The Cup that counts...
It was the 13th of March, 1996. The target on the board was 252. Of those, 98 had already been knocked down at the cost of only one wicket. A cr0wd of 100,000 eagerly supported their hero. He had made 65 of those 98 and looked on course for a big 100.
The explosive star from the other team failed to shine with the bat earlier that day. Now, he was attempting to have a go with the ball. The crowd expected nothing but more runs from this.
It was evident that the Little Master was trying hard to concentrate. But there was something not right. What was he thinking? Was he thinking too far ahead instead of the approaching ball? Was he thinking about the upcoming final?
And then came the ball down the leg side. Clearly a wide. The Little Master suddenly lost his balance and his right foot lost contact with the ground. The guy behind the stumps was patiently waiting for this very moment. He quickly took the bails off and the Master's innings was over. Off a wide. The crowd was wide-eyed in despair. A collective groan echoed around the Eden Gardens. The Lankans went up in glee. The Master could not believe it. He had lost the plot that day.
And then the collapse! 98/1 to 120/8 as the opposition team celebrated with glee. The crowd could not take it anymore. Enough was enough. Stones and bottles traced their parabolic trajectory to land on the field. A nation was let down by the heroes it idolized. And the Eden Gardens was venting its anger.
The insult and injury had to be avenged. Experts and ex-players criticized the crowd not being sporty. But who said it was just another sport to the crowd? The Eden Gardens and the rest of the nation was united in their allegiance to the religion of cricket. That day went down as the darkest moment of Indian Cricket.
That day, one of two childhood friends walked away with tears of sorrow in his eyes.
7 years on, it's 23rd of March, 2003. India vs Australia in the World Cup final. It appeared that the GOD would get his first World Cup medal. But the immature Zaheer was foolish enough to try sledging the mighty Matt and the cool Adam. He got clobbered for 15 runs off his first over and it was an ominous start. Australia put up 359/2 in their 50 overs and it was clear that only GOD could win it for India.
The first three balls fetched no runs and the nation held its breath. The fourth ball off McGrath was dispatched to the cover boundary in a divine fashion. The nation applauded. It sensed that there could be something special that evening.
But it was not to be. The very next ball, disaster struck. A slower ball from the wily Glenn and the GOD fell for it. A billion hearts were broken.
Another 8 years on. It's 2nd of April, 2011. It's the same two teams that had met 15 years ago. But only 1 player in each team has survived from that game 15 years ago. It's the newly made Wankhede stadium in the Well-known Island of Mumbai in Western India (WIMWI). The stage is different and the occasion is grander.
Toss time. The coin was flipped and Kumar had made a call. It looked like India had won the toss when Sangakkara feigned confusion. Since the outcome of the toss was known and Sanga knew what he had called for (notwithstanding the noisy crowd), "sportsman spirit" would have demanded that Sanga own up to his call, even if that meant losing the toss. But you cannot expect that from Sri Lanka. A team that goes on batting from the second day to the last of a Test Match on a dead track after the team batting first has declared and which bowls a wide to prevent a batsman from getting his hundred clearly does not comprehend the phrase "sportsman spirit".
This match had to be won by India. For the GOD and for the religion of cricket.
Zaheer again had the new ball. But the result this time was vastly different. He returned an amazing opening spell of 3 maidens in 5 overs with a wicket (wickut, as the Lankans call it). It was a good start. But by the end of the innings, the Lankans had a managed to put up a massive score of 274, with that hated Mahela getting a century.
No one had scored a century on the losing side ever before in a World Cup final. Only twice of 9 world cup finals were won chasing before this one. No team had won the World Cup on home soil. The odds were stacked high against India.
Out came the Lord and the GOD of Indian cricket. The Lord fell off just the second ball to the slinger. Would it be a repeat of the 2003 final? No, the GOD was still out there. People believed it was his night. He was soon stroking the ball well and the nation hoped that the GOD would make a ton of tons that night.
But again it was not to be. Just one loose shot and the GOD also fell to the slinger. A billion hearts were broken. The crowd was stunned into silence. This could not be happening. This was not true? India cannot lose this one. Not to Lanka.
It was time to change position. I went with a friend to the same place where we'd watched India beat Pak in the semis. This was the lucky place for India, we reasoned. And blamed ourselves for not having realized this before, which cost the GOD's wicket.
That seemed to work as the cool and confident new face of Indian cricket emerged to salvage the match and the nation's pride. Captain MSD came out after Kohli fell at a difficult point in the innings. Was it strong leadership or was it merely having a left-right combination? Whatever it was, the duo of Gauti and Dhoni made sure that the Lankan bowlers had sagged shoulders and despaired faces. Gauti missed out on his ton but the damage was done and with in-form Yuvi next in, it was India's match from there on.
Dhoni finished off the Lankans with a massive six and a nation erupted in joy. That moment is one of the most memorable ones from two decades of following this game. The night-long celebrations and the drive to India Gate to witness the followers of a religion that binds this country were legendary.
And why not? It was the crowning moment for the legend that had enthralled the nation for over two decades. It was the night when Team India had won the Cup that counts for the Little Master. As Kohli aptly put it after he and Raina carried Sachin around the Wankhede, "Sachin has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It's only fair we carry him now".
That day, the other childhood friend walked away with tears of joy in his eyes and the Cup that counted in his hands.
Note: Though I have intermittently blogged elsewhere, it was only fitting that I put this particular post here, in memory of the post four years ago. And hasn't the dream come true! :-) And even the exit in 2007 had come against Sri Lanka. How very fitting the victory of 2nd April 2011 has been!!
