'We're going to miss Murali terribly' - Sangakkara

	India deprived Muttiah Muralitharan of the send-off he sought

Kumar Sangakkara rued not being able to give Muttiah Muralitharan the perfect send-off in what was his final international appearance for Sri Lanka and admitted the team would "miss him terribly." Sri Lanka were beaten by six wickets in the World Cup final by India in Mumbai and Murali, on one of his rare off days, went wicketless in eight overs and conceded 39 runs.

"It's one of those rare days when he hasn't really done the job for us, but it happens maybe once in a 100 games," Sangakkara said. "We're going to miss him terribly. Unfortunately we couldn't give him a great send-off but that's the way it goes. We were outplayed and we have to accept that."

Sri Lanka had done well after winning the toss, posting 274 thanks to a superlative century from Mahela Jayawardene. They were in command when Lasith Malinga dismissed India's openers, Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar, early in the chase. But the Indian middle order stepped up with Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni reviving the innings with match-winning half-centuries.

Murali was dealt with easily by Gambhir and Dhoni, who hit him repeatedly to the extra-cover boundary. Murali had come into this game with a groin injury, and while it was considered a risk to play him, the game was just too big to leave him out. Sangakkara, however, said fitness didn't affect Murali's performance.

"He's our best bowler, even if half-fit," Sangakkara said. "But he was fine, he was almost at full fitness when he played today. I don't think it was an issue."

Murali had ended his Test career on a high, picking up a wicket with his final delivery to win Sri Lanka a game against India last year. And while that perfect ending eluded him this World Cup, Sangakkara summed up what he meant for Sri lanka. "Murali is the icon of Sri Lanka," he said. "As a champion on the field and off the field. As a human being and a cricketer, I don't think there is anyone to match him." 

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/story/509297.html

India planned for final for a year

	Sachin Tendulkar was carried on his team-mates' shoulders around his home ground

Harbhajan Singh wept into the India flag, Yuvraj Singh couldn't hold back tears either. Sachin Tendulkar, not used to having his feet off the ground, for a change felt comfortable on the shoulders of his team-mates as they took a lap of the ground. He was being taken around a ground that had once booed him. All that didn't matter today. A life-long dream had been achieved in a sixth attempt; in front of his home crowd, at a ground where he played most of his domestic cricket. MS Dhoni, Yuvraj, Zaheer Khan and Gautam Gambhir followed with their arms around each other's shoulders. Virat Kohli, playing in his first World Cup, inconsolable when he had got out earlier, sang Chak de India to the crowd.

There was delight, there were tears of joy, there was contentment. There was relief after a campaign where their every move was noticed, dissected and criticised or praised. It was a moment nobody could take away from the Indian team. They took their time as they celebrated. Slowly, savouring each moment. Months of tension, build-up, sleepless nights, inability to eat regularly, cramps, vomit, sweat, toil; all of it was over, and in their hands was the World Cup.

Gary Kirsten's contribution was not forgotten. After Tendulkar had been around the ground on the strong and reliable shoulders of Yusuf Pathan, the team chaired Kirsten too, who was coaching India for one last time. An equally loud applause followed. Quietly, Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach, and Eric Simons, the bowling coach, watched. They watched men become kids, they watched, and heard, 33,000 people's gratitude.

"There have been some incredible moments in my involvement with sport, but this has got to be the highlight," Upton told ESPNcricinfo.

Upton spoke of the year the team had been through: the anticipation, the preparation, the hard work. "We set on this a year ago. Gary and myself and Eric Simons asked the question, 'Are we ready to win the World Cup?' And we felt we had the team to win it, the skill and the talent, but mentally we possibly weren't ready."

That was in Dambulla where, as Virender Sehwag mentioned, they started visualising the World Cup final. "We had planned a year ago what we needed to do in order to set ourselves up to win the World Cup," Upton said. "For a year we have been talking about when we play the final in Mumbai, and it was amazing yesterday [Friday] to reflect in the team meeting and say, 'Guys we have been talking about exactly this for a year, and we have been preparing for it and we know we are ready.' So while there were nerves, we went in with the confidence that we are better prepared than the opposition."

