Credit: X
On this day 13 years ago, guided by the valiant knocks from Gautam Gambhir and then-skipper MS Dhoni, India went on to clinch their second World Cup title after beating Sri Lanka in the final in front of the jam-packed Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. This was India's only second ODI World Cup triumph after their maiden title in 1983 under the leadership of Kapil Dev.
India started the 2011 tournament as one of the front-runners to lift the World Cup trophy owing to the sub-continent conditions where the tournament was being conducted. Led by a competent leader like MS Dhoni, India displayed an emphatic show throughout the tournament, losing only to South Africa in a league match.
It was the Quarter-Final clash against the legendary Ricky Ponting's side Australia, which embarked India on a legendary journey to the Semi-Finals and eventually to the summit clash. The final clash was highlighted by the Mahela Jayawardene's scintillating century which helped Sri Lanka post competing 274/6 on the board.
Chasing the monumental task against the potent attack of Sri Lanka, India succumbed early in the chase before Gautam Gambhir (97) and unbeaten MS Dhoni (91) stitched an arduous partnership of 109 runs which sealed the fate of India. Cashing in on this, MS Dhoni tonked a historic six off Kulasekara over long-on which will be etched in the Indian cricket folklore for eternity.
Remembering the glory, the 2011 World Cup-winning players took to their X (formerly Twitter) accounts and celebrated the 13 years of Indian cricket's greatest moment.
Apart from the champions, the BCCI and its secretary Jay Shah also remembered the iconic feat of the MS Dhoni-led side and lauded the brilliant efforts of Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, and Yuvraj Singh throughout the tournament.
