‘It changed Indian cricket’: Irfan Pathan remembers 2007 World T20 win
It unearthed several emerging stars like Rohit Sharma while giving a new lease of life to some forgotten heroes. World Cup final’s man of the match, Irfan remembered the win 13 years after India’s victory at Johannesburg.
Team Indian created history when they emerged victorious in the final of the 2007 World T20. Despite not being a regular T20 playing nation before the tournament, India under the leadership of MS Dhoni defeated Pakistan by 4 fours to win the inaugural T20 World Cup. The tournament holds a special place in the hearts of Indian cricket fans as the cricket-crazy nation won an ICC World Cup for the first time since 1983.
It unearthed several emerging stars like Rohit Sharma while giving a new lease of life to some forgotten heroes. World Cup final’s man of the match, Irfan remembered the win 13 years after India’s victory at Johannesburg.
“I will remember this special day till my last breath.It changed the indian cricket in terms of what followed the next year. It was a complete team effort thru out the tournament. #t20worldcup #champion,” Irfan tweeted.
READ | 2007 WT20 win: World champions of 2007 celebrate 13th anniversary of momentous triumph
The victory was the start of Dhoni’s rise to superstardom. The win over Pakistan in the final sent the country into a frenzy as they celebrated the achievement. Dhoni was soon made the captain of Team India in all formats and the rest is history as he went on to become one of the most successful captains in cricket history.
The win also started the T20 bandwagon in India which eventually gave birth to the world’s biggest T20 league, the Indian Premier League, the 13th edition of which is currently underway in the UAE.
The victory was not that of Dhoni alone. Players like Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, RP Singh, Robin Uthappa, Joginder Singh, Rohit Sharma, Sreesanth and seniors like Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh played their part in what has become one of the most celebrated triumphs in Indian cricket history.