World Cup Cricket 2011: India Scripts Elephantal Win!

Well the word ‘Elephantal’may seem  surprising but I am gifting this new word to Englishmen just to express how India won the cup with the ease of a tusker’s movement who has the world at his feet oblivious of any opposition and if any opposition at all decimating the same with grace and power, grace of his uplifted trunk and the power of his tusk as well as the majestic movement of his monumental feet.

There is no other way I can describe the win. Just look; Sri Lanka posing a 275 run challenge which looked formidable but achievable. But, what a disastrous start! Star hitter Sahabag out with zero on board. The world’s best bat Sachin out at 31 on board. It is two down at 31. Both the diamond openers were out cheaply.

Unfettered and unfazed, team India started pulling up and was always ahead of Sri  Lanka in scoring rate. First it was a rock solid show from Goutam Gambhir teaming up with Viraat Kohli scoring 83 joint venture runs followed by a century partnership between the captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the great Goutam Gambhi. When Gambhir was out at the India total of 223 missing his century by a mere three runs, Dhoni had all but the Cup in his pocket. Thereafter no stopping and with Yuvraj (meaning ‘CrownPrince’) at the other end, Dhoni finished off the match with a big bang of 6 with 10 balls to spare.

The win has been a big one particularly because even after losing both Sachin and Shewag cheaply, India won majestically with its tusk up all the while, proving a point that a set of fresh and fearless junior have arrived to lead the team from front.

India deserved a world cup win after 1983 when Kapil’s devils romped home with even a better performance.

Why I say a better performance? Indians scored a paltry 183 in their quota of 60 overs utilising 54.4 overs. It seemed that the mighty West Indians led by the Clive Lloyd (West Indies was the best world team in those times) would overrun the Indians in no times. But the lion hearted Kapil Dev’s team fought valiantly and pulled the shutter down by throwing the all mighty West Indian pack in a mere 140. It was the best world cup win India, or for that matterany other team, could dream.

Yuvraj- who had performed consistently throughout this world cup scoring a total of more than 300 runs and sculping 15 wickets proving himself as the best all-rounder in the world at these times- was adjudged Man of the Tournament. In the run up to finals Yuvraj also pocketed as many 4 Man of the Match awards.