Some of the players have been struggling to sleep properly, but Upton believed - as it now seems - in something preordained. "Strangely I slept quite comfortably, because the job was done, we just needed to go and act out the script that was already written."

The nerves he felt towards the closing moments, despite himself being a mental conditioning coach, he said was a feeling like no other. "I get bloody nervous. Believe you me. It was magnificent."

The greatest moment of his greatest achievement in sport was watching the players weep. And looking after the mental side of players who perhaps play under the most pressure in world cricket, he has seen them in tears of anguish too. "The greatest moment today was getting together with the team in the middle of the pitch; and just seeing the looks on the guys' faces, and the tears running down their cheeks. Tears of joy and relief and ecstasy. It was a special moment." 

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/story/509298.html

'I couldn't control my tears of joy'

"I couldn't have asked for anything more than this. Winning the World Cup is the proudest moment of my life. Thanks to my team-mates. Without them, nothing would have happened. I couldn't control my tears of joy."
Sachin Tendulkar, who's played six World Cups, on his best moment

"I took a quite few decisions tonight, if we hadn't won I would have been asked quite a few questions: Why no Ashwin, why Sreesanth, why no Yuvraj, why did I bat ahead?! That pushed me and motivated to do well"
MS Dhoni puts a light spin on his selection decisions ahead of India's title win

"This is unbelievable. The Under-19 World Cup, then the World Twenty20 but this is the most special. For Sachin, for everyone else."
Yuvraj Singh, the Player of the Tournament, sums it up

"Very proud of everyone, especially Mahela who rose up to the occasion and put up a great hundred. When you look at this Indian team anything less than 350 looks less! They deserved this title, the way they played in front of a great crowd."
Kumar Sangakkara, the Sri Lanka captain, is gracious in defeat

"All credit goes to Sachin Tendulkar. We played for him. Beating Australia and Pakistan and now this, its a dream come true."

Gautam Gambhir, who gave India the upper hand in the final with his 97

"It means the world to me. I have been part of the three World Cups. This is for the nation. Thank you very much, we love you. This cup is for the people. Love you India!"
Harbhajan Singh was among several Indian players who shed a tear following India's victory

"This goes out to all the people of India. This is my first World Cup; I can't ask for more. Tendulkar has carried the burden of nation for 21 years; It was time we carried him. Chak de India!"
Virat Kohli leads the Tendulkar tributes

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc_cricket_worldcup2011/content/current/story/509249.html

India beat Sri Lanka to win ICC World Cup 2011

India beat Sri Lanka to win ICC World Cup 2011

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MUMBAI: An inspired India on Saturday night regained the coveted World Cup after 28 years as they suppressed Sri Lanka with a six-wicket victory in a nerve-wrecking final to script a glorious new chapter in their cricketing history.

Chasing 275 for a historic win, the Indians held their nerves as they rode on Gautam Gambhir's 97 and Mahendra Singh Dhoni's unbeaten 91 to overhaul the target with 10 balls to spare and send the cricket-crazy nation into a frenzy.

The vociferous, jam-packed crowd at the Wankhede stadium erupted in wild celebrations as Dhoni hit the winning six runs to give India their biggest cricketing moment and crown themselves the ODI world champions, in addition to being the number one Test team.

The World Cup title triumph, coming as it did after more than two decades, was doubly special for Sachin Tendulkar since it was the only silverware missing from his collection.

It was also a fitting farewell to coach Gary Kirsten, for whom it was the last day in office as the Indian coach.

It was a momentous Saturday night marked by high emotion and poignant scenes as India, for long the game's financial power, stamped their supremacy on the field as well, eight years after Sourav Ganguly's team had made an abortive attempt to scale the pinnacle.

The players, many of them with tears in their eyes, rushed to the ground to hug each other as Dhoni finished it off in style by hitting a six, as fire crackers lit up the evening sky to mark the moment.

