July 13 holds a special place in the hearts of the Indian cricketing fans, as it trumped England in the 2002 Natwest tri-series final under the leadership of Sourav Ganguly. Nineteen years since the day remains afresh the memories of Indian fans.
When it comes to some of the top moments in Indian cricket, there are countless such moments. From winning the ICC World Cup to ICC World T20 to rising to the top of Test cricket, the list goes on.
Meanwhile, one of the moments happens to have taken place in 2002, on July 13. It was the final of the NatWest tri-series in England, as India was up against the host. In a crunch finale, India managed to edge past at Lord's, as it turned out to be one of the most historic wins in Indian cricket history.
Winning the toss and electing to bat, England handed a mammoth total of 325/5, thanks to blistering twin centuries from Marcus Trescothick (109) and Nasser Hussain (115). Although pacer Zaheer Khan managed to claim 3/62, it was not entirely adequate.
On this day in 2002, the -led Indian side won the tri-series playing one of the most dramatic finals against hosts England at The Lord's. pic.twitter.com/oUk98AEsqI
— Asianet Newsable (@AsianetNewsEN)In reply, the Indian openers were off to a good start, with Virender Sehwag and skipper Sourav Ganguly putting up a 106-run opening stand. While the middle order crumbled, it was the pair of Yuvraj Singh (69) and Mohammad Kaif (87 not out) that put up a match-winning stand of 121 for the sixth wicket, pushing England onto the backfoot, while Kaif stood until the end to finish it off, with three balls to spare.
Following the two-wicket win, the entire Lord's erupted as the Indians celebrated its triumph. Moreover, it was the image of Ganguly waving his shirt in the air at the Lord's balcony that became an iconic moment in the history of Indian cricket.
It has been 19 years since the triumph. However, the memory is still etched fresh in the minds of every Indian cricketing fan. At the same time, it also happens to be an emotional one for some, as it was the first time that India had trumped in an ODI series on English soil.
Brief scores: England 325/5 (Trescothick- 109; Hussain- 115; Zaheer- 3/62) lost to India 326/8 (Ganguly- 60, Yuvraj- 69, Kaif- 87; Giles- 2/47) by two wickets.
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