The second quarter-final was played in Ahmedabad on March 24, 2011

In the last 10-15 years, India has won multiple international cricket tournaments, but for most Indians, the 2011 World Cup is the most cherished. After all, India had lifted the trophy after a 28-year gap, and that too on home soil. Not to forget, the win made Sachin Tendulkar, hailed as the God of cricket, a World Cup winner. In short, it was a cherry on top, and everything simple ended perfectly for India and its fans.

On this day, i.e., March 24, 2011, India clashed with Australia in the second quarterfinal of the tournament. A multiple-time World Cup champion, before this match, the Aussies had defeated India in seven World Cup matches, whereas India had done the impossible only twice, i.e., in 1983 and 1987.

Ponting’s brilliance

Batting first, Australia’s World Cup-winning Ricky Ponting had played a true captain’s knock, scoring 104 runs in 118 balls, whereas Brad Haddin had started the game with 53 runs off 62 balls. However, the Indian bowlers dented Australia’s dominant batting display by not allowing the middle order to flourish.

(Credit- India Today)

Players such as Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey and Cameron White were sent back to the dugout quickly, and only David Hussey in the lower middle order could add another 38 runs in 26 balls that saw Australia posting 260 runs by losing six wickets.

The Indian bowling unit performed well, with almost all bowlers keeping their economies below 6.0. Ravichandran Ashwin and Zaheer Khan had picked up two wickets each, but the surprise was Yuvraj Singh, who showed Haddin and Clarke the exit.

A collective Indian batting display

 (Credit- The Independent)

India lost Virender Sehwag quickly for 15 runs, but the rest of the chasers displayed calm, composed batting. Sachin Tendulkar made 53 runs in 68 balls, followed by Gautam Gambhir’s 50 runs. A young Virat Kohli also added 24 runs, whereas Yuvraj Singh showed his batting capability as well, making 57 runs in 65 balls. In the middle order, Suresh Raina played the last knock that was needed by India to cross the line – Raina had made 34 runs in 28 balls.

The collective effort by the batters helped India chase the target in just 47.4 overs, leaving five wickets in hand. The Men in Blue won their third-ever ODI World Cup game against the mighty Aussies and reached the semi-final, where they defeated PAK, then beat Sri Lanka in the final to lift the trophy.

“The pressure was something else, I knew there was Suresh yet to come and I knew if we could get a partnership we could take the game to the end. We just played it straight and used the pace. People say it's just another game, but beating the three-time champions I feel is really special for me and our team,” said Yuvraj Sing in the post-match interview.