ณ (@dev_muzic)Congratulations Australia for winning ODI World Cup Final
Congratulations India, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli Khatam haar
Crowd to Travis Head
Umpire Richard Kettleborough pic.twitter.com/6iZF7tSJmM
Richard Kettleborough ๐คฌ๐ญ pic.twitter.com/Wl85RHcCu6
โ Faheem (@_Afeem)Richard Kettleborough is the shani for Indian cricket. Sade saathi ๐ก๐ก๐ก https://t.co/zasfgu8p9m
โ Madhu K Iyengar (@kmadhu019)Richard Kettleborough ๐คฌ๐ญ pic.twitter.com/Wl85RHcCu6
โ Faheem (@_Afeem)Mr JINX for team INDIA ๐๐๐
Richard Kettleborough!! https://t.co/wjHO1dO9qZ
Maturity is when you realise Kettleborough is the biggest panoti for indian cricket team ๐ฅฒ his curse continues. pic.twitter.com/vAHyQaOA6T
โ Ambani jiii (@ambani_jiii)And Kettleborough's curse continues ๐ฅฒ pic.twitter.com/sbvHs2ERaR
โ Rajabets ๐ฎ๐ณ๐ (@smileagainraja)Richard Kettleborough ๐ญ pic.twitter.com/O4fxutGuTR
โ Pulkit๐ฎ๐ณ (@pulkit5Dx)Congratulations Australia for winning the ODI World Cup Final ๐ฅบ
Team India fans crowd to Umpire Richard Kettleborough ๐ pic.twitter.com/qoiKG76q53
Richard Kettleborough and India in a knockout match. pic.twitter.com/PiUcOiXdeF
โ Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra)
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