Six 30+ scores which played a major role in India's World Cup triumphs
India has been one of the few countries that has won all 3 major ICC Tournaments. India also has the unique distinction of winning a 60-over World Cup, a 20-over World Cup and a 50-over World Cup. India also won Kerry Packer's World Championship series in Australia in 1985 and ICC Champions Trophy in 2002 (Joint Winners with Sri Lanka) and 2013. India lost the opportunity to add a couple of ICC World Cup trophies to their trophy cabinet when they featured in the World Cup finals against Australia in 2003 and T20 Cup finals against Sri Lanka in 2014.
In all these World Cup campaigns, there have been some sterling performances, which has lifted the side. Kapil Dev's 175 was a monumental effort that helped India reach the semis in 1983 World Cup. Sachin Tendulkar's 482 runs in the 2011 World Cup brought India to the finals. Yuvraj Singh's inspired performances in the 2007 T20 World Cup motivated the team to go all the way.
There were multiple star-performers who did it for India, but there were a few important contributions along the way, which eventually made the difference. Let's look at six such contributions that helped India achieve World Cup glory.
#6 Suresh Raina - 34 versus Australia in 2011 World Cup Quarter Final
India were playing against defending champions Australia. Ricky Ponting won an all-important toss in Ahmedabad and decided to bat. Brad Haddin scored 53 and Ricky Ponting led from the front with a fighting 104. David Hussey's 38-run cameo helped Australia reach 260, which given the conditions was a very good total.
India started off on a positive note and Sachin Tendulkar's 53 and Gautam Gambhir's 50 kept the Australian bowlers at bay. Once the duo were dismissed, Yuvraj Singh took up the responsibility and continued scoring at a brisk pace. MS Dhoni was dismissed against the run of play and India were reeling at 187 for 5 in the 37th over, still needing 74 runs from 74 balls.
Suresh Raina joined Yuvraj Singh and the duo wrestled back the momentum from Australia with some sensible batting. They were constantly rotating the strike and hitting the occasional boundary when needed. Raina scored 34 from 28 balls which included 5 fours and a six. This partnership sealed the game for India and ousted the defending champions from the World Cup.