How MS Dhoni's captaincy was more influential in World T20 2007 than World Cup 2011
It was the inaugural tournament of T20 format at the world stage. The format was new and India had played only a solitary T20I before that.
2. Dark Horses, Big decisions and 2007 ODI World Cup woes
India was literally the Dark Horses of the tournament. From the first game till the finals, all the teams were more experienced than the subcontinent giant. The skipper himself said after winning the final, “No-one expected us to win and the way we played today we deserve a big celebration.”
Before the T20 exhibition, Team India got out in of the first round of the World Cup 2007. That phase is still known as one of the lowest phases of Indian cricket. After that tournament, the limited-overs picture changed, the way India used to play the game changed absolutely.
The former Indian captain was just 26 years old then. But some of his decisions in vital situations were quite impactful for Team India. Bowling Joginder Sharma in the last over of the final instead of Harbhajan Singh, asking Rohit Sharma to bat higher up the order instead of Dinesh Karthik against South Africa, the planned wicket of Kamran Akmal in the final and having a bowl-out simulation in the practice sessions are popular among them.
On the other hand, India was one of the favourites while going into the mega event in 2011. The team was also doing well from 2008-2011 and was not carrying any baggage at all. Most importantly, India was number 2 in ICC ODI rankings at the start of the tournament as well.
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