I was alive when..: A look at some of the best moments in sport from the last 13 years
Being a kid of 1990s, these images will always stay with me till I die. I will feel proud to tell my grandchildren about some of the fascinating sporting moments that we witnessed in last decade or so. It was a pure honor, not just watching them but also being present in this world when they actually transpired. Note: The events considered in this slideshow are from the period of 2002-2015. There were numerous sporting moments which made us laugh in joy and cry in pain. Be it team India’s famous comeback swin at Eden Gardens in 2001 to stop the Australian Juggernaut or Brazil’s thrashing by Germany in 2014 FIFA World Cup, Watching Federer shed tears after Australian Open loss and of course who can forget Sourav Ganguly who whirled his shirt at the Lord’s balcony after India’s unbelievable victory in the Natwest Trophy final of 2002. Each of these moment made us forget our worries and gave us something to smile at. Hope this collection will make you people recall all such moments and bring that curve back on your face.
#5 Venue: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. Date: 2nd April 2011.
It took India nearly 28 long years to bring back the cup which they lifted in that epic final of 1983. Well, this final was even more special as it was played in the Indian Mecca of Cricket, Mumbai, in front of a packed crowd of 42,000. The Men in Blue were given a daunting task of crossing a total of 274. Their task became even more difficult when they lost Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar with negligible scores.
But Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli began the rescue act after the opening blows, putting on 84 for the third wicket before the latter was caught-and-bowled by Tilakaratne Dilshan. MS Dhoni walked in at 5 to join Gambhir in the middle and the duo put on 118 runs for the 4th wicket, thereby putting an enormous amount of pressure on Kumar Sangakkara and his men.
Gambhir was unfortunate to miss out on a hundred but Dhoni carried on and in the company of the eventual Man-of-the-Series Yuvraj Singh, helped India win their second World Cup title finishing the job with a six off a Nuwan Kulasekara delivery.
Even though, it is Dhoni, who will be credited for this win, I think the role played by Gambhir was of even more important, considering the precarious position India was in, when he came to bat. This final was watched by 135 million viewers only in India and each one of them was given a special treat by Dhoni’s Blue Brigade. Those scenes of joy will be remembered by everyone for many more years to come.