Gautam Gambhir put the chase for Team India into perspective in the 2011 World Cup final after losing early wickets. He stayed firm, dispatched the odds balls to the fence, and continued to built on a well-composed innings. But it was the decision to promote MS Dhoni in the final against Sri Lanka which drew a lot of attention on the cricketing circuit and also paid off well for the national team.
In a recent interaction with the Times of India, cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, revealed it was his decision to promote MS Dhoni ahead of the in-form Yuvraj Singh at No.5. He felt the left-right combination call well work in favour for the side.
‘Gambhir was batting brilliantly, Dhoni could rotate strike’
Tendulkar, during the 2011 World Cup final, brought his experience to the fore. He felt as Gambhir is chipping in important runs, Dhoni can be used as a perfect second fiddle, as he can rotate strike. Tendulkar added, he asked, Virender Sehwag to pass on the message to MS Dhoni.
“Gautam (Gambhir) was batting brilliantly and someone like Dhoni could’ve kept rotating the strike,” Tendulkar told Times of India as he and Virender Sehwag narrated the sequence of events that led to Dhoni walking out to bat after Virat Kohli was dismissed.
“So I told Viru, ‘tu overs ke beech mein sirf ye baat bahar jaake MS ko bol aur next over shuru hone se pehle waapis aaja. Main yahan se nahi hilne wala (Just go out into the balcony between the overs only to say this much to MS and come back fast before the next over begins. I’m not moving from here).”
Sachin Tendulkar reveals his superstitious side in the 2011 World Cup
In India cricket is a religion and there are plenty of superstitions attached to it. Sachin Tendulkar said he asked Sehwag to sit with him in the balcony and not to go out after the pair was dismissed. He also added, the pair had not moved.
“I came back to the dressing room after I got out and went and sat in my seat. During the quarter-final, against Australia, after our (Tendulkar & Sehwag’s) partnership, I had returned to the dressing room and was lying down on the physio’s table and Viru was next to me. We hadn’t moved. Even this time (at Wankhede), coincidentally, Viru happened to be there and I asked him to sit next to me and not move,” he said.