Can team India become invincible?

Post date: 04-Apr-2011 14:37:21

WORLD CHAMPIONS: India's 2011 World Cup triumph unites a nation

India's road to 2011 World Cup glory wasn't smooth. They had some tough matches against England and South Africa in the group stages, and faced steep speed breakers in the form of Australia and Pakistan in the quarters and semis. They played in the finals against Sri Lanka like true champions with Dhoni's winning six screaming out loud - "India, here we come!"

Billed as the batting powerhouse in the tournament, Indian batsmen did not let the fans down. The highest run scorer in World Cups, Sachin Tendulkar finally realised his childhood dream of lifting the World Cup trophy. Yuvraj Singh’s re-birth as a responsible cricketer helped him to become a match winner.

Zaheer Khan, the joint highest wicket-taker in the 2011 World Cup, shouldered the responsibility of the bowling attack and played a crucial role. India’s fielding was meticulous especially from the quarter-final stage with Raina, Kohli and Yuvraj pouncing on the ball like hungry lions.

The credit of winning the title has to go to captain Dhoni for remaining calm during nervy moments and backing his team mates throughout. Being a non-conventional captain, he experimented with Piyush, Nehra and Ashwin to bowl at various stages of the competition against some stiff opposition. Dhoni loves to try out new things and is appreciated by the critics, often referred to as a ‘street-smart’ cricketer.

With power comes responsibility and Dhoni's boys face a more formidable task of living up to huge expectations. It remains to be seen how the newly-crowned world champions shoulder responsibility when their tour England and Australia later this year.

Will they adopt the aggression mode that Australia and West Indies used to dominate the sport for over a decade each by simply dismantling the opposition without mercy or will they stick to being calm like their Captain Cool?