The sight of Virat Kohli probably donning his pads one last time in ODI World Cup for that shot at glory makes me sad and happy at the same time. I grew up watching him bat over the last 10 years and I dont deny that I might be a bit biased towards him as he is my favorite cricketer of all time. His discipline, perseverance and attitude is something that is rare to see in any cricketer, let alone an Indian one.
I remember in one Test English summer, his reputation was in ruins. He couldn't buy a run. Some people said he will never be a Test player. However, the next English summer he tweaked his game enough to be counted among the runs. That told of his intent and grittiness.
In another time, he stroked the best bowler in the world Malinga for 24 runs in one over as India bullied the 330 odd target in around 30 odd overs. In that day I knew a star was being born. I didn't know at that time how good he would become, but as the years flew by, the records kept tumbling.
But this article is not about one man, though it might seem as such. This is about 11 players who defied all the odds and reached the final of the ODI World Cup and are on the brink of success. Just one game is remaining in their arsenal to prove to the world that they are top tier team. The doubters have gradually faded away and even the staunchest of the critics have somehow accepted that it can't be a coincidence that India keeps winning with the same set of 11 players.
I blame the Asia Cup for this. Before the Asia Cup, I saw an average Indian team who might hit the semi finals of the World Cup if they get lucky and then they would definitely bow out versus a stronger England or New Zealand or even Australia. They just didn't have it in them. The group stage match vs Pakistan where India lost 4 wickets for 60 odd, just reaffirmed my belief that this team was not that good even though they managed to hit 260 odd. Shaheen thought they were afraid of him. Babar thought they couldn't play the Pakistani bowlers. And for a minute it did seem, like an ordinary team.
Till the second match. If almost stung by the comments, Rohit and company decided to attack Shaheen over a match that spanned 2 days. The way Pakistani bowling attack was flogged to all corners was disheartening to see as a Pakistani fan. Even we made excuses about scheduling and how the game played over 2 days as a single ODI. Nevertheless, India won the match. A strange thing happened then. India realized that attacking cricket and not fearing bowlers would give them dividends. They decimated Sri Lanka in the final of the Asia Cup.
The rest was history. A World Cup tournament where so far no one comes even close to India in batting or bowling is an amazing sight. The last time a team was so dominant was the Aussie team of 2003 and 2007 which had Mcgrath, Warne, Ponting and Gilchrist as ATGs.
What will make victory sweeter for Indian fans is that the doubters are dwindling every single day. They have to win the World Cup against all odds even coming this far. People have doubted Kohli as a choker calling him a Chokli. A tag he is well on his way to removing. There were tags of Nohit which are comfortably being removed as Rohit has settled into an ultra aggressive opener. His starts have galvanized Indian team into formidable totals batting first and easier chases because of the pace he bats. Chokrah is respectfully finally being callled as Bumrah.
There were other elements at play that India had to answer. People complained about lack of Pakistani fans, the cleaning facilities, the crowd, the behavior of police etc. The fact India team has not let those things deter them from the march towards the end is commendable. They could easily have capitulated to the pressure on the even of NZ match when people accused them of "fixing pitches". The pressure on a set of 11 players who have given their heart and soul to win the match and to be accused of cheating is possibly endless. But they still nullified that by scoring nearly 400 runs to ensure that no one would talk about "pitches helping India only" as was being peddled before the match.
You have to be blind not to admire team India. The determination, the way Rohit has led his troops is totally top class. Indian team has not made one controversial statement during this entire campaign and just chiseled on trying to win the entire tournament.
As a Pakistani fan, I begrudgingly respect that India is a better team in this World Cup.
As a Kohli fan, it would be a fitting end to his ODI career if he scores one last century chasing or batting first and lifts the World Cup for India tomorrow.
That indeed would be the best end for the greatest ODI player the World has ever seen.
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