What a week !
It has been almost a week of unbelievable events ( happy ones ! ) and I am still in some state of shock & awe. Indian cricket team took those three big steps from Quarter Final to Finals and lift the ICC cricket world cup after 28 years. This once in 4 year bonanza was first won by Indian team in 1983 & I clearly don’t remember much about it. Most of the team members of the current squad were either not born back then or were toddlers at best.
M S Dhoni & his boys did the magic in Wankedhe Stadium, Mumbai on 2nd April ( Sat’day night ) & the whole country erupted with joy. It was dad’s birthday & he called me right after the match saying he got his present from Indian team ! The biggest part on the face of the earth was kicked off with the winning shot from Dhoni’s bat ( a six, what else ) & suddenly Indian were mad with unlimited joy. It took good 2 days for this to sink in & I kept reading about the win, the stories behind preparations, the magic moments again & again to make sure we did win this World Cup.
Not that it was a big surprise, given the strength of the team & their recent performances ( India has been the No1 Test team for over 2 years now ) – they were firm favorites, but the fact that some better equipped Indian teams missed the trophy in previous world cups made it that much more gratifying. India also on the way to win the world cup, smashed some of the myths or set the “firsts” like
- 1st team to win the WC as hosts.
- Chased down the highest target in WC finals successfully.
- Sri Lanka lost the match despite Mahela’s century ( never happened earlier ).
- India actually defeated each defending WC champion in the process ( West Indies, Australia, Pakistan & Sri Lanka ).
There were some terrific performances on the field and mostly everyone contributed. However Sachin, Sehwag, Yuvraj ( Man of the series ) & Zaheer ( highest wicket taker ) stood out. Man who really stood out & combined this group of greats was Dhoni himself. He has since been adjudged as Best Captain ever, Best Current Captain in World, etc. He has been offered honors from various universities & Indian Army / Air force. All of them well deserved, he has been a huge influence in the way the team performed. While Ganguly started this process and installed self-belief among the Indian players, Dhoni has taken it to the next level. In a matter of little over 3 years, he has won India the T-20 world cup, Asia cup, Series against Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand & England. India moved to Test No1 team ranking under his leadership ( though lot of credit goes to previous captains / payers who contributed to it immensely) & now the WORLD CUP is back in India after 28 years.
The thing which really impressed me was Dhoni’s humility & respect for previous generation of players. He gave lot of credit to contributions made by giants like Sachin, Kumble, Dravid & Ganguly in the present Indian team’s success – that was awesome. It is always easy to forget the past when you are heady with present success, however he has his feet firmly on the ground, & that is good news for Indian cricket team.
This WC also meant end of road for some giants from other countries like Ricky Ponting, Greame Smith, Kumar Sangakara ( all three retired as captains for their respective nations ), Muthaih Muralidharan ( Legendary Sri Lankan spinner, retired from the game ) & so on..
Among all these good byes, one that will hurt Indians most is Gary Kirsten – the Indian Coach. He completed his 3 years contract with Indian team & was very instrumental in all the success the team achieved. He built relationships with each Indian player & positively influenced the technical aspects of the game. He brought in new ideas and nurtured the team like no one else – great man, great contribution & will always be remembered for his smile & quiet but strong persona. Many thanks Gary for all you have done for Indian cricket – it has been wonderful association.
So now world cup is over & so life will take a normal course ( hopefully ). Some links / videos & photographs from the memories of the victory – Enjoy !
Final moments from Final & Celebrations :
http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/video_audio/509308.html?genre=42
Gallery ( from Cricinfo ) - http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/gallery/509243.html
Final Match's Scorecard - http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/engine/current/match/433606.html
It has been almost a week of unbelievable events ( happy ones ! ) and I am still in some state of shock & awe. Indian cricket team took those three big steps from Quarter Final to Finals and lift the ICC cricket world cup after 28 years. This once in 4 year bonanza was first won by Indian team in 1983 & I clearly don’t remember much about it. Most of the team members of the current squad were either not born back then or were toddlers at best.
M S Dhoni & his boys did the magic in Wankedhe Stadium, Mumbai on 2nd April ( Sat’day night ) & the whole country erupted with joy. It was dad’s birthday & he called me right after the match saying he got his present from Indian team ! The biggest part on the face of the earth was kicked off with the winning shot from Dhoni’s bat ( a six, what else ) & suddenly Indian were mad with unlimited joy. It took good 2 days for this to sink in & I kept reading about the win, the stories behind preparations, the magic moments again & again to make sure we did win this World Cup.
Not that it was a big surprise, given the strength of the team & their recent performances ( India has been the No1 Test team for over 2 years now ) – they were firm favorites, but the fact that some better equipped Indian teams missed the trophy in previous world cups made it that much more gratifying. India also on the way to win the world cup, smashed some of the myths or set the “firsts” like
- 1st team to win the WC as hosts.
- Chased down the highest target in WC finals successfully.
- Sri Lanka lost the match despite Mahela’s century ( never happened earlier ).
- India actually defeated each defending WC champion in the process ( West Indies, Australia, Pakistan & Sri Lanka ).
There were some terrific performances on the field and mostly everyone contributed. However Sachin, Sehwag, Yuvraj ( Man of the series ) & Zaheer ( highest wicket taker ) stood out. Man who really stood out & combined this group of greats was Dhoni himself. He has since been adjudged as Best Captain ever, Best Current Captain in World, etc. He has been offered honors from various universities & Indian Army / Air force. All of them well deserved, he has been a huge influence in the way the team performed. While Ganguly started this process and installed self-belief among the Indian players, Dhoni has taken it to the next level. In a matter of little over 3 years, he has won India the T-20 world cup, Asia cup, Series against Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand & England. India moved to Test No1 team ranking under his leadership ( though lot of credit goes to previous captains / payers who contributed to it immensely) & now the WORLD CUP is back in India after 28 years.
The thing which really impressed me was Dhoni’s humility & respect for previous generation of players. He gave lot of credit to contributions made by giants like Sachin, Kumble, Dravid & Ganguly in the present Indian team’s success – that was awesome. It is always easy to forget the past when you are heady with present success, however he has his feet firmly on the ground, & that is good news for Indian cricket team.
This WC also meant end of road for some giants from other countries like Ricky Ponting, Greame Smith, Kumar Sangakara ( all three retired as captains for their respective nations ), Muthaih Muralidharan ( Legendary Sri Lankan spinner, retired from the game ) & so on..
Among all these good byes, one that will hurt Indians most is Gary Kirsten – the Indian Coach. He completed his 3 years contract with Indian team & was very instrumental in all the success the team achieved. He built relationships with each Indian player & positively influenced the technical aspects of the game. He brought in new ideas and nurtured the team like no one else – great man, great contribution & will always be remembered for his smile & quiet but strong persona. Many thanks Gary for all you have done for Indian cricket – it has been wonderful association.
So now world cup is over & so life will take a normal course ( hopefully ). Some links / videos & photographs from the memories of the victory – Enjoy !
Final moments from Final & Celebrations :
Link to Harsha Bhogle's Summary for Final WC ( best as always ) -
http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/video_audio/509308.html?genre=42
Gallery ( from Cricinfo ) - http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/gallery/509243.html
Final Match's Scorecard - http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/engine/current/match/433606.html
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