Yeah, we did it, finally. Fumbling for words, you know. Let’s see how the legend unfolded at Wankhede….
I have always, always been let down by the overtly competitive nature of the Lankan captain. And he displayed such a ghastly unsportsmanlike behavior, once an exclusive domain of the Aussies, during the toss itself. Both captains wanted to bat, which is very usual regarding the nature of the encounter. Sangakkara called heads, but it came up tails. Dhoni was proceeding to convey his decision to bat to Ravi Shastri when a confused match referee Jeff Crowe asked what was the call. He said he couldn’t hear it. That’s when Sangakkara realized his opportunity to benefit from the confusion. He said he called heads. Dhoni rightfully argued to the contrary. Now it was clear to Crowe that no resolution will be reached, so he decided to go for another toss, which was bizarre in itself. He could’ve asked for an audio feed and analysis to solve the problem. Anyways, the toss that wasn’t to be was won by Sangakkara and we had to bowl in the unusual Mumbai heat of 33-35 ºC coupled with the usual Mumbai humidity(around 70%). Never mind that, we had to chase-which was successfully done only 2 times out of the 9 WC finals played.
Again, Dhoni baffled us all with bringing in Sreesanth in place of Nehra. To bring in a 3rd seamer on a Wankhede track which always offers carry and a bit of assistance sounds logical, but not quite so when that 3rd seamer is going to be Sreesanth. Zak started well. Infact, Sreesanth too started well. But there was absolutely nothing for the pacers. No assistance whatsoever.With short boundaries, things could have gone out of control. But control is precisely what Zak had. He produced a beauty to get rid of an in-form Tharanga courtesy also of a sharp catch in the slips by Sehwag. Zak’s spell and India’s fielding display- THE best in the tournament ensured SL just could not get away. Even with Sreesanth bowling. This continued for 43 overs of the innings-breaking partnerships just when they were about to blossom. Sanga-Jaya’dne and Jaya’dne-Samaraweera pt’ships were very crucial and we broke them at even more crucial times. But it seemed that the nightmares of 2003 returned to haunt Zak in his last spell of 3 overs as he was slogged around by the classy Jayawardene and ‘India Specialist’ Thissara Perera, who did what he does best- a cameo of 22 runs in 9 balls to finish the Lankan innings on a high, and carry the momentum going into the 2nd innings. It seemed we gave away 25 runs more than what we would have liked, at 274-6. Even then, there were only nerves. Hope was always a 100%. But nerves, anxiety that Sehwag had to get us off to a flier.
But those nerves were deflated first in the very 1st over as Malinga trapped Sehwag . 0-1! Our worst start was reserved for the finals? But Sachin is there, one thought. And his trademark straight drive assured us that if not a ton, there was definitely going to a substantial contribution from the master. But sport is not a fairy tale, says Steve Waugh, and that sounded bitterly true as Malinga snared Sachin to have IND reeling at 31-2. At that time, I was brought to ground, it was like my eyes were opened. I was harshly made to see the fact that Sachin would not be there in the end. It was not going to be a match winning knock. And IND may not win the WC.
But as always, IND team had other plans. Gambhir was not going to gift his wicket this time and Kohli played with unbelievable maturity for a 23 year old to bring a measure of stability to IND’s innings, without, very importantly, compromising on the required run rate. It was very important as everyone knew that the usual acceleration at the end would be difficult as Sanga reserves Malinga and Murali towards the end. But Kohli was dismissed by Dilshan who took a magnificient catch off his own bowling, to make it 114-3. Looking at that catch, one again could have got the feeling that- wasn’t this the sort of catch, that people would say in the end, won the match? And all that stuff.
In came Dhoni. Apart from being a very courageous decision, it was also a very tactical one. 3 spinners were operating at that time- Dilshan, Randiv and Murali. All of them are right-handed off-spinners- they turn the ball away from the left handed batsman. Even Gambhir, with his consummate skill in playing spin, had to play at the top of his game to stay at the crease. To expose Yuvraj, another left hander who is known to be a very bad starter against spin, would have been laden with danger. And thus began, what was to be a match winning partnership. The duo played with skill, street smartness, they ran well between the wickets in sapping conditions and came nearer and ever so nearer to the target. With 51 to get off 51, Gambhir, in an attempt to release pressure, came dancing down the wicket to a Thissara Perrera delivery that crashed into his stumps, thus denying him a richly deserved WC ton.
It was destiny that the duo who were groomed to be IND’s finishers extraordinaire for the past 4-6 years, finished off the match without further hiccups.
Sakshi Rawat must be envious of Pressure. Because it seems to be Dhoni’s mistress. He absolutely revels under pressure. The manner in which he came out to play, considering his form, the occasion, the situation is beyond appreciation. And what an innings he played!! What timing to play such an innings! It is God’s sublime grace that MS Dhoni was born in India. And make no mistake about that. He has led us to the World Cup, made us Numero Uno in ODI and Tests and won us the T20 WC too.Just the fact that the one who deserved the WC the most, without which the WC lost its charm and NOT the other way round, was finally given the honour of lifting it under his captaincy is enough.What more can anyone want out of a captain?
That I am happy, that 1.2 billion people are in a trance of ecstasy, would be the understatement of the century. MS Dhoni and his Men in Blue have attained immortality. This team and this superhuman feat(I call it superhuman, because no other team in the history of the game has faced such pressure, such weight of expectations as this team has. To play-let alone win a WC, under such constant pressure makes this men more than human…)will be remembered as long as Cricket continues to exist and beyond.
Such moments do not come often in life. I would be happy to say to my grand children one day that I too, was a witness to what happened on 2nd April, 2011. In this grand scheme of the Almighty, I, along with a billion plus people, am delighted to be a small part in it. I feel, I have attained Salvation…
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