India National Cricket Team are the champions of the T20 World Cup 2024 as they defeated South Africa in the final of the tournament on Saturday (29th June). The Rohit Sharma-led side defeated the Proteas by 7 runs at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown Barbados.
India was exceptional with the bat and ball throughout the tournament but when it mattered the most they brought out their best and made sure that they ended their title drought. They clinched the game from the jaws of defeat and bagged their second T20 World Cup title.
India opted to bat first and it was a staggering outing with the bat. Virat Kohli was the shining light with the bat. Despite the team losing wickets early on, the senior batter held on the fort for his team and made sure that he batted deep and took his team to the winning total.
Virat Kohli, who was undergoing a poor run of form in the T20 World Cup 2024, made sure that he stepped up big time for his team. He ended with an innings of 76 runs while Axar Patel (47) and Shivam Dube (27) supported him well as India posted a total of 176 runs on the board.
With the ball, India kept chipping in with wickets at regular intervals but Quinton de Kock (39) and Tristan Stubbs (31) brought their team back in the game. After that, it was Heinrich Klaasen (52), who gave a real scare to the Rohit Sharma-led side as he took attack to the bowlers and slammed them all over the park.
With the way he was batting, it seemed that India would lose the game but Hardik Pandya removed him and then the momentum shifted in the team’s favor. Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh bowled tremendously well and the final over responsibility was handed to Pandya.
The all-rounder had to defend 16 runs in the last over and he started off the over pretty well, removing David Miller on the first ball. However, after that, the drama didn’t stop there as Kagiso Rabada slammed a four and the equation was down to 9 runs from 2 balls.
Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya in tears as India win the T20 World Cup 2024
Hardik Pandya then removed Kagiso Rabada on the 5th ball and the celebrations were on. Skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on the field yelled in joy as they knew that they had the T20 World Cup in their bag.
Not only Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, but even head coach Rahul Dravid, who was in the dressing room, showed off his emotions and was up and celebrating wildly. Here are the videos:
— Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka (@Hanji_CricDekho) June 29, 2024
Finally Rahul Dravid showing emotion finally! ❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/LHnwrofLLK
— Shilpa (@shilpa_cn) June 29, 2024
After the last ball, all the Indian players including skipper Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, and others were all down and in tears. This was after the 11 years that India lifted the ICC title, having last won the 2013 Champions Trophy.