Ganguly’s decision to bowl after having won the toss remains controversial till date

In the 2003 World Cup, Australia were undefeated heading into the final

Sachin broke the record for most runs in a world cup in 2003

Most of the cricket fans born in the previous century would have vivid memories of the 2003 World Cup final. Ganguly’s decision to bowl after having won the toss remains controversial till date. We would not have dreamed about having such a top class pace bowling line up back in the day but currently India has covered all its bases and are firm favourites heading into the game. Ganguly too has played a crucial role in getting Dravid on board as the coach and making other necessary changes in order to achieve this goal.

In the 2003 World Cup, Australia were undefeated heading into the final, having won 10 games in a row and were firm favourites. In a case of role reversal, this time it is India which has the same road to the final. Interestingly India had lost to Australia and won eight games in a row subsequently to reach the final. This time, Australia lost to India and won eight matches in a row to reach the final. 

Rahul Dravid took on the responsibility of wicket keeping in order to provide more depth to the batting order in 2003. This time around, KL Rahul has assumed a similar responsibility. Sachin broke the record for most runs in a world cup in 2003 and that record was intact until it was surpassed by Virat Kohli in this edition. Ganguly, being the captain, showed great initiative in the top order and was second in terms of number of runs in the tournament with a healthy strike in 2003. Rohit Sharma has assumed similar responsibility in this edition. 

It looks like a perfect script for retribution.