On the occasion of the victory of Team India’s 2007 ICC T20 World Cup, former Indian batter Robin Uthappa said on Saturday that he still remembers his celebration after the famous bowl-out after a thrilling Group D draw with arch-rival Pakistan during the tournament. A new chapter in Indian cricket history was written when a young and relatively inexperienced Team India led by MS Dhoni won the hearts of a billion fans as they defeated Pakistan in the final of the inaugural ICC T20 World 15 years to this day. Men’s Cup.
The Men in Blue escaped defeat in the final over of the match, beating their arch-rivals by a margin of just five runs. The 2007 World Cup victory was India’s first-ever major limited-overs trophy since the exploits of the 1983 ICC Men’s World Cup.
The match, played in front of a rowdy crowd at Wanderers, in Johannesburg, South Africa, was one of the best matches ever in a major final of an ICC tournament. 15 years later, the fond memories of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup are still fresh in the minds of not only the fans, but also the players.
With some hard-fought wins against some of the best teams in world cricket at the time, it was no mean feat, as recalled by Star Sports panelist Robin Uthappa, who played a key role in India winning the 2007 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. to win. He said: “I can’t believe it’s been 15 years since we won the T20 World Cup. To me, it feels like it’s only been a few years. The fond memories of our very first win in the T20 World Cup are still there. still fresh in my mind. I can still remember bowling in the bowl-out and dropping my hat to celebrate we won!”
The Group D clash between India and Pakistan saw a bowl-out to determine the winner after both teams tied for 141 runs each. Players from both sides aimed for the punches, with India winning the bowl-out 3-0.
“I want to wish the Men in Blue all the best as they go Down Under to try and repeat history and bring us back the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup with ‘Mission Melbourne’. It’s a special experience to win the World Cup and I wish Rohit and the boys would do their very best to repeat the feat we achieved 15 years ago!” he added.
The young and inexperienced Indian squad to win the trophy had a brisk pace attack led by Irfan Pathan, who reminisced about the moments before they triumphed over Pakistan in the World Cup final. He said: “I still get goosebumps when I think about the final and how we won it in the last over. We gave our best in that World Cup and to finally be awarded the trophy was just one of the most special feelings in my life.”
“I can still imagine the team and the crowd celebrating for India when Sreesanth caught Misbah in that final. I hope the Indian team is fully prepared for ‘Mission Melbourne’ and aims to bring the trophy to India again. I wish them all the best!” he added.
On this day in 2007, India won the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup, beating Pakistan by five runs in a thrilling final in Johannesburg.
Both teams had a great run in the tournament heading into the finals and topped their respective groups. India came into the top clash after beating the mighty Australians in the semi-final by 15 runs. On the other hand, Pakistan had beaten New Zealand by six wickets in the semi-final.
India chose to bat first after winning the toss. They put down 157/5 in their 20 overs. Gautam Gambhir’s 75 from 54 balls and Rohit Sharma’s hard hitting cameo of 30* from 16 balls helped Men in Blue get a solid score for an ICC final for those days. Pacer Umar Gul (3/26) failed to let Team India reach a big score and took wickets in crucial stages.
Pakistan chased 158 and lost wickets at regular intervals. RP Singh (3/26) and Irfan (3/16) controlled the flow of their arch-rivals. Knocks from Imran Nazir (33), Younis Khan (24) were solid but Pakistan continued to struggle at 6/77. Misbah-ul-Haq (43) then tried to win against Pakistan but came up five runs short after a delivery scoop by Joginder Sharma (2/20) was caught by S Sreesanth, sending millions into ecstasy. Pakistan was bundled for 152 runs.
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Since then, India has not won another T20 World Cup. Their best performances since then remain second in the 2014 edition and the semifinals in the 2016 edition of the tournament.
The upcoming 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup will take place in Australia from October 16 to November 13.
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