Oh yes, India is the ICC Cricket World Champions 2011. It took more than a couple of days for this fact to sink in to this writer’s mind. But it is true and the euphoria that this country is witnessing after Dhoni’s Daredevils defeated Sri Lanka in the final hasn’t calmed down yet. When Kapil’s Devils defeated the mighty West Indies at Old Blighty in 1983 to win the world cup for the first time, Dhoni’s Daredevils did a Kapil’s Devils and won it defeating the Sri Lankans at home in Mumbai.
‘Do it for Sachin’ was the overwhelming theme of this world cup in India. This was the great Sachin Tendulkar’s sixth world cup and a title win was perhaps the only thing missing in his otherwise phenomenal resume. There were many opinions expressed by the so called experts, particularly from England and Australia, that such a theme would divert the attention of the players from the real goal, which is to win the world cup. One of Australia’s world cup winning captains Steve Waugh was the main proponent of such an opinion. Now that it has become clear that such opinions are expressed by people who are absolutely oblivious of the mental make up of the Indians. We are people who are mainly guided by emotional aspirations and most of our desires are often aimed at bringing happiness to our beloveds. It was magnificently expressed by the Indian team when they shouldered Tendulkar and did a victory lap around the Wankhede Stadium after the final win. All players unequivocally stated that they dedicate this win to their great team mate and made clear that they did this for Sachin Tendulkar.
Though he failed to fire in the final match Sachin Tendulkar was at his best in the whole tournament where he scored an aggregate of 482 runs, second only to Tilakaratne Dilshan who made 500. Being a senior in the team he has given all the support and encouragement for all his junior team members which have become evident from the responses of his team mates. It was his long term ambition to win the world cup and the whole nation as well as the cricketing fraternity is rejoicing at his world cup win. Now that he has won the world cup questions have risen on whether he is contemplating to quit from the limited overs cricket for longevity in his test career. Tendulkar has clarified that he is not going to quit now from limited overs cricket and said that he is enjoying playing more now after winning the world cup. The Tendulkar fans in the country, who consider him as a cricketing God, just don’t want the great man to retire from any form of cricket and are eagerly waiting to see him in IPL and then to score his 100th hundred in the international cricket at his next national duty. Now it is not the time to talk about his retirement but is a time to celebrate the great man’s achievements and his world cup triumph.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an inspirational captain and he proved it again by winning the ICC Cricket World Cup. Tendulkar has called him the best captain he has played under and all his team mates are lavishing praises on him. MSD made all the right decisions and in the final played a captain’s knock when the team was in dire need of an excellent batting display. He was criticised by all, including this writer, for his poor form with the bat in the tournament. But in the final he made the great decision to come at number 5 and played a magnificent role in the win by hitting a match winning 91 off 79 balls. With one master stroke the ‘captain courageous’ has silenced all his critics by winning the Man of the Match award in the world cup final.
If there is one unsung hero in this Indian world cup win then that is the Indian coach Gary Kirsten. During his playing days the southpaw was one of the finest batsmen who played with grit, courage and intent. As a coach he was one who liked to help his players silently without creating much fuss about his role, a welcome change from his predecessor Greg Chappell who was arrogant, fussy and even officious at times. The respect and affection with which the Indian players, including the great Sachin Tendulkar, speak about him show how great an inspiration he has been in this world cup win. The victory lap by the Indian players by carrying ‘Guru' Gary on their shoulders was a fitting and deserving show of gratitude. It is pretty sad to know that Gary Kirsten is leaving the team and returning to South Africa where he has a young family to take care of. In the annals of Indian cricketing history the name of Gary Kirsten will be written in golden scripts.
All the players in the team played their roles well in the Indian World Cup win. The names of Yuvraj Singh, the Man of the Series, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh deserve special mention. It was a complete team effort by the Indian players and they have made a name in the history of Indian cricket. I would like to congratulate the Indian team for this great show.
‘Do it for Sachin’ was the overwhelming theme of this world cup in India. This was the great Sachin Tendulkar’s sixth world cup and a title win was perhaps the only thing missing in his otherwise phenomenal resume. There were many opinions expressed by the so called experts, particularly from England and Australia, that such a theme would divert the attention of the players from the real goal, which is to win the world cup. One of Australia’s world cup winning captains Steve Waugh was the main proponent of such an opinion. Now that it has become clear that such opinions are expressed by people who are absolutely oblivious of the mental make up of the Indians. We are people who are mainly guided by emotional aspirations and most of our desires are often aimed at bringing happiness to our beloveds. It was magnificently expressed by the Indian team when they shouldered Tendulkar and did a victory lap around the Wankhede Stadium after the final win. All players unequivocally stated that they dedicate this win to their great team mate and made clear that they did this for Sachin Tendulkar.
Though he failed to fire in the final match Sachin Tendulkar was at his best in the whole tournament where he scored an aggregate of 482 runs, second only to Tilakaratne Dilshan who made 500. Being a senior in the team he has given all the support and encouragement for all his junior team members which have become evident from the responses of his team mates. It was his long term ambition to win the world cup and the whole nation as well as the cricketing fraternity is rejoicing at his world cup win. Now that he has won the world cup questions have risen on whether he is contemplating to quit from the limited overs cricket for longevity in his test career. Tendulkar has clarified that he is not going to quit now from limited overs cricket and said that he is enjoying playing more now after winning the world cup. The Tendulkar fans in the country, who consider him as a cricketing God, just don’t want the great man to retire from any form of cricket and are eagerly waiting to see him in IPL and then to score his 100th hundred in the international cricket at his next national duty. Now it is not the time to talk about his retirement but is a time to celebrate the great man’s achievements and his world cup triumph.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an inspirational captain and he proved it again by winning the ICC Cricket World Cup. Tendulkar has called him the best captain he has played under and all his team mates are lavishing praises on him. MSD made all the right decisions and in the final played a captain’s knock when the team was in dire need of an excellent batting display. He was criticised by all, including this writer, for his poor form with the bat in the tournament. But in the final he made the great decision to come at number 5 and played a magnificent role in the win by hitting a match winning 91 off 79 balls. With one master stroke the ‘captain courageous’ has silenced all his critics by winning the Man of the Match award in the world cup final.
If there is one unsung hero in this Indian world cup win then that is the Indian coach Gary Kirsten. During his playing days the southpaw was one of the finest batsmen who played with grit, courage and intent. As a coach he was one who liked to help his players silently without creating much fuss about his role, a welcome change from his predecessor Greg Chappell who was arrogant, fussy and even officious at times. The respect and affection with which the Indian players, including the great Sachin Tendulkar, speak about him show how great an inspiration he has been in this world cup win. The victory lap by the Indian players by carrying ‘Guru' Gary on their shoulders was a fitting and deserving show of gratitude. It is pretty sad to know that Gary Kirsten is leaving the team and returning to South Africa where he has a young family to take care of. In the annals of Indian cricketing history the name of Gary Kirsten will be written in golden scripts.
All the players in the team played their roles well in the Indian World Cup win. The names of Yuvraj Singh, the Man of the Series, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh deserve special mention. It was a complete team effort by the Indian players and they have made a name in the history of Indian cricket. I would like to congratulate the Indian team for this great show.
1 comment:
1983 world cup win was far much better than 2011. You just cannot compare the two. Keep in mind the Foreign Conditions, pitches, Atmosphere and the mighty West Indies as the opposition just blows away Dhonis win. Do not ever compare pigeons with eagles.
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