India might have lost to Australia in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad but the fact remains that in the 45 days of the 46-day tournament, the Men in Blue played like champions barring the tiular contest where it was the Kangaroos who better cricket. India were dominant throughout the league stage and even in their match against New Zealand in the semifinal, they won by a handsome margin of 70 runs.
However, in a winners-take-all contest, despite getting off to a good start, the hosts failed to play their best cricket and were outplayed by the Aussies who won the match by six wickets and 7 overs to spare. The entire team was absolutely heartbroken by the result and similar was the sentiment across the nation who had sensed a historic victory for Team India, given the way they were playing throughout the competition.
In a heartwarming gesture to lift the mood and spirits of the team that participated in the final, Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to the Indian dressing room and talked to the players. He tried to keep the mood light during his interaction.
"It happens, you won 10 matches in the tournament. Chin up. All of you make sure that you lift the spirits of each other," PM Modi told the players. He spoke to Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah in Gujarati.
The video of PM Modi's dressing room speech has gone viral in no time. He even extended an invitation to the entire team at his residence in Delhi. Take a look:
Suryakumar Yadav To Lead India In 5-Match T20I Series Vs Australia
Team India's next assignment after their ODI World Cup campaign is a five-match T20I series against Australia starting on November 23. Suryakumar Yadav, who was also part of the ODI squad, will lead the side with the rest of the players from that World Cup squad being handed a rest. Shreyas Iyer will join the team as a vice-captain for the final two T20Is.