#ThisDayThatYear: Reliving Kapil Dev and his team's World Cup triumph
The day of June 25 in 1983 holds a special place in the hearts of Indian fans, as India overcome West Indies to be crowned the world champions for the first time ever. Kapil Dev and his men beat the title holders at Lord's to lift their maiden World Cup. As we celebrate this day, here is a look at how it unfolded.
Windies elect to bowl, off to good start
The West Indian skipper Clive Lloyd won the toss and elected to bowl first. The decision seemingly turned out to be a good one, as with only a couple of runs on the board, they got rid of dangerous opener Sunil Gavaskar.
Kris Srikkanth and Amarnath build a stand
Even though Gavaskar got dismissed, India didn't panic. It was fellow opener Kris Srikkanth and number three batsman Mohinder Amarnath, who put up a 57-run stand for the second wicket. After they recovered from the early jolt, it was Malcolm Marshall, who got rid of Srikkanth for 38. 31 runs later, Amarnath too got dismissed, falling for 26 to Michael Holding.
Middle-order fell for cheap
The middle-order struggled to get things right. While Yashpal Sharma could only manage 11, skipper Kapil Dev too got early. Also, Kirti Azad fell for an unfortunate duck, along with Roger Binny, who could only manage a mere couple. It was Sandeep Patil, who continued to fight with a calm innings of 27. In the end, the middle-order could manage only 94 runs.
30 runs is all the tailenders could manage
It was futile to expect anything from the tailenders as they were against lethal bowlers. Madan could manage 17 before being bowled by Marshall on 161, while wicket-keeper batsman Syed Kirmani was knocked over by Holding for 14. As Balwinder Sandhu remained unbeaten on 11, India were bundled for 183, which was a paltry total for Windies.
Windies top-order also got off to a shaky start
As for Windies, they too suffered an early setback with just five runs on the board, as Gordon Greenidge was dismissed for a single. However, opener Desmond Haynes and Viv Richards added 45 more, before they were dismissed for 13 and 33 by Madan. As a result, Windies were struggling at 57/3.
Indian bowlers terrorized the middle-order
Following the removal of the top-order, the Indian bowlers took charge. A unified effort from the bowlers ensured that they bowled tight. They hardly allowed any room to score freely. It was followed by Kapil's magical and economical spell. While wicket-keeper batsman Jeff Dujon reached a double-figure of 25, Marshall recorded 18, before both fell to Amarnath.
Kapil and Amarnath roll up tailenders
Having lost their middle-order for just 76 runs, Windies found themselves in deep trouble at 124/8. It was then that Kapil, along with Amarnath, who made sure that they bundle the tailenders as quickly as possible. While Kapil got rid of Andy Roberts for mere four on 126, Amarnath sent off Holding for mere six, and 14 runs later India won the title.
We weren't silly by thinking we would win it: Gavaskar
It has been 36 long years, but the win remains one of the most memorable ones. Gavaskar said that their turnaround started in 1980 Australia tour. "Then we came to the West Indies in 1983 and we beat them in a match in Guyana. We weren't silly by thinking we would win it. But, we weren't pessimistic," recalled Gavaskar.
Dhoni achieved it in 2011; can Kohli script this term?
Following the 1983 win, Lloyd said, "Indian cricket has arrived. And it's here to stay." It was rightfully so as India managed to win it again in 2011 under MS Dhoni. With the current team fighting it out in England under Virat Kohli, and being dubbed favorites, it would be interesting to see if he can replicate Kapil's success at Lord's on July 14.
