Mumbai to Ahmedabad, 15 years apart, the wild celebrations have been the same

Watching the euphoria and wild celebrations in Ahmedabad and the rest of the country on Sunday night evoked memories of yet another historical moment in Indian cricket history.

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A flashback to April 2, 2011 World Cup final. Venue: Wankhede Stadium. That was the year when India won the World Cup in India under Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy. Fittingly, Dhoni hit the winning six to signal India’s victory. Wild celebrations erupted all over the country when Ravi Shastri highlighted how the captain “soaked up the pressure” to finish the game in style.

A billion dreams were fulfilled with that straight six. Dhoni’s team made history as India broke the jinx by becoming the first host nation to win the World Cup by beating Sri Lanka by six wickets. This was the second time India captured the One-day World Cup after Kapil Dev’s boys who set the Lord’s on fire in 1983 toppling the mighty West Indies.

I was lucky to be there at the media box to witness the historic feat. The media box was full to the brim. I was allowed in the second allotment of seats. But it was worth waiting. When I entered it was a surreal atmosphere. Excitement was all around. Apart from Dhoni’s gigantic six, one thing is still fresh in memory when the entire team surrounded Sachin Tendulkar and lifted him in turns in the lap of honour at the stadium.

India won the 2011 World Cup

Team India won it for Tendulkar

A young Virat Kohli aptly described how desperate the team was to present this World Cup to their `paaji’ Tendulkar. “This goes out to all the people of India. This is my first world cup; I can’t ask for more. Tendulkar has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years; It was time we carried him. Chak de India!”

Tendulkar himself couldn’t have asked for anything more than this. “Winning the World Cup is the proudest moment of my life. The team stuck together during the rough phases and proved people wrong who doubted our ability. Self-belief has always been there but in the last two years, we have been very consistent,” said Tendulkar during the celebrations.

Tendulkar added that the team had been extremely consistent for the last couple of years. “It is terrific to be part of the team. A special thanks to Gary Kirsten, Paddy and other staff members,” he said.

Yuvraj Singh, the Player of the Tournament, said it was an unbelievable journey. “Gauti (Gautam Gambhir) and Dhoni batted like champions,” said Yuvraj who thanked his gurus and mother.

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Asked about his bowling, Yuvraj said he had been working hard on his bowling. “Hirwani helped me also,” he said.

Zaheer Khan, who was the leading wicket-taker for India with 19 wickets, said they had been working hard for this moment and were able to do it for Tendulkar. “We wanted to win badly. We are glad to achieve something for a special man (Sachin Tendulkar), who is standing here. We are all happy for him. We are all happy for the team. There is no word to express it.”

Virender Sehwag paid tributes to his team. “We prepared well and we were sure we would win the final. Yuvraj played some great knocks. Chasing 260 against Australia at Ahmedabad was a great achievement. The bowlers did a fantastic job and batted well and fielded well. Indeed, imagine a 38-year-old diving in the deep (referring to Tendulkar).  We gave everything to the team,” he said.

Celebrations and euphoria in 2011 were unending

The reports were filed but the celebrations and euphoria were unending. It spilled on Marine Drive. It was a sea of human beings, from young to old, spilling on the Drive Road. It continued and continued till early hours. It took us two-hours to wriggle out of the crowd to reach our hotel which was mere one km from the stadium. But in the end, it was a memorable night that gave joy to billions of people to the cricket crazy nation.