CHENNAI: Ravindra Jadeja was looking at the ball, the most significant pull he has ever played, while running across the pitch at the Dubai International Stadium. The moment he knew the ball was heading for a four, he collided into William O'Rourke. He had no idea who was in front and he didn't care. Neither did Rahul who had his arms aloft, soaking it all in before being embraced by Jadeja. They are Champions of the world.
India have beaten New Zealand by four wickets to win their first 50-over world title since 2013. In many ways, it was a long overdue triumph and it showed in the emotions displayed. Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh ran on to the field, overjoyed. Away in the dug out an elated Virat Kohli let it all out with assistant coach Abhishek Nayar before playing dandiya with his captain Rohit Sharma using the stumps. As the head coach Gautam Gambhir walked down onto the ground, he was lifted over the shoulders by Jadeja. They know what this victory meant. And they know it did not come easy.
Yes India did overpower every team that they played en route to the summit clash but the final step, the most important one, was not a walk in the park. At least not during the chase. The target of 252 always seemed achievable, but New Zealand were not going to lay down on the tracks for India. Even when Rohit went berserk in the powerplay as the Men in Blue raced to 64/0, the Black Caps remained unfazed. They kept at it, knowing all they needed was a couple of wickets to put the brakes on.
And it happened in the 19th over as Shubman Gill fell against the run of play to a stunning catch from none other than Glenn Phillips. Virat Kohli walked in to the biggest roar only to be silenced in just two deliveries by Michael Bracewell. When Sharma fell six overs later, the pendulum had swung back to the middle. The Indian captain went for an attacking shot, much like he did on November 19, 2023 against Australia in the ODI World Cup final, and was stumped for 76 runs in 83 balls. Sharma did make a massive dent for New Zealand up front, but the game was far from over.
With Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel in the middle, Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra, Phillips and Bracewell built the pressure. They made sure India did not run away with chase. Slowly, but eventually, pressure got to India. Iyer got out after a well made 48, Axar fell shortly after for 29, bringing together the heroes of the semifinal — Rahul (34) and Pandya (18). And they did not disappoint.
As Jadeja hit the winning shot, it seemed like destiny had finally rewarded what is arguably the greatest ODI team India have ever had. They came close in 2017 but Pandya got run out and a no ball cost them. In 2019, Black Caps and the brilliance of Matt Henry and Martin Guptill caught them short. They almost had it in 2023 but Travis Head intervened.
For a team that has been the best in the format since 2013, India had zero ODI titles to show since. They have dominated bilaterals, consistently reached knockouts, have more wins (156) than any other team since lifting the Champions Trophy at Lord's in 2013. India have the highest win/loss ratio (2.108) — 0.553 more than New Zealand who are second — in the last 12 years.
In Sharma and Kohli, they had the best batters of the generation — who have 68 centuries to show and has scored more than 18,000 runs cumulatively in this period. They had Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah with the ball and arguably one of the greatest athletes India have ever produced in Jadeja. But for one reason or other, they could never go past the final hurdle. The trophy kept eluding. They could never be called Champions of the world. Fittingly, the wait came to an end on Sunday with Rahul — the player who faced the most criticism after the ODI WC final — taking them home. There they were on the stage, along with Sharma, Kohli, Jadeja (the three members from 2013 CT-winning squad) and others, lifting the trophy. They and India are indeed the Champions.
