Richard Kettleborough and Richard Illingworth to officiate India-Australia 2023 World Cup final

The English pair of Richard Kettleborough and Richard Illingworth are set to be the on-field umpires for the blockbuster 2023 World Cup final between India and Australia in Ahmedabad on Sunday.

While Kettleborough performed umpiring duties in the second semi-final between South Africa and Australia, the latter officiated the India-New Zealand clash. The experienced pair will be supported by West Indies' Joel Wilson, who has been appointed as the third umpire for the contest.

With a massive crowd of over 1,25,000 anticipated for the title match, the umpires will have their hands full in getting the crucial decisions right. New Zealand's Chris Gaffaney will be the backup umpire, while Zimbabwean Andy Pycroft will oversee the clash as the match referee.

Kettleborough has umpired in some of the biggest games in ICC events, including the India-New Zealand clash of the 2019 World Cup and the India-Pakistan 2017 Champions Trophy final. Meanwhile, Illingworth was the other umpire of the India-New Zealand 2019 World Cup semi-final and the 2021 World Test Championship finale between the same teams.

Team India will hope the outcome isn't similar to either of the above three games as they suffered heartbreaking defeats.

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Team India is gunning for their third ODI World Cup title

India and Australia pulled off contrasting semi-final wins.

The Men in Blue will be going for a third ODI World Cup title and their second on home soil in Sunday's final against Australia.

While Rohit Sharma's men have dominated so far, winning all 10 games of the tournament, they will be tasked against an Australian side that is on an eight-game winning streak. The sides met in their respective opening games of the campaign, with the Men in Blue registering a comfortable six-wicket victory.

Despite playing on Indian soil, Australia will not be alienated thanks to playing six ODI games here this year. The Men in Yellow pulled off a 2-1 series win in India earlier this year before losing by the same margin before the start of the World Cup.

The arch-rivals also met in the WTC final earlier this year, with the Aussies coming out on top by 209 runs at the Oval.

Despite several exchanges in the T20 and ODI World Cups, this will be only the second time the teams meet in a grand finale. The previous instance was the 2003 World Cup final when a dominant Aussie outfit decimated the Indians by a massive 125 runs at Johanessburg.