ICC World Twenty20, 2010

The ICC World Twenty20, first played in 2007, sparked off a revolution in the game that many may not have dreamt of.

The inaugural edition in South Africa was a sign of things to come. India, who had only played one T20 international before the major tournament kicked off, were to be the surprise package.

Under a new captain in MS Dhoni and a whole bunch of young, rookie players, the Men in Blue took to the format with an energy seldom seen in an Indian outfit.

The first year saw it all. A riveting tie between India and Pakistan, which led to a bowl-out, leaving the final scoreline (3-0) look more like a football game than a game of cricket and six sixes by Yuvraj Singh off a hapless Stuart Broad in Durban.

A dream run saw Dhoni’s devils trounce Australia in the semis before another tussle against arch-rivals Pakistan in the final. On a historic evening at the sensational Wanderers in Johannesburg, S Sressanth held on to a catch to dismiss Misbah-ul-Haq and help India pocket the first ICC World Twenty20 Championship.

The tournament saw Indian opener Gautam Gambhir come of age. His run of scores against some of the best bowling attacks in the world was reassuring for a nation that knew the golden era of Dravid, Laxman and Ganguly were coming to an end in the ODI’s.

Two years later in 2009, by the time the tournament had moved to England, most international teams had sorted out their T20 game. There was a lot more strategy and captains were ready to slot in ‘bits and pieces’ players along the way.

India began their defence as World T20 champions, believing they were the favourites. And why not? Dhoni had grown as a leader, the team had been on a roll and most of the players had reasonable experience. However, by the end of the league stages, the world was shocked. India were on their way out as were Australia, one of the semi-finalists from 2007. South Africa yet again failed to clear the last-four hurdle and were ousted by a rampaging Pakistani unit.

The final battle was again left to be played between two teams from the sub-continent- Sri Lanka and Pakistan. This time however, the Pakistanis managed to keep their tournament momentum intact. After a sharp bowling performance, Shahid Afridi took it upon himself to wipe out memories of his insanity in the last final- a moment that had perhaps cost Pakistan the Trophy. The Pathan was there right till the end to ensure skipper Younus Khan left the T20 arena on a high- by lofting the second ICC World Twenty20 Championship.

Watch all mathes of  ICC World Twenty20, 2010 Live.

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