The highlight of the Lankan innings was Mahela Jayawardene's rollicking 103 as Sri Lanka capitalised on the batting powerplay to post a decent 274 for six.

Electing to bat after winning the toss, Jayawardene used his vast experience to good effect and anchored the Lankan innings together.

The islanders, desperate to regain the coveted cup after nearly 15 years, lost wickets at regular intervals against the Indians, who were spurred on by a vociferous jam-packed crowd.

The Indian bowlers were disciplined in the first half of the innings but conceded as many as 63 runs in the batting powerplay to undo all the good work.

Apart from Jayawardene's 88-ball knock, captain Kumar Sangakkara (48) Tillakaratne Dilshan (33) and Nuwan Kulasekara (32) were the other notable performers.

The Indian innings began on a disastrous note as the destructive Virender Sehwag was dismissed in the very second ball of the innings with paceman Lasith Malinga scalping the prized wicket.

Sehwag was hit on the pads by an incoming delivery by Malinga as he went for a flick. Umpire Aleem Dar ruled him out before he asked for review but television replays showed that the ball would have hit the stumps.

Tendulkar, playing in what probably is his last World Cup game, entertained his home crowd with a couple of delightful boundaries while Gambhir also looked for runs at the other end.

The Indians suffered a huge jolt went Malinga struck again by dismissing the champion batsman as he snicked an away-going delivery and captain Sangakkara latched on to a low catch. A hushed silence descended on the Wankhede stadium as he started his walk back to the pavilion.

Gambhir drove Kulasekara for a boundary in the extra cover region to notch up 4000 ODI runs while Virat Kohli also pulled the bowler to the boundary in the same over.

Gambhir was lucky to get a reprieve in spinner Suraj Randiv's first over when Kulasekara dropped him at the long off region.

The third-wicket pair of Gambhir and Kohli put on 83 runs before Dilshan broke the partnership by taking a brilliant acrobatic return catch.

The out-of-form Dhoni came ahead of Yuvraj to keep the left-right combination going and was immediately given two 'lives' by the Lankans -- first Sangakkara messing up a stumping chance off Muralitharan and then Dilshan dropping a return catch as he collided with non-striker Gambhir.

Dhoni, however, made the most of the Sri Lankan lapses to rediscover his form which had deserted him in the mega event.

Dhoni and Gambhir scored at a brisk pace to keep India in the hunt.

The pair stitched 109 runs for the fourth wicket before Gambhir paid the price for a horrendous stroke, just three runs short of what would have been a well-deserved century.

Gambhir made room to cut the ball but missed it completely to see his stumps dislodged.

Earlier, both the Indian new ball bowlers bowled a tidy line and length and did not allow the Sri Lankan openers to get off to a flying start while the fielding was also sharp.

Pace spearhead Zaheer's first three overs were maidens and that put some pressure on the two Lankan openers who were not being able to capitalise on the powerplay overs.

Dilshan broke the stranglehold by hitting the first boundary of the innings in the 5th over by pulling Sreesanth to the square leg fence.

In the same over, he produced a delightful cut to the point for his second boundary.

Tharanga looked completely out of sorts at the other end as he found it difficult to find the gaps as Zaheer bowled a searching length right through his opening spell.

Zaheer drew first blood in his fourth over by evicting Tharanga with an outgoing delivery and Virender Sehwag holding on to diving catch at first slip much to the delight of a capacity crowd at the stadium. Tharanga scored just two runs off 20 balls.

The Lankans could manage just 31 runs in the first ten overs, their lowest in the tournament. That was largely because of Zaheer's excellent first spell of 5-3-6-1.

Dilshan and Sangakkara put on 43 runs for the second wicket before Harbhajan Singh struck for his team by getting rid of Dilshan (33), who scored 500 runs in the tournament.

Dilshan went for a sweep but the ball hit his gloves and lobbed onto his stumps to trigger off wild celebrations in the galleries.

Sangakkara and Jayawardene then took upon themselves the task of rebuilding the innings and the duo scored at a decent pace to steer the team to a comfortable position.

