The Wanderers Cry to Motera's Laugh-The Conclusion
“It's for moments like these that I play cricket"
Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke,Brett Lee, Shane Watson,Mitchell Johnson..The list goes on.. When we beat a team that ruled Cricket like a Hitler, the happiness are beyond words as Yuvi told. The moment Yuvraj roared, it was not just a Semi berth, it was the end of an empire, where Hitlers like Ponting and all ruled. It was fortune that India ended their dominance, because there is no team in the world who deserves to knock out Australiain 2011 World Cup! For India, Motera was the "Revenge" Field, revenge for the tears in Johanesburg, revenge for Greats like Ganguly and Dravid, revenge for Sachin Tendulkar, who missed a well deserved World Cup 8 years before infront of Ponting & co.
In fact this revenge was started in the soil where Indians were humiliated by Kangaroos. The defeat from Coachless Dhoni-led team in the Semi Final of 2007 t20 World Cup at Durban marked the decline of Australian Cricket, followed by beating the mighty Australian at their den in the CB series 2008 led the Aussies into a turmoil. But only a Defeat in the World cup could end their Harsh and Hard Dominance in the cricket. Eventhough They crowned as the Champions in the 2015 World Cup,they couldn't regain their dominance,that they lost at the Motera. We can call it 'End of an Era', an era of Complete dominance by Ponting and his team.In their best phase, the odds were always on the Australians in a pressure situation because they had the bowling, the fielding, and above all the attitude that pulled teams out of trouble. That had missed here, that had missed in this Australian team since the CB series.The moment of decline is rather more difficult to pinpoint.An important reason for the decline is the homogenous nature of Australian wickets; this lack of variety means players struggle on anything they are not familiar with. Or else we could say the decline is similar to that of the West Indies and attributed it to a “lost generation of players” who did not get a chance due to the presence of the stalwarts a few years ago.The World Cup was the final confirmation — if such was necessary — that they have to shift the focus from consolidating to rebuilding. They did it, but not fully. Still they lack the Aggression they had before.Post 2011 I could only see that aggression in Johnson's mighty Ashes in 2013.
It was not just decline a great team, but a rise of a greatest group of individuals. A Captain, who started eyeing the world cup since he won his first triumph in 2007, Greatest Legend who gave everything for his country since 22 years and still waiting for a reward, A fighter who is fighting against Cancer and playing his best cricket..Here too the list goes on. No other Team Deserves to win that World Cup like India did. Like the Kangaroos in 2003,here it was India. Eventhough Indians lacked the dominance the mighty Australia had, especially in the group stage, But once the do or die situation arrived, the Champion players responded,From the quarters "INDIANS PLAYED LIKE CHAMPIONS".
The Quarter Final and Kangaroos really woke the Champions up.The build-up to the clash had been extraordinary. India-Australia duels have thrown up some captivating matches and a sense of anticipation was unmistakable in Ahmedabad. The side with greater belief emerged victorious.Both sides had to conquer the fear of failure in a perform-or-perish situation.India lived but was on the brink of elimination. The match changed course as the hunter became the hunted.
An awe-inspiring Ricky Ponting dazzled and Sachin Tendulkar hit a delightful fifty but it was the imperious Yuvraj Singh who stole the show for India.The result confirmed the shift in the balance of power in world cricket. The match started before the toss itself. In Pre match conference the Skipper of the Defending Champions was confident that, he would score a hundred and he did it in his last world cup game.Aussie didn't go without a fight, and the man who was at the heart of their World Cup dominance made the strongest stand. Australia have produced an
abundance of champion cricketers since his arrival but very few of them have had their character tested as severely. Even in defeat, Ricky Ponting has gone out a hero. The way he batted, showed his character, his attitude and his ability to lead from front.
