2nd April 2011.
Place: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Time: Just about 15 minutes left for the clock to hit 2200hrs.
A crowd of screaming 50000+...!
They know, history is being made in front of their eyes... The dream held in every Indian's heart is coming true. India is about to bring the coveted trophy home... The world cup of cricket! Dhoni has seen it all in his career of 8 years. He has faced the wrath of media and the public, he has had stones being thrown at his house. He has seen, a country of a billion go ecstatic from the top of an open air bus in September 2007. He has seen his team rise like a phoenix in the rankings... But this is something he has never seen. History! He stands there behind the stumps, as Zaheer Khan begins his run up to bowl the last over of the World Cup Final... But who are they playing against?? And what's the equation...? Its Shane Watson on strike... And he has Michael Clarke for company in the middle. The noise in the stadium is deafening to the ears... Aussies stand at 275-4 after 49. Last over... 13 needed of 6 balls. Zak knows, its now or never...! This was his moment of redemption... He gets it right and his 1st spell of a similar final in 2003 will be forgotten forever. You see someone with her hands joined in prayer in the crowds, closed eyes, and thousands of "Orange-White-Green" waving among other things... India has not come this close to that golden ball ever. And just when you caught a breath... First Ball - Length near perfect, line could take the middle stump by surgical precision. But Watson swings across... WILLOW! He connects with equal precision! SIX over mid-wicket!!! 7 needed 0f 5 now. The crowd goes quiet... 1st six in 5 overs now! Aussies one shot away, in just claiming what has been theirs almost since forever now... Second Ball - Connects again..but wait! Its the slower one! ball lands just in front of Rohit Sharma at the boundary on leg side. They run a single. 6 of 4!!! Team meeting in the middle... Dhoni's busy talking. Third run up begins... Third ball - Same as the first, but its Michael Clarke... TIMBER!!! Stumps go flying everywhere... The crowd erupts in unison! A ship far off the coast on Marine Drive could probably hear this nation, whose faith in god was bearing results. 6 of 3 now! Its Cameron White... He knows his opponents well. His stint with Royal Challengers Bangalore lets him gage the conditions well... only one shot away! He takes guard... Fourth Ball - way outside off stump! White Swings hard... BEAT!!! Looks at Billy... yeah Billy Bowden! Was it wide?? No! says the man with the bummed index finger. The crowd erupts again!!! A little more closer to kismet... 6 of 2 needed. Zaheer collects the ball quickly from MSD and heads back to his run up point. He doesn't want White to settle down. Fifth ball... Outside off again but White knicks it!! Doni dives hard to his right... Flies for a moment probably. But the damage's done. The ball runs down to third man boundary... its Four Runs! The crowd lets out a huge sigh! And then Silence........ 2 needed of 1 ball. If India had to win this, Zak gotta beat the batsman in this one ball. He begins walking back... 1 dot ball. That's all I ask..says each soul in the country, at the stadium, on the streets of every city, TV rooms in hostels, sports bars go quiet, India knows what this means. The stadium hasn't sat down in more than an hour now, but they rise still. As he reaches the end, to begin running again... His life flashes by in his mind. Everyone on the circle! Last ball - and White Connects! But straight to Yuvraj Singh at Short mid off. They start running... Chaos! Where's Zaheer?? He isn't covering the stumps! Same scene same place..as three years back..but that was league..Punjab and Mumbai. This was the real thing... White has given it all. He will not settle for anything less than the single...Yuvi crashes into the stumps, with the ball... Where's White??? He has fallen short by miles!!! Yuvi starts running... Fielders far away know what that means. India has beaten the Aussies, to lift the 10th ICC Cricket World Cup. Fireworks shoot in the sky... You hardly hear them, cause word has reached outside! And its India this time that erupts with Joy... Cries in the crowd, Smiles, Couples kissing, Dancing... Its done. Job accomplished.
But Wait... what is the team doing? They're running the victory lap now... Flags in their hands... And who's leading them? Dhoni?? No.... Its the man, who has seen 6 world cups to reach this point. Its Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. They lift him up at the end of the lap and now, the trophy's gleaming under the bright lights of Wankhede... Sachin is pushed up by Dhoni to collect it from the prime minister. A generation's dreams come true. To see this man, claimed to be god by some, lift the cup and take India to a place which once was only a dream. Wow!! We are the champions of the world, of the game that gives us joy, gives us sorrow. Its cries all over... All sorts of them. You can see it his eyes... He lifts it above his shoulders and looks at it and looks at the sky. How long has he waited for it. Lemme be here forever... India doesn't sleep that night. The nigh to follow, and a few nights after that... SRT announces his retirement from all forms of the game at the press conference. Its over... He has delivered what he was sent to this earth for. Happiness..unmeasurable by any means. We love you Sachin... We love you.
Dhoni goes on to sign a few more ad contracts and his story continues... Others in the Indian team become some more richer, the BCCI has pulled of what not everyone thought it could - put together a team, that commands respect and not the deep pockets.
Hope i see this day... :-) May be the day will come and go and nothing happens. But this is what would be the perfect ending to a story so perfect. I can't think of a better one... :-)
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