India's road to World Cup 2023 Final: From taming five-time world champions to breaking New Zealand hoodoo

India made it to the final of the ICC World Cup 2023 with a dominating win against New Zealand on Thursday and are set to face five-time champions Australia in the final on Sunday, November 19. India enjoyed utter dominance in the group stages and are favourites to lift the famous trophy for the third time.

With nine wins in nine group-stage games, the tournament hosts had a smooth ride to the final. India claimed the No. 1 spot across all formats after clinching the Asia Cup 2023 and carried the momentum into the ODI World Cup.

Rohit Sharma-led side kicked off their campaign with a mouth-watering clash against Australia in Chennai on October 8. India recorded an easy 6-wicket win while chasing a 200-run target despite losing three wickets on just 2 runs. Virat Kohli (85) and KL Rahul (97) were the heroes in the tricky chase while Ravindra Jadeja made an impact with three wickets.

The Men in Blue enjoyed dominant wins while chasing the targets in their first five games and showed similar strength by batting first in the remaining four matches. Virat Kohli's equalling and then breaking Sachin Tendulkar's record for 49 ODI hundreds and Mohammed Shami's sensational run with 23 wickets in 6 innings have been the highlight of India's road to the final.

India's World Cup 2023 campaign: