Mere days after a version of the Indian team lost to Australia in front of a 130,000-strong crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Final the occasion, another iteration of it beat the Aussies twice within the same week to go 2-0 up in their T20I series.
Led by interim captain Suryakumar Yadav, an Indian side made up of several promising stars - Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Tilak Verma, and Rinku Singh, to name a few - first beat Australia in Visakhapatnam, chasing down their highest-ever target in the format. Two days later, they set their series opponents a total of 235 to chase, before halting them at 191.
In the domestic circuit, teams finalised their rosters before the Indian Premier League 2024 mini auction in mid-December, trading, retaining, and releasing players as they saw fit. India national cricket team vice-captain Hardik Pandya drew most of the attention during the week for rumours linking him with a return to Mumbai. While Gujarat Titans did name Pandya among their retainees, reports later revealed that the former Mumbai Indians player was due for a comeback at the Wankhede, with Cameron Green moving to Royal Challengers Bangalore to make space. Gujarat, meanwhile, left the table with their pockets heavier than before.
Miles away from their homeland, Indian men's doubles pairing of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty cruised through the China Masters 2023 until the final, where they succumbed to a thrilling defeat against local heroes Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang.
Elsewhere, Max Verstappen claimed his 19th victory of the season in the final Formula 1 race of the year in Abu Dhabi; the Dutchman beat Charles Leclerc and George Russell to the top spot on the podium, finishing his title-winning season with a flourish. Red Bull claimed the Constructors' Championship, while Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez took home the silver ahead of record-F1-champions Lewis Hamilton.
In the Premier League, Manchester City drew 1-1 against Liverpool, allowing Arsenal to leapfrog both in the league table and go top after 13 rounds of matches. Chelsea succumbed to their fifth defeat of the season against Newcastle United, but Manchester United beat Everton to prolong their fine run of form.
