A day after India lifted the T20 World Cup following an 11-year-long wait for an ICC trophy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the Men In Blue over a phone call, lauding their performance.
“PM Narendra Modi spoke to the Indian Cricket Team on the phone today and congratulated the entire team. He congratulated Rohit Sharma for his splendid captaincy and appreciated his T20 career. He lauded Virat Kohli for his innings in the final as well as his contribution to Indian cricket,” officials were quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
They added: “PM Modi appreciated Hardik Pandya for his final over and Suryakumar Yadav for his catch. He also talked highly of Jasprit Bumrah’s contribution. The PM also thanked Rahul Dravid for his contribution to Indian cricket.”
Talking about the conversations, PM Modi, while talking about Rohit Sharma, said: “You are excellence personified. Your aggressive mindset, batting and captaincy has given a new dimension to the Indian team. Your T20 career will be remembered fondly. Delighted to have spoken to you earlier today.”
Tagging Virat Kohli in a post on X, the Prime Minister wrote: “Glad to have spoken to you. Like the innings in the Finals, you have anchored Indian batting splendidly. You’ve shone in all forms of the game. T20 Cricket will miss you but I am confident you’ll continue to motivate the new generation of players.”
Also lauding coach Rahul Dravid, he said: “Rahul Dravid’s incredible coaching journey has shaped the success of Indian cricket. His unwavering dedication, strategic insights and nurturing the right talent have transformed the team. India is grateful to him for his contributions and for inspiring generations. We are happy to see him lift the World Cup. Happy to have congratulated him.”
On Saturday, the Prime Minister had already congratulated the team on their victory via a post on X. “CHAMPIONS! Our team brings the T20 World Cup home in STYLE! We are proud of the Indian Cricket Team. This match was HISTORIC,” he had said.
Saturday witnessed one of the most thrilling T20 World Cup finals, the end of which saw India triumph but also Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli bow out of the short format.
By the end of the match, the pressure was basically on three Indian players — Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh. From the moment Hardik slipped in a crafty slower to dismiss the most nerveless South African on view on the day Heinrich Klassen and gave away just four runs, the game turned India’s way.
Next over, Jasprit Bumrah not only took out Marco Jansen, the last man who could have eased the pressure on David Miller but gave away just two runs. When the equation read 19 from the final two overs, Arshdeep eked out only four runs. And of course, not to mention, the near-impossible-to-pull-off catch under pressure by Suryakumar Yadav. And it was back to Pandya who sealed the game.
