India at The Cricket World Cup - India at The 2011 World Cup

India At The 2011 World Cup

As the host nation for the 2011 World Cup, India were expected to perform well, and were considered pre-tournament favorites by the media and press. Like in 2007, India came into the World Cup on a string of strong performances, both at home and abroad.

The Indian team was generally considered to be the strongest batting side in the tournament. Openers Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar anchored a star-studded batting lineup, followed by the talented Gautam Gambhir, rising star Virat Kohli, and the explosive Yuvraj Singh, Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and all-rounder Suresh Raina batted in at the No. 5 and 6 spots, respectively. While the bowling attack was considered more suspect, two veterans in paceman Zaheer Khan and offspinner Harbhajan Singh were joined by newcomers Munaf Patel, Ashish Nehra, Piyush Chawla, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Shantakumaran Sreesanth.

India’s 2011 World Cup campaign started with an 87-run win against an overmatched Bangladesh squad in Dhaka. Behind centuries from Virender Sehwag (175 from 140 balls, 14 fours, 5 sixes) and Virat Kohli (100 n.o. from 83 balls, 8 fours, 2 sixes) India scored 4/370. Munaf Patel (4-48) took 4 wickets during the Bangladesh reply, including that of opener Tamim Iqbal (70 from 86 balls, 3 fours, 1 six) as Bangladesh scored 9/283 in 50 overs to fall short.

India next played England at Bangalore. On a batting-friendly track at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, India chose to bat first. Sachin Tendulkar (120 from 115 balls, 10 fours, 5 sixes) lashed his way through the English attack, ably supported by Gautam Gambhir (51 from 61 balls, 5 fours) and Yuvraj Singh (58 from 50 balls, 9 fours). After the 45th over, India was 3/305 and were looking to pass 350 during the batting Powerplay. Instead, English bowler Tim Bresnan (5-48) engineered a collapse with four quick wickets in 16 deliveries, as India slumped to a still-formidable total of 338 all out. England started their run chase by blasting 77 runs off the first 10 overs. Andrew Strauss (158 from 145 balls, 18 fours, 1 six) decimated the Indian bowling attack with unparalleled ferocity, and was supported by Ian Bell (69 from 71 balls, 4 fours, 1 six). At 2/280 in the 43rd over, England was cruising to an extraordinary victory. However, Zaheer Khan responded by taking the wickets of Strauss, Bell, and Paul Collingwood in 11 deliveries, as England were reduced to 6/289. Tailenders Tim Bresnan, Graeme Swann, and Ajmal Shahzad each hit massive sixes in the final few overs to regain some momentum, and Swann scored 13 runs off the final over to salvage a tie with India (8/338 in 50 overs). It was only the fourth tied match in World Cup history.

In their third group match, India defeated minnows Ireland by 5 wickets. After winning the toss and choosing to field, India’s bowling attack proved superior to the Irish batting lineup. Yuvraj Singh (5-31 in 10 overs) was the chief destroyer, taking five successive wickets – including the top scorer for Ireland, William Porterfield (75 from 104 balls, 6 fours, 1 six). Ireland was eventually bowled all out for 207. During their reply, India slumped to 4/100, as the batting lineup struggled to cope with the tight and accurate Irish bowling. Once again, however, Yuvraj Singh (50 n.o. from 75 balls, 3 fours) helped the Indian side with an unbeaten half-century, and guided his nation to a five-wicket victory.

India’s fourth match was against the Netherlands, at Feroz Shah Kotla. After choosing to bat first, Netherlands was restricted to 189 all out, with Zaheer Khan (3-20) and Yuvraj Singh (2-43) doing most of the damage. Despite Virender Sehwag’s blistering start, India’s run-chase started out poorly, as they slumped to 4/99. And, once again, it was Yuvraj Singh (51 from 73 balls, 7 fours) who guided India to victory in a crucial 5th-wicket stand with Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

India’s next group match was against South Africa in Nagpur. After choosing to bat first, India raced to 1/267 in 39.3 overs behind the power hitting of Virender Sehwag (73 from 66 balls, 12 fours), Tendulkar (111 from 101 balls, 8 fours, 3 sixes), and Gautam Gambhir (69 from 75 balls, 7 fours). However, India lost their last 9 wickets for 29 runs in a massive collapse, slumping to 296 all out. Hashim Amla (61 from 72 balls, 5 fours) and Jacques Kallis (69 from 88 balls, 4 fours) top-scored in the reply, as South Africa chased down the total with only 3 wickets and 2 deliveries to spare. AB de Villiers (52 from 39 balls, 6 fours, 1 six) scored a quick half-century to keep South Africa ahead of the required run rate. It was India’s first loss in their World Cup campaign.

