Author : Surendra
Indian cricket has seen many highs in recent years
Cricket has a unique place in the hearts of Indians. Doesn’t matter if it is a city or village, you can find young boys and girls playing cricket in the streets or parks. There have been some unexpected and glorious moments in Indian Cricket. Some of these incredible happenings are listed below-
1. Anil Kumble’s 10 Wicket Haul
This is one of the best moments in “India-Pakistan” cricket. In the 1998/99 season at Feroz Shah Kotla, after dominating the first innings of Pakistan, Anil Kumble took all 10 wickets in the second innings. He was the first Indian to do such a thing. He took 14 wickets in that match. Here is the scorecard and highlights of the 2nd innings-
2. 1983 World Cup win
This world cup victory had more importance than the 2011 world cup win. India and Zimbabwe were not playing well in those days. People started saying that these kind of teams should be banned from participating in World Cups. Both teams had only one chance to prove themselves. And India did. India lost only 2 matches in that World Cup and in the finals, at Lord’s, India defeated West Indies to win their first World Cup.
That victory stunned the world. We can say that it’s also one of the reasons why we still play cricket more than any other sport. That victory brought back the popularity of cricket in India. Roger Binny and Kapil Dev were star performers in the World Cup.
Later on, Kapil Dev became the only player to achieve the all-rounder’s double of 4,000 Test runs and 400 Test wickets.
3. Yuvraj’s six sixes
Yuvraj Singh hit Stuart Broad for six sixes in one over during the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007 (Getty Images)
Who can forget this amazing moment !!! T20 World Cup 2007 and Stuart Broad’s over. Yuvraj Singh and Andrew Flintoff had some argument on the field and Yuvi marked Stuart Broad as his victim for revenge. He became the second batsman, after Herschelle Gibbs, in international Cricket to hit six sixes in one over.
4. India-Pakistan Rivalry
India – Pakistan cricket matches have their own pleasure. In the past few years, Sachin Tendulkar and Shoaib Akhtar have been the centre of excitement in Indo-Pak Cricket. When Akhtar bowls and Sachin bats, excitement and tension can be felt everywhere in fans.
One of the most memorable incidents in Indo-Pak cricket happened when Virender Sehwag, while batting during a match, was peppered with a series of bouncers and short balls from Akhtar. He wanted Sehwag to hook and event teased him to do so. Sehwag’s response was “Your daddy is batting at the other end, ask him and he will hook”. Sachin was batting at the other end. Shoaib bowled the bouncer to him. Sachin hooked him for 6 and that is when Sehwag uttered that words “Beta, Beta hota hai aur Baap Baap.” (The son is always the son, and the father is always the father)
Sehwag himself said this story at the Sahara India Sports Award. Here are some other memorable moments from the Indo-Pak rivalry.
5. Sehwag’s 219
Indian batsman Virender Sehwag celebrates after scoring a double century (200 runs) during the fourth one-day international cricket match between India and West Indies at The Holkar Stadium in Indore on December 8, 2011. Indian opener Virender Sehwag smashed the highest score in one-day international cricket as he made 219 off 149 balls (PUNIT PARANJPE/AFP/Getty Images)
Virender Sehwag is very well known for his aggressive batting style and he showed his dominant form on 8 December 2011 against West Indies at Indore. He scored 219 in just 149 balls in an ODI match, breaking the record of Sachin Tendulkar (200). This is the highest individual score in the history of ODI matches.
Besides this, Sehwag also holds the record of highest individual in test (319) by an Indian. He has scored 2 triple centuries, 6 double centuries, fastest triple century and consecutive 150+ scores in Tests. He is the first person in the history of Test cricket to hit two triple centuries and take five wickets in a Test innings.
6. T20 and 2011 World Cup victories
India and Pakistan met once again in the finals of first ever T20 World Cup in South Africa. In a challenging match India managed to score 157/5 in 20 overs; Gautam Gambhir scored 75 in 54 balls. The match was almost in India’s hand. Pakistan didn’t have a good start. But in the dying moments, Misbah-ul-Haq showed his skills with the bat . He dominated every Indian bowler and led Pakistan within touching distance, only 13 runs away from victory. They had one over and one wicket left. Then this happened:
This was the most thrilling match between India and Pakistan where somehow India won and became World T20 champion.
Again in 2011, ‘Dhoni and Company’ ended a 28-year wait for Indian cricket by winning the ODI World Cup after they defeated Sri Lanka in the finals. That was the proudest moment for every Indian cricket fan. Fans were celebrating this win like they would the Diwali festival. Sachin Tendular waited too long for this and he finally got what he had dreamt of. Watch some highlights of the match-
After those T20 and World Cup victory, Dhoni went on to be regarded as one of the most successful captains of India. The man from Ranchi had proven himself and he had carved out a special place in the hearts of Indian cricket fans.
7. Dada at the Lord’s balcony
India’s captain Sourav Ganguly jubilates as he lifts the Natwest Trophy 13 July 2002 at Lord’s in London after India beat England in a triangular series one-day final. (MARTYN HAYHOW/AFP/Getty Images)
India have won many matches against England. So what’s special about this victory ? Why was the Lord’s victory so important to India ?
It all started when England visited India for six ODIs in 2001/02. In the last match, after taking the wicket of Javagal Srinath, Flintoff removed his shirt and celebrated with teammates on the ground. India was winning the series, but after that match the series ended as a draw.
Flintoff, after England won 6th ODI against India at Mumbai,2001/02
Soon India got a chance to take revenge. In 2002, India faced England in the finals of the Natwest Series at ‘The Home of Cricket : Lords’. India successfully chased down the massive total of 325 in 49.3 overs. And then ‘Dada’ did the same. He removed his shirt and waved it in the air just like Flintoff did. Tit-for-Tat.
8. Breaking ‘The Wall’
Rahul Dravid has always been the backbone of team India and that’s why he is known as “The Wall”. You can imagine his greatness by the fact that he has been involved in the most number of partnerships (738) and more partnership runs (32,039) than any other batsman in Test cricket. He also holds the record for the most number of hundred run partnerships (88) and 50 run partnerships (126).
9. Sachin’s 100th hundred
Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar reacts after scoring his hundred century during the one day international (ODI) Asia Cup cricket match between India and Bangladesh at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka on March 16, 2012. India’s Sachin Tendulkar became the first batsman in history to score 100 international centuries, adding another milestone in his record-breaking career. (MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP/Getty Images)
The list is incomplete without this man’s contribution to Indian cricket. Making 100 centuries in cricket is not an easy task, but this man has done this. He has scored 51 Test and 49 ODI hundreds to make a total of 100 centuries in international cricket. Indian fans had waited too long for this moment. Watch this incredible moment-
List of Sachin Tendulkar’s record is very long. Maybe that’s why he is called “The God Of Cricket”. Take a look at his accomplishments here.
10. The youngster era
After winning the ICC Champions Trophy 2013, Indian youngsters have proven themselves. It’s a good sign for the future of Indian cricket. Shikhar Dhawan, who was good from the starting of his career, has once again showed that he is here to stay in the team.
Indian Youngsters after ICC Championship Win.
Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Karthik, Umesh Yadav, Buvneshwar Kumar, R. Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have done their best and shown the world that India’s future in cricket will remain bright.
These are only some of the greatest moments in Indian cricket. A lot of the others are in the list and a lot of others will come in future. It’s only matter of time. So stick to cricket and enjoy every moment of it.
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