Reflecting on India's 2024 T20 World Cup Win

I arrived in this world two months after India’s unforgettable first T20 World Cup triumph. By the time I was three-and-a-half, I witnessed the nation go wild as India clinched the ODI World Cup, ending a 28-year drought since the legendary '83 victory. At five-and-a-half, I cheered a youthful Indian team as they seized the Champions Trophy in 2013 after England spectacularly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

But did I remember any of those glorious moments? Not a chance. Did I even watch them? Who knows? The memories of hoisting international trophies and basking in the glory of being reigning champions are a complete blur to me.

Instead, my journey as an Indian cricket fan has been a rollercoaster of dreams morphing into nightmares. The 2016 T20 World Cup semi-final? Hardik Pandya had Lendl Simmons caught at cover, only for it to be overturned due to a no-ball. The 2017 Champions Trophy Final? Jasprit Bumrah bowled a beauty to get Fakhar Zaman out, only for an overstep to ruin it. And the 2019 ODI World Cup semi-final? Martin Guptill’s laser-guided throw dashed Dhoni’s heroic efforts and crushed our comeback hopes.

The heartache didn’t stop there. The 2021 World Test Championship, the 2022 T20 World Cup, the 2023 World Test Championship, and the 2023 ODI World Cup all brought us to the brink, only to leave us empty-handed. Despite consistently reaching the semi-finals and finals, that elusive gold medal remained just out of reach.

How much disappointment can one fan handle? The team’s undeniable talent and bilateral series victories became mere consolation prizes. Before every knockout game, I found myself preemptively bracing for another letdown. The dreaded “Chokers” tag, once South Africa’s burden, seemed to have settled on us, making it seem like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli would never lead us to that elusive victory.

India entered the 2024 T20 World Cup as a top contender, as always. Despite our trophy drought, we've consistently made it to the final four over the past decade. Yet, with the weight of expectation, I couldn't help but feel muted. After last year's ODI final heartbreak, my confidence wavered. If we couldn't clinch victory on home turf, how could Team India triumph in the US, especially in a T20 format where our tactics seemed to falter?

The group stages were a breeze, except for the nail-biter against Pakistan. Rain almost handed India a defeat. Watching live at the stadium, the crowd was tense as Pakistan inched closer to their target, methodically preserving wickets. At 80-3 in 14 overs, victory seemed within their grasp. A win here would boost their spirits after a shocking loss to the US. Enter Jasprit Bumrah, the crisis man. The crowd's hope rested on his shoulders as he started the 15th over. And true to form, the premier match-winner delivered, turning the game in India’s favor.

A length ball angling into the right-hander changed everything. With the 1st ball of the 15th over, Bumrah plucked the well-set Mohammad Rizwan, flipping the game on its head. The moment the bails flew off, the crowd erupted. Bumrah single-handedly brought India and the crowd back into the game. Despite needing just 40 runs off 6 overs, Pakistan finished 6 short. Axar, Hardik, and Bumrah choked the Pakistan batting attack with changes of pace and line. After the tight win against Pakistan, India's chances seemed brighter. Maybe this time would be different.

The rest of the tournament was a cakewalk. Convincing wins in the Super 8 set us up for a rematch of the 2022 T20 World Cup Finals: India vs. England. This time, however, the roles were reversed. The 10-wicket drubbing Team India endured 2 years ago seemed like a distant memory as the English batting order reverse-swept themselves to defeat, scoring just 103 in a run-chase of 171.

The final between India and South Africa was jokingly dubbed the "Match of the Chokers." The infamous record of both teams in high-stakes games meant this game would come down to who made fewer errors. After an explosive start, India raced to 23/0 off just 1.2 overs, only to suffer back-to-back blows, losing the in-form Rohit Sharma and the streaky Rishabh Pant. When SKY walked out to bat, there was confusion. The management had shielded him from facing the new ball, and promoting him up the order on the biggest stage seemed counterintuitive. Sure enough, SKY's patented pickup shot was plucked in the deep by Klaasen, leaving India without their top order after just 5 overs.