India’s final group match was against the West Indies in Chennai. India chose to bat first. Yuvraj Singh (113 from 123 balls, 10 fours, 2 sixes) and Virat Kohli (59 from 76 balls, 5 fours) batted well but received little support from the rest of the lineup, as India were all out for 268. With Devon Smith (81 from 97 balls, 7 fours, 1 six) leading the way, the West Indies reached 2/154 before losing their last 8 wickets for 34 runs, allowing India to coast to an 80-run victory. With this victory, India reached the quarterfinals and finished second in Group B.

In the quarterfinals, India faced defending champions Australia in Ahmedabad. Australia won the toss and chose to bat first. Captain Ricky Ponting (104 from 118 balls, 7 fours, 1 six) and Brad Haddin (53 from 62 balls, 6 fours, 1 six) scored fluently, but Ravi Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, and Yuvraj Singh took wickets at regular intervals to restrict Australia to 6/260 in 50 overs. Tendulkar (53 from 68 balls, 7 fours) Gambhir (50 from 64 balls, 2 fours) and Yuvraj Singh (57 n.o. from 65 balls, 8 fours) all scored half-centuries in the reply, as India chased down the target with 5 wickets and 14 deliveries to spare.

India next played arch-rival Pakistan in the semifinals. India won the toss and chose to bat first. Despite Sehwag’s customary fast start (38 from 25 balls, 9 fours), the India batsmen had trouble coping with the Pakistani bowling attack. Wahab Riaz (5-46) took a 5-wicket haul for Pakistan, and Tendulkar (85 from 115 balls, 11 fours) top-scored for India despite being dropped four times in the field. With India slumping at 5/187, Suresh Raina (36 from 39 balls, 3 fours) shored up the tail as India reached 9/260 in 50 overs. All five Indian bowlers took two wickets in the Pakistani reply, as Pakistan fell behind the run rate and were bowled all out for 231 with 1 delivery remaining. Misbah-ul-Haq (56 from 76 balls, 5 fours, 1 six) top scored for Pakistan, but his slow start allowed the required run-rate to balloon beyond Pakistan’s reach.

This set up an India-Sri Lanka matchup for the final, held at Wankhede Stadium. On a batting-friendly pitch, Sri Lanka won the toss and chose to bat first. Zaheer Khan (2-60), using the new ball, bowled three maiden overs and took the wicket of Upul Tharanga to leave Sri Lanka at 1/31 after 10 overs – their lowest 10-over score in the tournament. However, Mahela Jayawardene (103 from 88 balls, 13 fours) rebuilt the Sri Lankan innings with a superb century, helped by captain Kumar Sangakkara (48 from 67 balls, 5 fours). Nuwan Kulasekara (32 from 30 balls, 1 four, 1 six) and Thisara Perera (22 from 9 balls, 3 fours, 1 six) plundered 91 runs from the last 10 overs, lifting Sri Lanka to a formidable total of 6/274 after 50 overs.

India’s run chase began badly, as Sehwag and Tendulkar were bowled cheaply by Lasith Malinga (2-42) to leave India at 2/31 from 6.1 overs. However, Gautam Gambhir rebuilt the Indian innings with an 83-run partnership for the third wicket with Virat Kohli (35 from 49 balls, 4 fours). After Kohli was caught and bowled to leave India at 3/114, Gambhir (97 from 122 balls, 9 fours) and Mahendra Singh Dhoni (91 n.o. from 79 balls, 8 fours, 2 sixes) scored 109 runs for the fourth wicket, in a vicious attack on the tiring Sri Lankan bowlers. After Gambhir played on, Yuvraj Singh and Dhoni carried India to the required total, with Dhoni blasting a massive six off the final delivery. India would win the match by six wickets. Dhoni was named Man of the Match for his assault on the Sri Lankan bowling attack. With the win, India secured their first World Cup finals victory since 1983.

There were a huge number of positives for the Indian side in the tournament. Sachin Tendulkar scored 482 runs, and was the second-highest run scorer in the tournament after Sri Lankan opener Tillakaratne Dilshan. Zaheer Khan took 21 wickets, and was the leading wicket-taker in the World Cup along with Shahid Afridi. Yuvraj Singh, who scored 362 runs and took 15 wickets, was named Man of the Tournament.

The 2011 Indian world cup team comprised:

• Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wicket keeper and captain)
• Virender Sehwag (vice-captain)
• Gautam Gambhir
• Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar
• Yuvraj Singh
• Suresh Raina
• Virat Kohli
• Yusuf Pathan
• Zaheer Khan
• Harbhajan Singh
• Ashish Nehra
• Munaf Patel
• Shanthakumaran Sreesanth
• Piyush Chawla
• Ravichandran Ashwin

• India's record: 7-1 (1 tied match) (champions)