India’s winning run ignites instant Dipawali Dhamaka in Jamshedpur

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, Oct 23: The last nail may or may not have been chewed off as the nerves delicately hung by the tenterhook stretched that wee bit more when new man in, Ravi Ashwin coolly drove the last Md Nawaz delivery in front of the wicket to seal a seesaw victory at the MCG. On all counts, this will go down in the record books and cricket folklore as the greatest T20I, nerve-splitting matches ever witnessed. India and cricket won while the pendulum ticked either way. While the winning stroke was still sinking in, the sound of crackers heralded the Dipawali spirit in Jamshedpur. Out on the streets, people hugged one another in a frenzy of emotions where identity of the hugger and the hugged was redundant. It was celebration time where known and unknown mingled to savor the taste of a pulsating victory.

The two neighbors, India and Pakistan have been the greatest of rivals in sporting events but this keen fight for supremacy touches the pinnacle when it comes to the contest between leather and willow separated by 22 yards that define euphoric victory or heart-rending defeat.

The T20I contest between India and Pakistan at the MCG on Sunday, October 23, had all the makings of a final World Cup match although it was the first contest for both teams in the 2022 edition. The 90k plus crowd of either teams’ supporters inside the house full stadium reflected the ‘Josh’ of rivalry across the geographical borders of the world. As the match progressed, the adrenaline glands started working overtime fanning frenzy with each hit, each wicket and each moment of changing chances. Such was the fanaticism that set the tone of this contest.

However, amidst all the howling, flag fluttering, it was a match where skill and composure mattered. Each player gave the game his all for a vital win to start off the contest on the right foot. In a contest of this magnitude, it is the skill of ‘keeping cool and thinking right’ that matters in the end. Virat and Hardik and in the end when it mattered most, the weather beaten Ashwin handled their nerves to clinch this last ball victory that added the sheen to this current edition of T20I World Cup.

At the end of the day (or evening), the Indian dressing room had every right to celebrate. But one aspect should not be overlooked. It was how the umpires kept their mantle of extra responsibility under control. One small mistake and the castle could have fallen on their heads. All credit to them for not letting this to happen. And Dravid, sitting alone and not letting his nerves to jump out of his throat was a study that made him the ‘Wall’ in his time. And that, he still is.