India Vs Sri Lanka – The Final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, 2nd April – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
India lost a controversial toss and as expected Sangakkara chose to bat first.
India walked in with one change of Sreesanth replacing the injured Ashish Nehra while Sri Lanka came out with 4 changes leaving out one of their most economical bowler of the tournament Ajantha Mendis. Right from the start, the Sri Lankans looked very tentative in their approach. Some brilliant bowling by the Indian pacers backed by spirited work in the field put the Lankans on the back foot and ensured they reach their lowest powerplay score till now that of 31/1 at the end of 10 overs. Dilshan tried to stick around but was shown the way for 33 runs. Sangakara and Jayawardene, two of the seniormost players, steadied the ship with a good partnership of 62 until Sangakkara was dismissed by Yuvraj for 48. Silva and Kapugadera did not last long. But M Jayawardene played beautifully and together with Parera and Kulasekara took the SL innings to a very competitive total of 274/6 at the end of 50 overs.
Jayawardene scored his century and played a gem of an innings, performing in a high pressure game needs a lot of grit, determination and concentration and he showed the world just what a class player he is! It was interesting to see how the highly rated Indian batting prowess would respond now.
It was a disappointing start to the Indian innings with Sehwag getting out for a duck. Sachin showed glimpses of a big innings but could not carry on. Pressure was intense. But Gambhir stuck on and with the able support from Virat managed to bring the run chase back on track. Virat got out for 35 and there was an unexpected player walking in. Dhoni entered the scene at 114/3 and went on to score an unbeaten 91 putting up a 109 run match winning partnership with Gambhir.
4 needed from 7 balls when Dhoni hit a massive six… the crowds erupted… firecrackers dazzled in the dark of the night sky… the players rushed out to the field… India had got the CUP! The celebrations had just begun! But will surely continue for many more years to come!!!
India walked in with one change of Sreesanth replacing the injured Ashish Nehra while Sri Lanka came out with 4 changes leaving out one of their most economical bowler of the tournament Ajantha Mendis. Right from the start, the Sri Lankans looked very tentative in their approach. Some brilliant bowling by the Indian pacers backed by spirited work in the field put the Lankans on the back foot and ensured they reach their lowest powerplay score till now that of 31/1 at the end of 10 overs. Dilshan tried to stick around but was shown the way for 33 runs. Sangakara and Jayawardene, two of the seniormost players, steadied the ship with a good partnership of 62 until Sangakkara was dismissed by Yuvraj for 48. Silva and Kapugadera did not last long. But M Jayawardene played beautifully and together with Parera and Kulasekara took the SL innings to a very competitive total of 274/6 at the end of 50 overs.
Jayawardene scored his century and played a gem of an innings, performing in a high pressure game needs a lot of grit, determination and concentration and he showed the world just what a class player he is! It was interesting to see how the highly rated Indian batting prowess would respond now.
It was a disappointing start to the Indian innings with Sehwag getting out for a duck. Sachin showed glimpses of a big innings but could not carry on. Pressure was intense. But Gambhir stuck on and with the able support from Virat managed to bring the run chase back on track. Virat got out for 35 and there was an unexpected player walking in. Dhoni entered the scene at 114/3 and went on to score an unbeaten 91 putting up a 109 run match winning partnership with Gambhir.
4 needed from 7 balls when Dhoni hit a massive six… the crowds erupted… firecrackers dazzled in the dark of the night sky… the players rushed out to the field… India had got the CUP! The celebrations had just begun! But will surely continue for many more years to come!!!
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