India vs Australia: Umpires Confirmed For World Cup Final And It Might Not Be Good News For India

The on-field umpires for the highly-anticipated India vs Australia final in the ongoing ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 have been confirmed.

The final of the 13th edition of the World Cup is scheduled to be played on Sunday (November 19) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The huge clash will be officiated by Richard Illingworth and Richard Kettleborough, two of the leading umpires of ICC Elite Panels of Umpires.

Both the officials were in action during the two semifinals. Illingworth was one of the on-field umpires when India locked horns against New Zealand in the first semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday ((November 15). On the other hand, Kettleborough officiated the second semifinal between Australia and South Africa at the Eden Gardens on Thursday (November 16).

#breaking Richard Illingworth and Richard Kettleborough to officiate in the 2023 ODI ?final between India?? and Australia???? in ahmedabad.. Joel Wilson will be the third ump and Andy Pycroft will be the match ref #WorldCup2023

— Gaurav Gupta (@toi_gauravG) November 17, 2023

Kettleborough was also the umpire when India locked horns against Australia in their very first game of the ongoing World Cup. The Men in Blue had gone on to win the game by 6 wickets to start their World Cup campaign in style.

India vs Australia: Richard Kettleborough might leave Indian fans worried

Richard Kettleborough’s confirmation as one of the on-field umpires for the India vs Australia final might leave a few Indian fans worried. Many fans believe that Kettleborough’s involvement in a knockout game for India is not a good sign. The reason is that he was the official in most of India’s heartbreaking losses in ICC knockout games in the last one decade or so.

India've been careful not to add Richard Kettleborough in their semifinal this time.

He used to be India's KO unluck factor since 2014

2014 T20 WC final
2015 CWC SF
2016 T20 WC SF
2017 Champions Trophy final
2019 CWC SF
2023 WTC Final (3rd Umpire)#India #CWC2023 #SemiFinal https://t.co/3XNKeicBUt pic.twitter.com/jyIq2DLjs3

— Poornama? (@iam_poor9) November 13, 2023

Talking about India’s run in the ongoing World Cup, the Men in Blue have won all of their ten games so far and are the only unbeaten team in the competition. India have been the most dominant side in the competition and will be fancying their chances of winning the World Cup for the third time and first time since 2011.

Australia, on the other hand, began their campaign with a couple of losses against India and South Africa before bouncing back with seven wins in a row to storm into the semifinals. In the semifinal, they registered a thrilling 3-wicket win while chasing 212 runs in tough batting conditions.