‘Joint winners in 2002; 2013 final rain-truncated; so this victory is special…’: Fans cheer India’s Champions Trophy triumph

The victory in Dubai yesterday was the third Champions Trophy triumph after victories in 2002 and 2013.

GUWAHATI, March 10: The Men In Blue’s Champions Trophy triumph has been hailed by many fans as a special one, even eclipsing the victories of 2002 and 2013 for what they say is the “most complete” one.

The whole of the country erupted into celebrations after Ravindra Jadeja scored the winning runs even as the match see-sawed despite skipper Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill giving India a near-perfect start. Skipper Rohit was particularly in destructive mode and, leading from the front, justified why fans call him ‘Hitman’ as he clobbered the Kiwi bowlers before sacrificing his wicket while trying to continue exerting pressure on New Zealand.

The Men in Blue finally sailed over, and reached the target of 252 runs set by the Kiwis with an over to spare. KL Rahul, who ensured that there were no further hiccups after the fall of Shreyas Iyer (48), Axar Patel (29) and Hardik Pandya’s wickets, remained unbeaten on 34.

“For me this victory is very very special, particularly in the context of the victories we have had in Champions Trophy history. It was somewhat hard-fought and for me a complete one,” Parthajit Sarania of Rajgarh Road, a die-hard cricket fan, said.

“In 2002, when India won the Champions Trophy for the first time, we had to share the honours with hosts Sri Lanka after rain played spoilsport in the final and then on the reserve day as well,” he said.

“The victory in 2013, although being a sweet one, wasn’t a complete one after rain reduced the ODI match to a 20-overs-a-side game,” he continued.

“But yesterday it was a complete one; a hard-fought match that almost went down to the wire. I still get excited thinking about the match,” he concluded.

Kamal Barman, another sports enthusiast, too echoed similar sentiments, saying the icing on the cake was Rohit Sharma rejecting reports of retirement plans despite media reports claiming that the ‘Hitman’ may well hand his boots after the final irrespective of the outcome.

“I am still getting goosebumps thinking about yesterday’s final. Since the Kiwis have always been fighters, I felt that the match would go down the wire but was pinning for India’s victory. And so has been the result. India have added another trophy to their ICC silverware and the best part is Rohit, who happens to be my favourite among the current crop of players along with Virat and Jasprit Bumrah, will not be retiring from one-dayers contrary to what the media had been speculating,” he said.

India have now eclipsed Australia, who have two trophies in their cabinet, to become the nation with the most number of Champions Trophy victories in the tournament’s history.

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