Yuvraj Singh, who had a dream tournament with both the bat and the ball, was introduced into the attack in the 22nd over but the two experienced batsmen were not really troubled by his left arm spin.

It was Yuvraj who finally broke the 62-run third wicket partnership which was assuming dangerous proportions by dismissing Sangakkara who tried to cut a wide ball outside the off stump but only succeeded in edging the ball to Dhoni behind the stump. His knock of 48 came off 67 balls and contained five boundaries.

It was left to the well-settled Jayawardene to hold the innings together and he found an able ally in Thilan Samaraweera to take the Sri Lankan total close to the 180 mark.

Yuvraj was again instrumental in breaking the fourth- wicket partnership by accounting for Samaraweera. Umpire Simon Taufel turned down the leg before appeal but the Indians went for the referral and television replays showed that the ball would have hit the stumps.

New batsman Chamara Kapugedera did not survive long as he offered a simple catch to Suresh Raina at extra cover off a slower delivery from Zaheer, leaving the visitors in a spot of bother at 182 for five.

Jayawardene and Nuwan Kulasekara then teamed up ensure that Sri Lanka had a competitive total on the board as they went about accumulating runs in the batting powerplay, which was taken in the last five overs.

India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, Munaf Patel.

Sri Lanka: Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Mahela Jayawardene, Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Kapugedera, Suraj Randiv, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan.

Umpires: Simon Taufel (AUS) and Aleem Dar (PAK)
TV umpire: Ian Gould (ENG)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL) 

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/India-beat-Sri-Lanka-to-win-ICC-World-Cup-2011/articleshow/7850560.cms

Ind vs SL: Skipper Dhoni hits out at critics

Dhoni hits out at critics after World Cup triumph

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MUMBAI: Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni took potshots at the critics of his team, saying that the World Cup triumph has answered them.

He said a couple of decisions taken by him in Saturday's summit showdown against Sri Lanka could have been criticised had his side not won the World Cup.

"A few decisions I have taken today, including why I brought in S Sreesanth instead of Ravichandran Ashwin and why I promoted myself in the batting order ahead of Yuvraj who has been in great form. It could have been that the decisions cost the match," he said at the post-match presentation after India beat Sri Lanka by six wickets in the summit showdown here.

"We have been hearing a lot of things during this tournament and so it feels great to win the World Cup," he said.

"I always wanted to give chance to give chance to younger players by sending them up the order. Today, I thought I would take the responsibility myself. It was more like proving myself and not to others," he said.

Asked specifically if the World Cup triumph was in a way telling the critics to shut up as the players would do their job with their performance, he said, "In India it would be very rude to say like that."

"We spent the last 30-35 days together in the field and the dressing room thinking of this victory only and we have achieved that now," he added

Dhoni said coach Gary Kirsten and senior players backed him on his decision to promote ahead of Yuvraj.

"The pressure had got to me in the previous games. In this game, I wanted to bat up the order and Gary and the senior players backed me," said Dhoni, who was declared man of the match for his 91 not out from 79 balls.

He praised Gautam Gambhir (97) and Virat Kohli (35) for keeping the team on track after the early dismissal of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar.

"Virat and Gautam batted brilliantly. They ran lots of singles. Then with the help of bit of dew, we were able to put pressure on the spinners. I would have liked Gautam to go on and get that big hundred. A World Cup hundred would have been huge. Credit to him for taking the team closer to victory," he said before lifting the World Cup after the trophy was handed to him by ICC chief Sharad Pawar.

Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara conceded that the Indians were the deserved winners.

"When you look at this Indian team anything less than 350 looks less. They deserved this title, the way they played in front of a great crowd. Both Sri Lanka and India will be proud with the way they have played. Congrats India, you were the better side today," he said.

"The only way to stop India is to get at least seven wickets quickly and that did not happen. Gautam was outstanding and Dhoni stepped up when it was required," said Sangakkara.

"Very proud of everyone, especially Mahela Jayawardene who rose up to the occasion and put up a great hundred. Of course, we are disappointed but I think we would take the positives from this World Cup. Thanks to Sri Lankan fans at home and here, to the president and the support staff," he said. 

