Far removed from the scenes that greeted the Indian Cricket Team upon their victory at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was Australian skipper Pat Cummins' arrival back home in Australia, mere days after winning the 2023 edition. Cummins landed with the Cricket World Cup trophy - Australia's sixth - but found no fans flocking toward him as he made his way through the airport and to the city outside. Instead, Cummins was greeted by media personnel, as the few bystanders who had managed to clock his appearance stood still in awe of the Aussie pacer. (More Cricket World Cup News)
Cummins, however, will be barely moved by the fans' no-show at the airport. Just 72 hours earlier in India, the 30-year-old helped his team beat hosts India in front of a 130,000-strong-yet-silent home crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. India, who had hitherto enjoyed an unbeaten run in the tournament, succumbed to the record champions, who suffocated the Men in Blue's batting order to limit them to a modest 240 before chasing down that target easily.
Cummins, who didn't enjoy the most productive of tournaments in terms of pure numbers, came into his own in the knockouts. The pacer scalped three wickets in the semi-final against South Africa and two more in the final, helping his team lift the coveted cup for a record-extending sixth time.
