IND vs AUS: Nasser Hussain Claims Long Tail Cost India The World Cup, Not Kohli-Rahul Innings

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Former England captain Nasser Hussain has said Indian bowlers' inability to bat cost them the World Cup 2023 final on Sunday (November 19) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Put into bat, India, who raced to 80 odd runs in the first powerplay, but were forced into a shell following the dismissal of skipper Rohit Sharma and Shreyas Iyer in quick succession.

Virat Kohli and KL Rahul had to steady the ship to lead India to some sort of a fighting total. However, their slow-paced innings that included just one boundary, was scrutinized by many as the team could just manage 240 on a challenging surface.

Hussain, however, believes it was the long tail that came to haunt India, and not the Kohli-Rahul innings, which many believed to have hurt the team's chances in the ICC World Cup 2023 final vs Australia.

Hussain told Sky Sports after the match that Kohli and Rahul were forced into playing that sort of an innings as the pair did not want to expose the tail order with Mohammed Shami expected to come in at number 8.

"India are still a great side - but the pitch brought Australia into it. India's four bowlers not being able to bat that well came back to haunt them. That's why Rahul and Kohli couldn't go hard. They were worried about Shami at No 8," Hussain said.

Meanwhile, England's 2019 World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan believes India dug themselves into a hole with the Kohli and Rahul's stand and stated that the Australian side completely dominated the Indian team.

"They will be unbelievably disappointed. They dug themselves into a hole when Kohli and Rahul were batting and didn't stand up as they would have liked. They were completely outplayed but the young players in the dressing room will learn from this experience," Morgan told Sky Sports.

After India set a target of 240, Travis Head (137 off 120 balls) and Marnus Labuschagne (58 not out off 110 balls) took Australia out of a spot of bother from 47/3 to complete the run chase as the wicket got a little easier to bat under lights.