Exactly 15 years ago, a young and relatively inexperienced Indian team led by MS Dhoni, held their nerve to beat Pakistan by five runs to win the inaugural T20 World Cup in front of a huge crowd at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, South Africa.
15 years on, the memories of the victorious day are still fresh in the minds of not only the fans but of the players as well, like former India cricketer Robin Uthappa, one of the major contributors in the title triumph."
I can't believe that it has been 15 years since we won the T20 World Cup. For me, it feels as if it was just a few years ago. The fond memories from our first ever T20 world cup win are still fresh in my memory.
I can still remember bowling in the bowl-out and tipping my hat in celebration as we won!" said Uthappa in a Star Sports release. Former India pacer Irfan Pathan, whose spell of 3/16 in his four overs got him the 'Player of the Match' award in the tense final victory, still feels the adrenaline rush of the proceedings in the final over of the match bowled by Joginder Sharma."
I still get goose bumps when I think about the finals and how we won it in the last over. We played our very best in that World Cup and to be rewarded in the end with the trophy was just one of the most special feelings in my life.
I can still picture the team and the crowd celebrating for India as Sreesanth caught Misbah in that final over," said the former left-arm fast bowler. With India all set to feature in the T20 World Cup next month in Australia, Uthappa is hopeful of the Rohit Sharma-led side doing an encore of what happened in 2007."
I would like to wish the Men in Blue all the very best as they go Down Under to try and repeat history and get us back the ICC Men's T20 World Cup with 'Mission Melbourne'.
It's a special experience to win the World Cup and I wish Rohit and the boys play their hearts out to repeat the feat we achieved 15 years ago!"Pathan, too, agreed with Uthappa's views."
I hope that the Indian team is fully prepared for 'Mission Melbourne' and aiming to bring the trophy once again to India. I wish them all the very best!"