The partnership between Axar Patel and Virat Kohli steadied the ship. For the first time this tournament, Kohli looked completely in control, playing the role of anchor. On the other end, Axar took the attack to the South African bowlers. Sloppy running and ball-watching ended Axar's innings as he was thrown out at the non-striker’s end. From there on, it was the Virat Kohli show. Kohli had scored 44 runs off 40 balls at the time of Patel's dismissal, but quickly shifted gears, flaying bowlers en route to 76 off 59. A Shivam Dube cameo provided the final burst to the innings, and Team India ended with 176-7, a good total but 15-20 runs short.

Contrary to India's start, South Africa began by losing their 1st wicket in the 2nd over for just 7. Then they lost the dangerous Aidan Markram in the next over, leaving them at 14/2. But South Africa was nothing if not resourceful, rebuilding with Quinton De Kock and the young Tristan Stubbs. They slowly set a base against the pacers before launching an attack against the spinners. From overs 5-8, SA added 40 runs, pummeling Kuldeep and Axar. A roar of happiness echoed from our house when Stubbs was bowled by Axar. By the end of 10 overs, South Africa was 81-3.

By the end of 15 overs, South Africa was 147-4. The departure of Quinton De Kock accelerated their run rate, with Heinrich Klaasen putting on a masterclass against spin bowlers. The 4 overs of spin since the 10th conceded a whopping 58 runs. My worries exponentially heightened. Was it going to happen again? Were we going to choke? Was Kohli never going to win a T20 World Cup?

With 30 needed off 30, hope was dwindling. Bumrah's 16th over gave up just 4 runs, but the pitch was conducive to hitting, and nothing short of a miracle was going to change our fortunes. Right before the 16th over, Rishabh Pant fell clutching his hamstring. It seemed tactical to me, throwing the batsmen's rhythm off. It worked. The first ball of Pandya's over, a full-length slower ball, was top-edged by Klaasen to the keeper. A billion voices erupted worldwide. Klaasen had wrested control away from India, and his wicket got us one step closer to victory. Tight overs followed, and it came down to South Africa needing 16 off 6.

There are different ways to impact a game. As West Indies legend Clive Lloyd once said, "Catches win matches." After a dismal batting performance, SKY grabbed one of the most audacious catches I have ever seen. Running to his left, he caught the ball, realized he would barrel into the boundary, threw it up close to him, and ensured he ran back into the field. It was a jaw-dropping moment that Team India had been on the wrong end of for years.

Team India's win in the 2024 T20 World Cup was the culmination of an 11-year journey finally reaching its glorious conclusion. It was a fitting send-off for Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja. All the hard work and the tears shed while wearing Indian blue, all paid off. The trio had single-handedly dragged India over the finish line countless times, and it was a fitting moment of passing the torch.

For Rohit Sharma, it was a testament to his captaincy in the shortest format. After winning 5 IPL titles, Sharma ended his T20 career as one of India’s most explosive batsmen. Fittingly, Sharma is the only Indian to have won 2 T20 World Cup titles. He was a huge part of the 2007 T20 World Cup win and spearheaded India's meteoric rise. For Virat Kohli, he joined the elite club of players who have won all limited-overs Championships. His captaincy turned the Indian pace attack into a world-class one, and his influence was evident throughout the squad. For Hardik Pandya, the man of the hour, it was a fitting tribute to his hard work despite personal hardships. His reunion and eventual captaincy with the Mumbai Indians was messy, and Pandya was portrayed as the villain for usurping Rohit. Furthermore, his personal life has been turbulent, with the announcement of his separation from his wife this month.

For teenaged fans like me, it is our 1st memory of unparalleled success. I have seen India dominate bilateral series like nobody's business, but those series don't mean much when you cannot beat the same team on the biggest stage. It is fitting that the world cup win signals the end of an era, an era that I grew up in and one that all my favorite players played in. I look forward to the future of Indian cricket, and expect more hardware like this.