India's 2007 T20 World Cup Winners: Where are they now?

Team India scripted history back in 2007, as they became champions of the inaugural T20 World Cup under MS Dhoni's inspirational leadership. Some of the senior players, including the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, decided to skip the event, and the Men in Blue were a relatively inexperienced side with a first-time captain at the helm. The team also didn't have anyone assigned as the head coach on their trip to South Africa for the marquee tournament. Lalchand Rajput served as the manager and in unison with Dhoni, made plans to bring glory to the nation. The team also executed the plans remarkably on the field as the Asian giants defeated Pakistan by five runs in a pulsating final in Johannesburg to win the title.

Meanwhile, India ended the long-awaited ICC Trophy drought by lifting their second T20 World Cup title in 2024 in the West Indies and the USA under the exceptional captaincy of Rohit Sharma. Interestingly, the 37-year-old is the only player from the current squad to have been part of the 2007 World Cup winning batch.

Let us take a look at the performances of the players in the inaugural edition and what they are doing now:

15. Piyush Chawla

Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was the only player in the Indian squad who didn't get a single game during the 2007 T20 World Cup. Interestingly, the Uttar Pradesh-born was also a part of India's ODI World Cup-winning squad in 2011 but features in only three matches. The 35-year-old is still sweating it out in professional cricket as he recently represented Mumbai Indians in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Notably, he bagged 13 wickets in 11 matches at an average of 24.

Meanwhile, Chawla continues to be part of the domestic circuit and has switched teams from Uttar Pradesh to Gujarat. His last outing with the Gujarat side was in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2023. He also dedicates his time to working as a cricket expert on television.