World T20: ‘Oh god, please take that catch’

W hen MS Dhoni’s India take on Mohammad Hafeez’s Pakistan on Sunday, they will have a record to protect — not losing to them in a World Cup. Five years ago in the World T20, India won the first game against their neighbours via a bowl-out in Durban before prevailing in the famous final in Johannesburg.

The India-Pakistan matches draw the maximum eyeballs, more so in a world event. “Such is the hype around an India-Pakistan match that even someone who doesn’t know cricket will watch,” says Venkatesh Prasad, India’s bowling coach in that tournament.
Sunday’s clash will be the third in the World T20 between the teams and the first since the final at the Wanderers five years and five days ago. Robin Uthappa, one of the stars of that inaugural edition, recalls, “In the first game, we went with the confidence that we never lost to Pakistan in a World Cup. We were pretty sure we’d keep the record in tact. Everyone was pumped up and wanted to beat them.”

Uthappa, who scored 50, was one of the three Indian bowlers who found the target in the bowl-out. He says, “We knew we’d do well in the bowl-out as we practised it in the nets. For us, bowl-out was like a competition: batsmen vs bowlers. The guys who hit the stumps more were the ones who took part in the bowl-out. Rohit (Sharma), Viru bhai (Virender Sehwag) and I were consistently hitting the wickets.”

During the bowl-out, Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Uthappa were on target, while Pakistan failed to find the stumps even once. Robin Singh, the then fielding coach, says, “We did everything necessary to win the tournament, including practising bowl-out seriously.”

Singh believes the first match against Pakistan was the turning point. “There was no pressure in the bowl-out. We had an opportunity to win, which we did in the bowl-out. In fact, we won the tournament against all odds. Experts felt we had no chance. But we were confident.” Says Prasad, “You need to be smart and play to your strengths. Against Pakistan, you have to be clever. They are an unpredictable side. You ought to take the bull by the horns and ensure you nail the opposition when they are down.”
In the final, defending 157, India seemed to be losing their way, with Misbah going great guns. Prasad insists that India did not panic.

“We were in control till Misbah arrived. Misbah was playing straight and clearing the field until he risked a scoop that found Sreesanth at fine leg. We had no other option than have Joginder bowl the last six balls. We wanted to take the game to the last over, so we tried all our main bowlers early, ” he said.

Singh says, “Jogi had done it in the previous games. When the opponent needs 12 an over, you have to back yourself. At no stage did anyone drop his head. When the catch went to Sreesanth, we hoped he would not spill the chance.” Uthappa re-lives the defining moment: “As soon as Misbah played that shot, I was at long-on and the only prayer on my lips was, “Oh god, please take that catch.”

Delhi’s Sunil Dev, manager of the team, says, “The thirst for a win was great at the time. That last over by Jogi was not magic. We were destined to win that match.”