India's playing 11 that won the NatWest final - where are they now?
On July 13, 2002, India won the NatWest Final against England. It was a tri-series in the United Kingdom, also involving Sri Lanka. The Indian team performed brilliantly in the first round and topped the standings with 19 points from six matches.
England also qualified for the NatWest Final by recording three wins in six matches. They had momentum on their side heading into the final because they beat India by 64 runs in their last meeting of the first round.
England started brilliantly in the NatWest Final and scored 325/5 in 50 overs. In reply, India were down to 146/5 in 24 overs. It looked like the home side would secure the tri-series win. However, the Indian team did not give up and launched a comeback for the ages to complete the 326-run chase in 49.3 overs, with two wickets in hand.
21 years have passed since the NatWest Final. In this article, we will look at India's playing XI from that match, and where those 11 players are now.
Batters & All-rounders - Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly (c), Dinesh Mongia, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid (wk), Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif
India had a star-studded batting lineup in the NatWest Final 2002. Virender Sehwag opened the batting with skipper Sourav Ganguly. The duo added 106 runs in just 14.3 overs to get India off to a flying start. However, Dinesh Mongia, Sachin Tendulkar, and Rahul Dravid lost their wickets in quick succession.
Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif then came to India's rescue. The two rising stars of Indian cricket stitched up a magnificent 121-run sixth-wicket partnership to take the team's total closer to 300. Singh lost his wicket to Paul Collingwood after a 63-ball 69, but Kaif remained not out till the end, scoring 87 runs off just 75 deliveries.
#Throwback to this memorable day when we ensured our tricolour flies high with pride 🇮🇳
This encounter should have been called NaTEST instead of Natwest coz it “tested” us at so many levels! 🤪😅
The victory won’t have been possible without the efforts of all teammates,… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/b7rrc1DlPQ
All players have retired now, with Sehwag, Ganguly, and Kaif working as commentators. Ganguly, who celebrated the NatWest Final win by taking his shirt off and waving it at Lord's, is also a member of Delhi Capitals' support staff in IPL. Dravid is the head coach of Team India.
Tendulkar is an icon of Mumbai Indians. He also captains India Legends in Road Safety World Series. Yuvraj is the mentor of the New York Strikers in the Abu Dhabi T10 League. He has also been trying his hand at golf. Meanwhile, Mongia has joined politics.
Bowlers - Harbhajan Singh, Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra
Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble formed India's spin attack in that match. While Singh remained wicketless, Kumble bowled a spell of 1/54 in 10 overs. Zaheer Khan was the pick of India's bowlers in the NatWest Final. He returned with figures of 3/62 in 10 overs. Ashish Nehra supported him by scalping the wicket of Nasser Hussain.
Went home to Allahabad and caught Natwest rerun with parents. Maa's words: "Final live to nahi dekh paye, but Allah ka karam ki hazaar baar ye match dekha TV pe". Papa is so happy to see Dada at Lord's balcony.
#NatwestFinal #throwback twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/IhbLDeqJ2V
All four bowlers have retired from all formats of international cricket. Singh plays in Legends League Cricket and works as a commentator. Kumble, Nehra, and Khan have tried their luck in coaching and commentary. Khan is associated with the Mumbai Indians, whereas Nehra is the head coach of Gujarat Titans.