29th June, 2024. The date will forever be etched in the history of Indian cricket and in the hearts of fans. It marks the day India won the T-20 World Cup after 11 years of an ICC title drought. It marks a day of palpable nervous excitement. The match progressed in an unpredictable manner. It was almost like the script of a movie.
“Barbados will forever be in my veins. This is the proudest moment of my cricketing career. To lift that trophy, to be crowned ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Champions—it was surreal. I played in the inaugural 2007 T20 World Cup and we won under MS Dhoni’s captaincy. And now, to win it again with Rahul Dravid as head coach—it meant everything to this group,” Rohit said.
India vs Pakistan
Rohit admitted that the India-Pak rivalry arouses fan frenzy. He clarified that for the Indian team, winning against Pakistan was just a tick in the box. It was necessary to move to the Super Eights.
“I know you want to beat Pakistan and there is so much hoo-ha around it. But for us it’s an opposition that we want to come up against and play well and win. We don’t need to think more than that. I don’t think we should. If we beat Pakistan and don’t win the World Cup, would everyone be happy with that? No, right?”
Anticipated win against Australia
Australia won the final against India in the ODI world cup. It was a bitter end for India. Everyone was looking for a win against the Pat Cummins-led team. India took on Australia in St Lucia. Australia had just fallen against Afghanistan. They needed to win themselves to reach the semi-finals. Rohit admitted his team still had scars. They were from their loss to the Aussies in the final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in 2023.
The match, however, healed all hearts, beginning with a brilliant knock of 92 off 41 deliveries by Rohit himself. He smashed eight massive sixes, attacking every bowler the Aussies threw at him. “My plan was to attack everyone,” Rohit said. “I know Mitchell Starc quite well and I have played against him for several years. I knew he would try to swing the ball after pitching it up. He tries to pitch it right at the top. I had my plans against him.” Rohit considers this one of his best innings, especially in the context of the World Cup.
India registered a 24-run victory and moved through to the final four. This meant elimination of Australia at the same time.
India vs England in semi-finals
Rohit led the way against England with a half-century. At half time, with 171/7 posted on the board, it seemed a gettable score for England. But India clinched opener Buttler’s wicket in the third over. Then, Bumrah came through and dismissed Salt in the fourth over. Bairstow followed them to the dressing room in the fifth over.
“If you take early wickets in the Powerplay, half the job is already done. Those early breakthroughs are vital,” Rohit said. “After that, we slowed the game down, brought in the spinners. Kuldeep came and picked up wickets in the middle. Axar bowled well, and so did Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja).”
High stakes final, celebrations on check
Even after a winning streak behind the team, they did not celebrate upon qualifying for the finals. They knew there was still work to be done. Rohit shared, “We hadn’t won yet. We’ve played so many semi-finals over the years. Winning this one was important—but it wasn’t something new for us. We’d lost against England last time in 2022 too. We also lost to them in the semi-final in the 2019 World Cup. In 2015, in Australia, again a semi-final loss. We’ve lost finals too. The 2023 World Cup final, we lost. In 2014, we lost the T20 World Cup final. In 2017, the Champions Trophy final”.
The team celebrated quietly because their target was yet to be achieved. There was just one day between the semi-final and the final. “Even so, our flight was really late. We reached Barbados well past midnight—I still remember it was around 1 or 2 AM.” But the team kept its spirits high. “Let’s not let that distract us. We’re here for a job, so let’s focus on doing it. No complaining, no irritation, no excuses. Let’s keep our heads in the right space and play the game and play it well.”
Kohli-Patel Partnership in the Final
Walking down the memory lane, Sharma touched upon Virat Kohli’s half-century and his partnership with Axar Patel. “If you hit three boundaries in the first over, you’ve made a good start,” Rohit said. He was reflecting on the high-pressure start to the final. “And that’s exactly what every cricketer wants—it helps settle the nerves.”
He added, “The experience of playing for India over so many years also helps in those moments. You learn to control your emotions, manage your thoughts, and stay in the present. I’m sure even he (Virat) was thinking, ‘Today is the day. I need to stay focused. I should not worry about what happened in the past.”
Kohli rose to the occasion when needed most. India had lost three quick wickets. He anchored India’s innings with 76 runs and a crucial partnership with Axar Patel.
“When we lost those three wickets up front, there were definitely nerves inside the dressing room. I was panicking—I wasn’t comfortable,” Rohit admitted.
Rohit reserved special praise for Axar Patel, whose 47 off 31 balls was also a game-defining knock. “Not many people are talking about Axar’s knock, but that innings was a real game-changer,” he said. “To score 47 off 31 balls at that stage was incredibly crucial.”
When the match was nearing completion, South Africa needed 30 runs off 30 balls. Rishabh Pant suddenly signalled discomfort in the knee. Play stopped and the physiotherapist came out to tape his knee. This was concerning especially given Pant’s recovery from a life-threatening car accident in 2022. Captain Rohit Sharma has revealed that initially he genuinely thought something had happened to Pant.
Hardik Pandya had come to bowl and South Africa was going strong. But Pant faked pain just to stop the match for a little bit and break the opposition’s momentum. Eventually, Pandya dismissed Klaasen, earning an important wicket for India.
SKY’s critical catch
There was still hope for South Africa. They needed 16 from the final over, with Miller still at the crease. That was when Suryakumar Yadav’s superb outfield catch earned him a spot in the Indian cricket lore.
Rohit recalls the moment Suryakumar took the catch on the boundary to dismiss Miller. “I thought it was gone, and it was a six because I was on the long off. I was standing right opposite Surya, I saw this and thought ‘Oh shit’, (they now need) 10 (runs) off five balls. But then I saw that the ball is coming into Surya’s hands. The catch would have required a lot of effort. In the air, it looked like it would cross the rope easily. Maybe the wind pulled the ball a bit into the ground.”
“I was standing with Surya. When the umpires were checking the catch and I said ‘Surya, tell me. You tell me. I don’t want to look there”. And he said I have caught it. Surya is honestly one of the safest catchers in the team—without a doubt. I haven’t seen him drop many catches. He’s got incredibly safe hands.”
Champions at the end
The celebrations on the field started right after Hardik Pandya delivered the final ball. The Indian players didn’t hold back. There were tears of joy. There were plenty of hugs. India’s host of stars even did some impromptu dancing as Rohit held aloft the trophy he so dearly wanted.
“It meant a lot to all of us. It especially meant a lot to that group. They had seen so much and gone through so much. That’s why it was so special for us. Because we worked really hard and we planned really hard day in, day out. Just thinking about how we can win the World Cup.”
The day will forever be memorable, and the memories cherished, for all Indian cricket fans.
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