Just one step away from glory

David vs Goliath was the status often attached to India vs Australia matches back in the day. The Goliath, Australia, would have the upper hand on David on most occasion, but every now and then the fighting spirit of David would get the better of Goliath. The 2007 T20 World Cup semi-final between Australia and India was one such occasion.

Yuvraj in his element. Image courtesy: CricketTimes

Heading into the semi-final, cricket pundits around the world had written India off. We didn’t have an impressive record against Australia in limited-overs cricket, and the momentum both the teams were carrying heading into the World Cup wasn’t of any help either; Australia had won the ODI World Cup and we got on an early flight back home after being eliminated in the group stages.

With India batting first, the Australians were quick to dominate. Not only did they rid of the both the openers by the 8th over, but also contained runs, going at only 5.13 in the first 8. With two of it’s most dependable batsmen back in the shed, India looked down and out. That was, until Yuvraj came on the crease and turned the game on its head.

If you look at Yuvraj’s record from that World Cup, its modest at best. 148 runs in 6 games scored today will have a better chance of you getting dropped from the XI. But dig a little deeper and check out his strike rate, 194. Yuvraj’s strike rate was the highest among all the batsmen in the tournament (min. 50 balls faced) and by quite a distance too. With 41/2 after 8 overs, Yuvraj came on to bat at struck a blistering knock of 70 off 30 with 5 fours and sixes apiece.

“Yuvraj is going berserk,” is what the commentary box hymned for the 40 minutes when he took apart that lethal Aussie bowling lineup one by one.

His partner at the other end, Robin Uthappa, lent him a helping hand. 34(28) so nothing too exceptional, but he made sure that the runs kept flowing; rotating the strike and hitting the odd-ball down the ground. My favorite Uthappa moment from the game was him getting down the pitch against the fireball that Mitchell Johnson was, and smacking him straight down the ground for a monstrous six. Going down a pitch against a pacer was an obscure act back then (still is), but he did it and it came off beautifully.

When Yuvraj got dismissed in the 18th over, MS Dhoni picked up right where his vice-captain had left off. Dhoni got run-out on the second last ball of the innings, but his 36(18) had set the wheels in motion for India’s seat in the World Cup final.

I can’t not talk about our bowling here. For a batting lineup that comprised Gilchrist, Hayden, Symonds, Clarke, Hodge and Hussey, no total is too big to chase down. Sreesanth, especially, gave a match-winning performance that was completely eclipsed by Yuvraj’s heroics. In his four overs, he conceded only 12 runs and picked up two crucial wickets (Gilchrist and Hayden). To go at just 3 RPO defending in T20s is staggering.

I can’t even remember the number of instances when I thought that India’s let this drift too far away and they can’t pull back. But they were able to, every. single. time. It’s always a sense of pride and, at the risk of sounding demeaning, satisfaction when we get the better of Australia. Whether it’s the 2001 test in Kolkata or the two world cup semi-finals when Yuvraj told the Aussies, “Not today”. That world cup campaign was the closest this sport would ever get to Chak De! India.

Earlier that day, Pakistan had defeated New Zealand in the 1st semi-final and booked a place in the final. With India as their opponents, the rivalry got a whole new definition.