The explosive star from the other team failed to shine with the bat earlier that day. Now, he was attempting to have a go with the ball. The crowd expected nothing but more runs from this.
It was evident that the Little Master was trying hard to concentrate. But there was something not right. What was he thinking? Was he thinking too far ahead instead of the approaching ball? Was he thinking about the upcoming final?
And then came the ball down the leg side. Clearly a wide. The Little Master suddenly lost his balance and his right foot lost contact with the ground. The guy behind the stumps was patiently waiting for this very moment. He quickly took the bails off and the Master's innings was over. Off a wide. The crowd was wide-eyed in despair. A collective groan echoed around the Eden Gardens. The Lankans went up in glee. The Master could not believe it. He had lost the plot that day.
And then the collapse! 98/1 to 120/8 as the opposition team celebrated with glee. The crowd could not take it anymore. Enough was enough. Stones and bottles traced their parabolic trajectory to land on the field. A nation was let down by the heroes it idolized. And the Eden Gardens was venting its anger.
The insult and injury had to be avenged. Experts and ex-players criticized the crowd not being sporty. But who said it was just another sport to the crowd? The Eden Gardens and the rest of the nation was united in their allegiance to the religion of cricket. That day went down as the darkest moment of Indian Cricket.
That day, one of two childhood friends walked away with tears of sorrow in his eyes.
7 years on, it's 23rd of March, 2003. India vs Australia in the World Cup final. It appeared that the GOD would get his first World Cup medal. But the immature Zaheer was foolish enough to try sledging the mighty Matt and the cool Adam. He got clobbered for 15 runs off his first over and it was an ominous start. Australia put up 359/2 in their 50 overs and it was clear that only GOD could win it for India.
The first three balls fetched no runs and the nation held its breath. The fourth ball off McGrath was dispatched to the cover boundary in a divine fashion. The nation applauded. It sensed that there could be something special that evening.
But it was not to be. The very next ball, disaster struck. A slower ball from the wily Glenn and the GOD fell for it. A billion hearts were broken.
Another 8 years on. It's 2nd of April, 2011. It's the same two teams that had met 15 years ago. But only 1 player in each team has survived from that game 15 years ago. It's the newly made Wankhede stadium in the Well-known Island of Mumbai in Western India (WIMWI). The stage is different and the occasion is grander.
Toss time. The coin was flipped and Kumar had made a call. It looked like India had won the toss when Sangakkara feigned confusion. Since the outcome of the toss was known and Sanga knew what he had called for (notwithstanding the noisy crowd), "sportsman spirit" would have demanded that Sanga own up to his call, even if that meant losing the toss. But you cannot expect that from Sri Lanka. A team that goes on batting from the second day to the last of a Test Match on a dead track after the team batting first has declared and which bowls a wide to prevent a batsman from getting his hundred clearly does not comprehend the phrase "sportsman spirit".
This match had to be won by India. For the GOD and for the religion of cricket.
Zaheer again had the new ball. But the result this time was vastly different. He returned an amazing opening spell of 3 maidens in 5 overs with a wicket (wickut, as the Lankans call it). It was a good start. But by the end of the innings, the Lankans had a managed to put up a massive score of 274, with that hated Mahela getting a century.
No one had scored a century on the losing side ever before in a World Cup final. Only twice of 9 world cup finals were won chasing before this one. No team had won the World Cup on home soil. The odds were stacked high against India.
Out came the Lord and the GOD of Indian cricket. The Lord fell off just the second ball to the slinger. Would it be a repeat of the 2003 final? No, the GOD was still out there. People believed it was his night. He was soon stroking the ball well and the nation hoped that the GOD would make a ton of tons that night.
But again it was not to be. Just one loose shot and the GOD also fell to the slinger. A billion hearts were broken. The crowd was stunned into silence. This could not be happening. This was not true? India cannot lose this one. Not to Lanka.
It was time to change position. I went with a friend to the same place where we'd watched India beat Pak in the semis. This was the lucky place for India, we reasoned. And blamed ourselves for not having realized this before, which cost the GOD's wicket.
That seemed to work as the cool and confident new face of Indian cricket emerged to salvage the match and the nation's pride. Captain MSD came out after Kohli fell at a difficult point in the innings. Was it strong leadership or was it merely having a left-right combination? Whatever it was, the duo of Gauti and Dhoni made sure that the Lankan bowlers had sagged shoulders and despaired faces. Gauti missed out on his ton but the damage was done and with in-form Yuvi next in, it was India's match from there on.
Dhoni finished off the Lankans with a massive six and a nation erupted in joy. That moment is one of the most memorable ones from two decades of following this game. The night-long celebrations and the drive to India Gate to witness the followers of a religion that binds this country were legendary.
And why not? It was the crowning moment for the legend that had enthralled the nation for over two decades. It was the night when Team India had won the Cup that counts for the Little Master. As Kohli aptly put it after he and Raina carried Sachin around the Wankhede, "Sachin has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It's only fair we carry him now".
That day, the other childhood friend walked away with tears of joy in his eyes and the Cup that counted in his hands.
Note: Though I have intermittently blogged elsewhere, it was only fitting that I put this particular post here, in memory of the post four years ago. And hasn't the dream come true! :-) And even the exit in 2007 had come against Sri Lanka. How very fitting the victory of 2nd April 2011 has been!!