Apart from Yuvraj,the 2 changes Dhoni made bought the twist and the game itself. Chawla and Yusuf played the majority matches in that world cup, but when it beocmes tougher Dhoni opted Technically Better Raina ahead of Yusuf and resillient Ashwin in place of Piyush's leg spin. Really India's bowling rised to the challenge;-With Zaheer Khan on top form, R Ashwin proving a vital addition, Yuvraj Singh flighting the ball more and Harbhajan Singh bowling more aggressively, India's bowling attack has improved to the extent.India were always expected to win on the back of their batting, but here the Bowlers was the main reason. Australia were 20 runs short. Indians were consistent in their line. Ashwin has been a vital addition to the attack. Mahi's decision to open the Bowling with Ash made the difference. He was tight in his line and really struggled Watto. He provides the control that India have missed at the start of the innings, and he has also provided early breakthroughs in both matches he has played so far.Shane Watson's wicket was among the most crucial today. With his reach, and the ability to generate his own pace for strokes, Watson is a dangerous batsman on the slower wickets, and he was forced to swipe at a ball because Ashwin starved him of space.Ashwin's presence in the XI also seems to have spurred Harbhajan Singh, the senior offpinner, to bowl more attackingly. Harbhajan was much more full and though he went wicketless, he was the spinner who looked most likely to make a breakthrough. And as it has been the case throughout the World Cup, Yuvraj was the one who picked up the wickets, and it was not by coincidence. Zak were given short spells and responded well with his Yorkers, especially the one that broke the stumps of Mr.Cricket. Harbhajan and Zaheer took their revenge against the mighty Aussie who just outplayed them 8 years before in the World Cup final,hitting here and there.Indian field were also brilliant, especially the new addition Raina along with Virat saved some valuable runs.
Gambhir and Sachin started well and scored valuable fifties each, but the 2 lefties were the team's iron men who held up against the driving will of four-time world champions Australia and at the Sardar Patel stadium, lifted their team into the World Cup semi-final- Suresh Raina & In form Yuvraj Singh.The Aussies were closing in for the kill when Mahendra Singh Dhoni departed to leave India, pursuing a stiff target of 261, gasping for breath at 187 for five in the 38th over.Then, an inspired Yuvraj (57 not out) and comeback kid Suresh Raina (34 not out) turned the duel on its head.Yuvraj has taken flight in this World Cup. He has been resilient in the cauldron, been judicious with his stroke-play, and taken on immense responsibility. Banishing the demon of self-doubt, he has grown in confidence.Raina on the other hand, justified his spot in the team especially with his confidence and attitude,the qualities that bought India into the game.The Aussies were steadily closing in, having picked up the wickets of Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni in quick succession, but the duo stood up in confidence and kicked them out of the tournament.Experienced hands like Brett Lee failed to come through when Yuvraj and Raina began turning the screw on the Australians, at the start of the final eleven overs of the match. Lee had taken the wicket of Dhoni in his previous over, but in the 40th, the pair took him to the cleaners, with Yuvraj hitting two scorching boundaries.In the next over, Shaun Tait was wayward and gave away 13 runs. Those two overs proved to be one of the catalysts of India's win. In a situation where it is difficult to control the emotions, where one mistake would ran them out of the World Cup, a situation where Various thoughts run through their mind, Yuvi & Raina made the things simple- watching the ball, keeping it simple and as far as possible not hitting in the air. Unless the asking rate peaked to seven-and-a-half, they didn't go for the big hits; till then they hold back. Singles began trickling, the pressure began to ease, and the dressing room began hoping again. As long as they were in, Australia looked beatable.Simply Class.
Yuvraj transformed a Brett Lee yorker into a boundary ball, deposited a bewildered Shaun Tait on the midwicket boundary, and hit the winning runs, taking a fourth Man of the Match award in the tournament. He had come into the World Cup on the back of poor form, but against West Indies he broke a run of two years without a century before coming back to pick up a couple of wickets as well to help India into the quarter-final.As Yuvi told "You have a lot of thoughts [in the mind while batting] but whenever you want to desperately do it for your country and your team it somehow works out". Thats what happened in Motera.All Players wearing Indian Jersey worked hard for the moments like these and they took all the revenge against the defending chamipons for what they did 8 years before.
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