KL Rahul says 30-40 more runs would have changed the 2023 World Cup final

India batter KL Rahul has spoken about the pain of the 2023 ODI World Cup final defeat. He said the picture of the match would have been different had India scored 30 to 40 more runs that day. He also expressed hurt that some fans hold him responsible for the loss.

Rahul made the remarks in a conversation on the YouTube channel of former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin. He said memories of the final against Australia still keep coming back to him. In that match, he said, he had trouble playing Mitchell Starc's reverse swing bowling.

According to Rahul, he was unsure whether to play aggressive shots against Starc or continue batting defensively, and a lot of time went in that thought. He admitted that had his thinking been clearer when he walked out to bat, things might have been different. He said, "If I had batted till the end, I could easily have made 30 to 40 more runs. With those extra runs, our grip on the match would have been stronger."

Rahul also said he is deeply pained to hear reactions such as "India lost the World Cup because of Rahul". Three years have passed since the defeat, yet the sting of it remains with him.

In the final, played in Ahmedabad, India batted first and were all out for just 240 in 50 overs. Captain Rohit Sharma made 47 off 31 balls with four fours and three sixes. Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer returned after scoring four runs each. Virat Kohli made 54 off 63 balls with four fours.

Rahul himself made 66 off 107 balls with just one boundary, and was India's top scorer. Suryakumar Yadav made 18, Ravindra Jadeja 9, Mohammed Shami 6, Kuldeep Yadav 10 and Mohammed Siraj 9. Jasprit Bumrah scored 1.

His slow batting drew considerable criticism. He hit only one four in 107 balls. Fans said that in an important match he chose defence over aggression. Many fans felt India's total would have been higher had he hit a few more boundaries and raised the scoring rate. He was also accused of contributing to India's defeat with his slow innings.

Australia chased the target of 241 in 43 overs, winning by six wickets to take the World Cup. Travis Head's brilliant century and Marnus Labuschagne's half-century played a key role in the win. The Indian team, which reached the final without losing a single match in the tournament, saw the title slip away. In the league match, India had beaten Australia by six wickets.