Team India have won the ICC Cricket World Cup after 28 years, completing the highest ever run chase in a final.
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| Courtesy: espnstar.com |
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir pulled off an impressive run chase to beat Sri Lanka by six wickets in the ICC Cricket World Cup final in Mumbai.The fourth-wicket pair ensured India did not panic in front of a capacity home crowd after the early loss of big guns Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar in pursuit of 274 for six.The favourites prevailed with 10 balls to spare in today's showpiece between sub-Continental neighbours, both seeking their second World Cup, despite a wonderful 103 not out from Sri Lanka's Mahela Jayawardene.The expectations of many were that this contest might be a tale of two champion players, at watershed moments in their record-breaking careers.But there was no major impact for Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan on his last appearance for his country, or a 100th international hundred for India's Tendulkar in his home town.Instead, with 97 for Gambhir and Jayawardene's third World Cup century, three other world-class performers took centre stage in a contest just shaded by India.It was Dhoni (91no) who completed the job, after promoting himself to number five and producing his first half-century of the campaign in a telling stand of 106 with Gambhir and then an unbroken 54 with Yuvraj Singh.He did it with crowd-delighting gusto too, smashing a six high over long-on off Nuwan Kulasekera for the winning runs.After Lasith Malinga uprooted both India openers - Tendulkar's departure silenced the partisan majority - India's prospects of a successful chase appeared to be fading already under the Wankhede Stadium lights.But first Gambhir, with nine fours from 122 balls, and then Dhoni's eight fours and two sixes from only 79 changed everything.
