Remembering Joginder Sharma and the fateful last over vs Pakistan in the 2007 T20 World Cup final
Former Indian medium pacer Joginder Sharma has a special place in Indian cricketing folklore as he had bowled that famous final over against Pakistan in the 2007 T20 World Cup final. The then-captain MS Dhoni had just begun his legendary tenure and the World Cup triumph was a sign of greater things to come.
Joginder took to Instagram to post a video snippet of him meeting Dhoni after a long time. The duo must have probably spoken about the 2007 T20 World Cup.
Here's what Joginder wrote in the video:
"Good to see you Mahi after very long time"
Joginder Sharma claimed in the caption that he had been meeting MS Dhoni after a long gap of 12 years. The former bowler currently serves as the DSP of Haryana Police.
Joginder Sharma's final over against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2007
Pakistan needed 13 runs to win off the final over with just one wicket in hand and MS Dhoni had a decision to make between Harbhajan Singh and Joginder Sharma. With Harbhajan having been hit for three sixes in an over by Misbah-ul-Haq, Dhoni took a punt on Joginder.
The idea from the pacer seemed to be clear - bowl wide yorkers and keep the ball away from Misbah-ul-Haq's arc. The first ball of the over was a wide, but the next ball was a marginal call that went in India's favor as it resulted in a dot ball.
Joginder Sharma tried another wide yorker, but it ended up being a full toss and Misbah smashed it straight down the ground for a six. With just six runs needed off four balls, the game seemed to be Pakistan's to lose.
However, Dhoni kept talking with Joginder after every ball, trying to calm the nerves of the bowler and probably make him understand that it was all about getting one wicket.
Misbah then tried to scoop a slower delivery outside off-stump behind fine leg, but could only get elevation on it. S Sreesanth took the catch at short fine leg and Team India went into delirium, winning the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup.
Joginder Sharma also played another crucial role in India's semifinal win over Australia, bowling the final over with the Aussies needing 22 runs to win. He first dismissed Michael Hussey, who was caught by Yuvraj Singh at deep mid-wicket, and followed it up with a brilliant yorker to castle Brett Lee.
Joginder played four T20Is and four ODIs for India. His last ODI appearance came in July 2007, while his performance in the T20 World Cup final was his last T20I appearance.
Joginder Sharma's IPL career
Joginder Sharma played four seasons of IPL for the Chennai Super Kings under MS Dhoni's captaincy. His most prolific season was the inaugural one where he picked up eight wickets in eight games at an economy rate of 9.68.
After the inaugural season, Joginder only made eight more appearances with his last appearance coming during IPL 2011. He announced his retirement from all forms of the game in February 2023.