It was a Sunday that will be long remembered by sports fans in the country for two reasons. One for the brave run of badminton star Lakshya Sen in the All England championship which sadly did not end the way he and his followers would have liked and the other for the way the T20 world cup final had ended in tune with the dreams and aspirations of the myriad cricket fans! Whether one accepts or not, cricket to India is like football to Brazil where the expectations play a big part and more often than not, big moments have been in sync with India’s cricketing ambitions. But then success need not always end in trophies and applause as it happened around two years ago when India, bristling with confidence was outplayed by Australia in the ODI world cup final! It was a stunning anticlimax but that was it, records will not reflect the true strength or standing of India.

Cut to the present and at the same venue with a packed attendance in the one-lakh capacity Narendra Modi stadium (the biggest cricket facility in the world) and what is more a similar occasion, a final of a hugely followed contest. Only weeks earlier the same venue had seen South Africa give a minor dent to India’s run in the world cup, meting out a defeat to the host in the Super eight phase. That had caused a scare but India overcame........

© Mathrubhumi English