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/Ind-vs-SL-Skipper-Dhoni-hits-out-at-critics/articleshow/7853608.cms

Frenzied celebrations across the country to mark World Cup win

NEW DELHI: Delirious fans broke into unprecedented celebrations across the country, setting off fireworks, jamming main thoroughfares with vehicles and partying hard on the streets savouring glory as India won the cricket World Cup.

As soon Team India Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni struck a huge six to post India's historic triumph, thousands of fans burst crackers at a ground near his house at Harmu in Ranchi where they watched the final on a giant TV screen.

Wild celebrations erupted every time a Sri Lankan wicket fell and then with each boundary hit by India's batsmen.

Cheers became louder after Dhoni completed 6000 runs in one day cricket and then reaching his half century, sending esctatic fans into a frenzy.

"This night will never to be forgotten", said Raj Kumar who stays in a neighbourhood of Dhoni.

It was Diwali once more on the streets of Mumbai, the venue of the final, as fireworks lit up the night sky and the playing of musical instruments like drums reverberated throughout the city as the "biggest party on the planet" began.

The crowds, which had vanished from the streets this afternoon to watch the match on TV, reappeared after the Indian skipper sealed the win over Sri Lanka.

Several localities of Mumbai and other major cities, including Bhopal, experienced traffic snarls as all modes of private transport thronged the streeets but few complained as the ecstasy and celebrations brushed asided all other considerations.

Cricket lovers who watched the grand finale of the two-month long tournament, at multiplexes and restaurants, chilled out with friends after the victory.

In Kolkata, thousands of ecstatic fans wearing Team India jersey waving tricolours flocked to the three-kilometre posh Park Street stretch, the city's most popular address, and broke into dance and honked their cars.

Many fans broke into tears even as they shouted 'India... India... Vande Mataram... Jai Ho...' and 'De Ghumake'...'

It was a special moment for many young fans who had not watched India's previous World Cup triumph in 1983.

"Many of us were either not born in 1983 or were not grown up to watch Kapil Dev win in the West Indies. We have grown up hearing the Kapil Devil's story from our parents.

"We waited through years, and six editions of World Cups passed by. The moment has come now," 18-year-old Neha Keshri, accompanied by her jubilant friends, said in Behala.

"Celebration has just begun... It will go on and on. We will not stop", said Bijay Dubey, a 33-year-old fan in Tollygunge. 

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Frenzied-celebrations-across-the-country-to-mark-World-Cup-win/articleshow/7853662.cms

India deserved to win World Cup, says Sangakkara

India's Sreesanth, Tendulkar, Harbhajan , Raina, Chawla and Sehwag (left to right) celebrate with the trophy after India won their ICC World Cup final against Sri Lanka in Mumbai on April 2, 2011. (Reuters Photo)

MUMBAI: Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara said his team were disappointed at missing out on a second World Cup title but proud to go down to a team that deserved victory more.

"I am very proud of everyone in the team, especially Mahela (Jayawardene) who rose up to the occasion and put up a great hundred," he said, after India defeated his side by six wickets in the final at the Wankhede stadium.

Jayawardene scored an unbeaten 103 off just 88 balls to take Sri Lanka to 274-6 in the day-night clash watched by a capacity 30,000 crowd and millions more on television.

"When you look at this Indian team anything less than 350 is not enough. It has been a great tournament for us. The way India played they deserved the tag of favourites.

"Both Sri Lanka and India will be proud with the way they have played."

Sangakkara, who made 48, said the only way his team could have stopped India from winning the crown was to take quick wickets but that did not happen.

"India were the better side. They were fantastic tonight. The only way for us to stop India was to get at least seven wickets. Gautam (Gambhir) was outstanding and (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni stepped up and performed.

"We are diappointed but the better side won."

Gambhir made 97 while skipper and man-of-the-match Dhoni finished unbeaten on 91. 

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/cricket-world-cup-2011/news/India-deserved-to-win-World-Cup-says-Sangakkara/articleshow/7853516.cms