By Nishad Pai Vaidya

It was the anchoring role of Gautam Gambhir while scoring 90-plus and Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s calmness in crisis that changed the script of the 2011 World Cup final. That finale ended with a blitz at the end by the Indian captain.

Sunday’s thrilling triumph in the CB Series against Australia invoked memories of that eventful night on April 2, 2011 at Mumbai when India were crowned World Cup champions. The near-similar scores and happenings in the two matches are quite staggering.

Toss, opposition batting first and score

In the World Cup final at Mumbai, Sri Lanka had won the toss and elected to bat on a good surface. After a slowish start they recovered well to post a formidable 274 on the board. 

At Adelaide, Michael Clarke, the Australian captain too elected to bat and his team put up a challenging 269. In the middle overs, the Australian run-rate was a little above the Sri Lankan rate as Peter Forrest and David Hussey were laying a platform for a late surge. The late hitting may not have been as destructive as that of the Sri Lankans, but Australia ended just five runs behind Sri Lanka total in the World Cup final. 

Pattern in the fall of wickets

One can point out a number of similarities with the way the Sri Lankan innings of the World Cup final and the Australian batting at Adelaide unfolded. While Sri Lanka lost their first wicket at 17, Australia lost their first wicket at 14. 

Australia lost their second wicket at 53, while Sri Lankans had lost their second wicket at 60. 

The loss of the second wicket was the biggest blow for both teams. Sri Lanka lost Tillakaratne Dilshan and Australialost David Warner - the biggest hopes for their respective teams when it came to tearing attacks apart.

Both teams lost their fourth wicket at 179. 

Australia’s Dan Christian became the sixth wicket to fall at 254 – strikingly close to Sri Lanka’s loss of their sixth wicket at 248. Interestingly, both batsmen were run out.

Similar bowling analysis

When one scrolls down India’s bowling figures in both the games, one another eerie similarity: Yuvraj Singh’s spell of 10-0-49-2 was crucial in keeping Sri Lanka quiet during the middle overs and the two wickets came at crucial intervals to dent the flow of runs. Umesh Yadav produced identical figures (he bowled a maiden though) against Australia which in effect replicated Yuvraj’s effort. In fact, both of them dismissed the opposing captains. Yuvraj had Kumar Sangakkara caught behind and Yadav bowled Michael Clarke with a slower delivery.

Gambhir does an encore

The way Gambhir anchored the innings during his 92 was reminiscent of his knock of 97 at Mumbai on that fateful day. He held the innings together on both occasions and batted properly with a sane approach. There were the occasional risks but even those shots were made to look easy. It was important for him to guide the Indian run-chase and keep the scoreboard ticking. Like the World Cup final, there was a point where it looked all too easy for him as he pushed it into the gaps and picked singles without any fuss. 

Rohit steps into Kohli’s shoes

Rohit Sharma’s role at Adelaide was very similar to Virat Kohli’s knock in the World Cup final. Like Kohli, Rohit walked in at No 4 and needed to give Gambhir company. The task faced by Kohli was humongous when compared to that of Rohit’s at Adelaide as the stakes were very high and India had lost Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar very early in the innings. In contrast, Rohit entered the stage at a relatively comfortable position of 90 for two. Nevertheless, Rohit’s partnership of 76 with Gambhir took India to a position of strength, much like the Kohli-Gambhir partnership of 83 against Sri Lanka. Rohit scored 33, while Kohli had scored 35 in the World Cup final.

Dhoni’s signature at the end

The ultimate finisher in both the games for India was the Indian captain. Dhoni’s six gave India a fairytale triumph at Mumbai. And it was his monstrous six at Adelaide that clearly titled the balance in favour of India. It was the Indian captain’s monumental coolness under crisis that won both games for India.

Gambhir and Dhoni were the two strong contenders for the man of the match in both games for India. Dhoni won that honour in the World Cup final and Gambhir at Adelaide.

(Nishad Pai Vaidya, a 21-year-old law student, is a club and college-level cricketer. His teachers always complain, “He knows the stats and facts of cricket more than the subjects we teach him.")