as far as i remember, it was 1996 world cup, when i understood the importance of it...i remember going to see the match in a new york theater with family...it was india-australia match....and we lost the game....thats all i remember about it...
next was 1999 world cup..it was being played in england, and there was so much hype about it....media hyping india as the defending champions as per the venue.....but i dont really remember any of the tournament...i was in 10th then...i think the tournament happened during my board exams....whatever......
i followed 2003 world cup quite religiously....i remember being super excited about india- australia finals....seeing it and watching india lose.....
2007, i followed it....but india's performance was dismal.....
so well in 2011, i didnt really know what to expect...and yes, i did believe by then that i was jinxed for india...that if i saw the match india wouldnt win....the only match i saw was against south africa....and we lost...so I didnt want to take any further chances.....i vowed not to see a single match from then on....thats why i saw the highlights now and not the match even though i was up till 5 am....
i was definitely concerned about the quarterfinals, coz as you can see, we didnt have a great track record against the aussies....but with that hurdle down...i was very much confident of a win against Pakistan...coz even though they are a formidable team, most matches of india and pakistan that i remember, india has won....but yes, sri lanka was a difficult team to beat...so again in finals i was a nervous wreak.....
anyways, so here we are seeing our favourite cricketers or as we like to call them MEN IN BLUE lifting the coveted trophy.....and i had tears in my eyes.....i didnt know sub consciously i was waiting for this moment...yes i had seen the hysteria with a 20-20 world cup win....but this was different....this time it was for the players i wanted us to win....
the T 20 world cup win was about celebrating the youth....it was about boys who had never played before to go out there and to prove themselves....and showing that yes there could be a team without the cricketing greats....all of them have a long way to go yet....they are going to be around for sometime
the world cup 2011 was about seniors.....it was about they guiding the youth to the win....they being there for the team.....and i always thought about wanting this for SACHIN TENDULKAR more than anything else....coz i thought 6 world cups is long enough a wait....if he was to be a part of world cup winning team it was NOW....
only after the match i realized though that this cup meant a lot more for almost all players....coz they have been around for a while...some of them have been a part of losing side of 2003...as Harbhajan Singh said that he had waited 3 world cups for this dream to come true....and if he waited for 3 i am sure there are others like Yuvraj Singh, Nehra, Sehwag, Zaheer Khan who have been part of 3 world cups...this being their third world cup.....no wonder they got so emotional, and had tears in their eyes....
I loved them all for dedicating this victory to sachin....loved virat kohli's words about sachin "he has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years, its high time we carried him on our shoulders now"...Yuvi choked as he was getting his man of the series award...I am happy that Dhoni played a captain's knock, that too in the finals....that when the stalwarts faltered, Gambhir and Dhoni showed their mettle......loved the team carrying sachin around the ground....then the lifting Gary Kirsten too....sachin acknowledging the efforts of support staff...Yuvi and Harbhajan paying respects to their respective Gurus......loved the way the entire team hugged each other........Dhoni's calmness and sturdiness showed as he spoke....his explanation for not performing well enough in the tournament...(makes us realize they are normal human beings too)....loved everything about the game....
loved that there was no clear cut winner at the start...that there was no under dog...this was a game of two equals...and the game was to go in the favour of those who showed the nerves of steel....who played excellent in all three aspects...that there was a fight from the first ball to the last ball bowled....that it was a team effort and not one man show....
sri lanka was gracious in their defeat...they played well, and showed great sportsman spirit....i didnt feel any kind of animosity or bad vibes on the ground even as we inched towards victory....loved the way the entire team shook hands with Dhoni and Yuvi.,....i loved what kumar sangakara said at the end of the game....
It was indeed a great game.....And the Celebrations have Begun!!! 28 years is surely a long wait for the country...Thank you Men in Blue....
song of the day: chak de india......perfect song
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