In the end, there was no popular victory, no transportation to the throes of ecstasy for Rohit Sharma and his men, no unalloyed joy for the thousands that had crammed the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday. 

On the day that mattered the most in the competition, India left their ‘A’ game behind in the changing room and were ruthlessly punished by a masterful Australia, who stormed to a six-wicket victory and their sixth World Cup crown on the back of a stunning century by Travis Head (137), who missed the first five games with a fracture to his left hand.