"Dhoni finishes off in style. A magnificent strike into the crowd. India lifts the World Cup after 28 years," Ravi Shastri marked that moment in his immortal voice.
On 2nd April 2011, India lifted the World Cup after 28 years and that moment was the biggest moment of Indian Cricket history.
Team India marched into finals after beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the semi-final. On the other hand, Kumar Sangakkara-led Sri Lanka went past New Zealand to set-up a summit clash with India’s Men in blue.
Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat first. Mahela Jayawardene (103*) scored an unbeaten century and captain Sangakkara chipped in with a 48( 67) to help Sri Lanka post 274/6 in their allotted 50 overs.
For India, Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh picked 2 wickets each. Now, it was the time for India to bat to chase 275 runs to create history. The Men in Blue were off to a terrible start as they lost openers Virender Sehwag (0) and Sachin Tendulkar (18) early.
Gautam Gambhir played the role of a pivot as he scored a brilliant 97 off 122 and shared an 83 run partnership with Virat Kohli (35) for the third wicket.
India lost its 3rd wicket at the score of 114. Now it was the time for Yuvraj Singh to come and bat but Dhoni had something else in his mind and the out for Dhoni decided to come up the order ahead of Yuvraj Singh.
Dhoni (91*) and Gambhir stitched a partnership of 109 runs for the fourth wicket to take India to a comfortable position.
Dhoni won the match for India with his trademark six off Nuwan Kulasekara towards the long-on region.That was the moment for which the whole country was waiting. That was the moment which gave us goosebumps.
MS Dhoni was named Man of the Match for his powerful and match-winning batting display under pressure in the final. Yuvraj Singh was named Man of the Tournament for good all-around performance with both bat and ball throughout the tournament.
After the presentation, an ecstatic Indian team first held the Cup amid showers of champagne and confetti. Some Indian players, including Harbhajan Singh, Sachin Tendulkar, and Yuvraj Singh, had tears in their eyes. The team then carried iconic player Tendulkar on a victory lap around the stadium.
Coach Gary Kirsten was also carried around the ground later. The Indian players dedicated their victory to Tendulkar; Virat Kohli said, "he has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It is time we carried him on our shoulders." Gautam Gambhir dedicated the victory to the victims of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, and to the soldiers guarding India's borders.
Celebrations went on through the night in the team hotel. The victory prompted several firework displays and celebrations throughout India. It looked like the whole country was celebrating Diwali on 2nd april,2011.
