25th June 1983, a beaming Kapil Dev held the Prudential Cup aloft at Lords. India were world champions, the second nation to do it, beating Clive Lloyd's mighty West Indies in the final. Almost twenty eight years later, to the day, Mahendra Singh Dhoni held the World Cup trophy aloft. A billion prayers were answered. India were world champions again.
Having narrowly missed out on glory in 2003, this victory was sweeter for those who played that time around. Sachin Tendulkar finally won his World Cup. The nation was ecstatic. Even non believers like me took notice of how fifteen men led by a South African legend could and managed to capture the breath of a billion others.
Indian cricket was in the doldrums after the 2007 World Cup, at least that's what I felt. The Greg Chappell flop show had indeed flopped. Enter Gary Kirsten and four years later he leaves as a World Cup winning coach. Truly the stuff dreams are made of!
The World Cup that began with a four off Sehwag's bat ended with a six off Dhoni's. The Indians started well and finished even better. It was a roller coaster ride, far greater than any I have ever been on. Of course one must feel for Sri Lanka. Two successive defeats in World Cup finals. Unlucky but that's not taking anything away from India.
The triumph had it's moments of anxiety too. The England game, Australia then Pakistan in successive games is by no means an easy task. Throwing away the South Africa game too was worrying. Would the collapse begin? Would India stutter? The Sreesanth flop show in the final had people doubting Dhoni's selection. At least he managed to silence critics with his bat when the country needed him the most. Fortunately for the billion praying, there were more moments of individual brilliance. Yuvraj Singh was a class act. So was Zaheer Khan, particularly in his first spell in the final. Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina too were outstanding. But most importantly was the belief. The belief that it isn't over until it's over.
My limited knowledge of cricket might lead this article to be a bit sketchy. The World Cup was a reason for me to take more interest in the game. For a guy who watched all sixty four football world cup games last year, this World Cup was magical. Cheers to Team India. Truly deserving World Champions.
Photo Credit: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhc-qppdGVMzjEWh9iD3p7htnUKppsVIa8A2gvvxiddHdDKOnIz54sym_5uxxrGNhQdtg7UrhUjWYqcUNpU_ui69ZgnmPNkRDJqa4kK40D1zlEvOC6oLmE0p2QEoAhZcBF3Qctmpwnack/s1600/Team_India_World_cup_2011_Champions.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment