 “Pressure,” said M.S. Dhoni, “is what’s inside the mind of Misbah,” as he ran up to advise Indian seam bowler Joginder Sharma, bursting with tension at the top of his bowling mark. Two deliveries before, Misbah had fearlessly sent the white Kookaburra ball into the stands like a teargas canister. “Let him try and hold his nerve,” said Dhoni, looking every bit as calm as Misbah, and equally fearless. Those words came at a nerve-wracking moment, when two entire nations, born of one, must have been holding their collective breaths. It was a battle of the equals. Pakistan had one wicket and four deliveries in hand, and needed six runs to win, five to tie. Joginder had bowled a winning last over in the semi-final against Australia, but would he repeat his feat again, this time on a bigger occasion?
  Even a tie was a possibility. Like in their earlier tied encounter in the same tournament (which India won after a funny ball-out), when the pressure got blinding Misbah was again the first to blink. Sharma held his nerve, but only just. He bowled full on the middle stump, Misbah risked a flick over the fine leg fielder who had been brought in within the 30 yards circle. Misbah’s shot selection during those final moments will be debated endlessly in days to come in Pakistan. The flick went up, Sharma unable to bear the tension closed his eyes, Dhoni, the man with nerves of steel, watched the fielder Sreesanth’s hands. Sreesanth kept his eyes on the ball, got under it, and held on for dear life, and the Cup. India had won by a whisker.
 For a billion and a half TV viewers across the world, and the packed audience at the New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, many of whom consisted of people of Indian origin vociferously backing India with their tricolours swirling in the breeze, this was the kind of edge-of-the-seat thriller that couldn’t have been scripted better. An India-Pakistan final in a Twenty20 world tournament, a run chase that went to the wire, a smorgasbord of emotions and drama, punctuated generously with breath-taking shots, and heart-stopping moments.
 As the diaspora burst into fervent celebrations, it was time to take stock of the win, and of a captain who remained utterly calm during the most testing moment of his cricketing life. Dhoni had performed admirably in the tournament, and led with inspiration. He had played good knocks during the tournament, he’d effected bowling changes that turned out to be brilliant, his field placements were sharp. His thinking was incisive. But it was the calm confidence of his leadership that won millions of hearts. This was a young leader, of a young Indian team at his best. A youthful, vibrant, articulate and cool man indicating that the future of Indian cricket is now in safe hands.
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He had played good knocks during the tournament, he’d effected bowling changes that turned out to be brilliant, his field placements were sharp. His thinking was incisive. But it was the calm confidence of his leadership that won
millions of hearts |
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Captains have their own methods of communicating important messages when they are required the most. This is legend, West Indies captain Frank Worrell walked up to his best fast bowler, Wesley Hall, who was about to ball the seventh ball (in the 1960s they bowled 8-ball overs when teams played Australia) of his over to Lindsay Kline at Brisbane in December
1960. The Test match scores were level. Australia had one wicket in hand. Worrell, later to be knighted, told Hall that if he bowled a no-ball he wouldn’t be able to return to his home in Barbados. Hall bowled from a foot behind the line. Non-striker Ian Meckiff was run out. It was history’s first tied Test. Worrel’s words had the desired result.
 Dhoni too, like Worrell nearly five decades before him, had come up with a great line for his bowler, just when the match hung on the line. And Sharma didn’t let him down. In the semi-final too, in a crunch situation against Australia, Dhoni tossed the ball to Sharma. The young man was being thrown into the deep end, and he had to swim or the team would sink. While handing him the Kookaburra then, Dhoni had told Sharma, “These guys are used to winning, so let them try and get the runs. You are a professional, do your best.” Australia, not used to losing big matches, didn’t get the runs. Dhoni’s tactics had won India the day. The rest, as they say, is history.
"When Misbah-ul-Haq played that shot, my initial fear was that it might land just behind Sreesanth. So I was not looking at him, my eyes were on his hands, whether he could catch it. Every member of the team contributed to the win."
—M.S. Dhoni, Indian captain |
"The Twenty20 tournament has been a great advertisement for the game, and it's probably even converted a few cynics and a few doubters. The final, after one great semi-final, turned out to be a cracker. For me, the two best teams played in the final."
—Ian Chappell, former Australia captain |
"Unfortunately, it was a slower ball from Sharma, and the ball just didn't go as fast off the bat as it should have gone, and it ended in a catch. It was a heart-breaking moment for me and the team. The final was gone. Losing to India in a final is hard to accept."
—Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistani batsman |
"When the ball went up, I closed my eyes, I was afraid to see what was happening. And then, when the crowd went up in a huge roar, I knew India had won, and that is when I opened my eyes and saw everyone running towards Sreesanth."
—Joginder Sharma, Indian bowler who got Misbah out |
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The Triumph of youth
