I Was Not Prepared for the Indian Victory

Indian team departs the Americas as World Champions after 13 years

When India won the World Twenty20, as it was called back then, in 2007, I was not prepared. 

They held the final on a Monday, and living in the US we happened to be just enough hours behind South Africa, the hosts of the tournament, where the match time clashed with our morning hours right around the time I had to go to school. I was in the 8th grade. But India was in the final.

Before the tournament even started, there were too many unknowns. What is this new format? Where are the main stalwarts of the team? No Sachin, no Dravid, no Ganguly? Who is this new captain Dhoni? But it was the first major tournament after the fiasco of the ODI World Cup in the West Indies earlier that same year where India had been humiliated at the hands of Bangladesh on the global stage and had crashed out in just the group stages. As a result, there were no expectations from this young Indian squad led for the first time by an up and coming wicketkeeper-batsman with hair like Thor and bat swings like Thor’s hammer Mjölnir.

T20 was still in its infancy at the time, as evinced in the almost farcical ‘bowl-out’ between India and Pakistan following a tie in the group stages. There were totals below 100, some over 200. India had nearly posted a first innings score of 220, with a certain southpaw putting the exclamation in an unforgettable over of sixes. But in this new, mercurial, polarizing, and exhilarating format, India somehow found itself in the final. And as the match was nearing its conclusion, I was getting late for school. 

My mom and I were glued to the TV - my dad due to his job was traveling - as Pakistan’s Misbah-ul-Haq was threatening to chase down the target single-handedly with wickets tumbling at the other end. In hindsight, was this World Twenty20 that much of an afterthought that they decided to play the final of such a tournament on a Monday? Of course, I was willing to miss school for this. My mom wasn’t as sure. Yet, she also got swept up in the madness that is Indian cricket. With my backpack at arm’s length and my mom clutching the house keys, we were both ready to take off as soon as the the last ball had been bowled. The rest, as they say, is history. The rest is the beginning of the legend of Dhoni. The rest is the 20th over given to Joginder Sharma, who interestingly never played in another T20 international after that final. The rest is Misbah’s inventive paddle-scoop shot gone wrong. The rest is the explosion of the T20 format’s popularity and the ensuing leagues worldwide skyrocketing the money in the sport to dizzying heights.

I ended up fashionably late for school that morning, but with a beaming smile on my face. I was not prepared to be so invested in this particular tournament. But as it does invariably, cricket finds a way to capture your attention, toy with your emotions, and thrill you by the minute.

So after all this time, when India won the T20 World Cup, as it is called now, yesterday, I still was not prepared. 

But India were in the final. And at least it was a weekend. I was not in school anymore. I was married now, watching the game with my wife who put up with me as I tuned into any and all live sporting events.

The cricket fan in me had very nearly lost all its faith after the heartbreak in Ahmedabad in the 2023 ODI World Cup against Australia. Where in spite of decimating every single opponent along the way, India lost its way in the final where it mattered the most. The ghosts of that loss returned to haunt me as South Africa was marching to the finish line, needing a run a ball with five overs left and six wickets in hand. Yet again, India had been invincible leading up to the final. Yet again, India had been by far the best team producing clinical performances game after game. Yet again, every single player had contributed to the cause throughout the tournament. And yet again, it looked all but over as Heinrich Klaasen was bashing the Indian spinners who all collectively had their worst game of the series.

As a last roll of the dice, Hardik Pandya was given the ball for the 17th over, with the equation to win firmly in South Africa’s favor. The rest, as they say, is history. The rest is Pandya producing a gem of an over, sending back the set Klaasen. The rest is Pandya putting the trials of injuries and the tribulations of a completely bust of an IPL season behind him to showcase why he is India’s most premier all rounder. The rest is Bumrah being Bumrah and proving why he is the world’s best bowler and perhaps the greatest pacer to ever wear the Indian jersey. The rest is the fledgling Arshdeep Singh, holding all nerves and delivering yet another masterful death over. The rest is that gravity-defying piece of fielding by Suryakumar Yadav, who only scored three runs while batting but saved the most important six runs of the entire match pulled off a stunning catch that will never ever be forgotten. 

Back in 2007, several big names like Tendulkar and Ganguly had opted out of the tournament to give a chance to youngsters as they felt T20 was a young man’s format. Those youngsters are now among the big names in Indian cricket today who have all announced T20 retirements. Virat Kohli, as expected, saved his best innings for the last, what can be said about him that hasn’t been said already? The greatest batter of his generation, with the most insatiable appetite for runs and the most incredible mental fortitude, departs as a world champion. Ravindra Jadeja, the consummate all-rounder, raised India’s fielding standards with his acrobatic dives, catches, and run outs, departs as a world champion. Rohit Sharma, synonymous with leading by example, lived and died by the sword till the very end, the most nonchalant yet most aggressive captain, departs as a world champion. Rahul Dravid, one of those big names who did not participate in 2007, solidifies his legacy and takes it to the next level by finally getting that elusive World Cup trophy which no other cricketer ever has deserved more, departs as a world champion.

“Why are they all crying? I have never seen so many grown men crying,” my wife asked. I can’t say why sports does this to us. After all these years I still don’t know. Again I was not prepared to be so invested in this particular tournament. But again this Indian team had found a way to capture. Again they were toying with my emotions. And again I had given up all hope and accepted that it was going to be yet another defeat in the final. But I was not prepared for what actually transpired.

Most of these Indian players had not experienced victory of such high proportions. They had come agonizingly close on virtually every occasion on the world stage. But India had not won a World Cup final for 13 years since that Dhoni six sealed a famous victory. Out of relief, out of pure joy, out of exhaustion, out of the humidity in Barbados, whatever it was but these cricketers lived out a movie script and played out a final for the ages. They cried after it was over, they bared all their emotions. Maybe they were also just not prepared for what actually happened. 

The rest is history; this Indian team has just wrote that history.