After the humiliating defeat in the 2007 World Cup, India were starving for victory. This was the first time in 15 years that the World Cup was to be hosted by the Sub-continent, India was co-hosting the CWC with its neighbors Bangladesh and the island nation Sri Lanka. The 2011 edition was going to be a tournament full of thrilling matches, mind-blowing records, and upsets for the cricket giants. 

In continuation to our series ‘A Countdown to World Cup’ today we are sharing the story of the 2011 World Cup. 

2011 Cricket World Cup

The 2011 Cricket World Cup was the 10th edition of the biggest tournament of International Cricket that was held between 19th February 2011 and 2 April 2011 in India and Sri Lanka. A total of 49 matches were played among 14 teams, which were divided into two groups of seven each. The hosts India and Sri Lanka qualified along with Pakistan and New Zealand. In a final played between the Hosts, India emerged to be victorious after 28 years. 

Format 

There were 14 teams at the start of the World Cup, divided into two groups of seven. The top four teams of each group proceeded to the Quarter-Finals. The victorious teams went on to play the semis, It was the knock-out stage, and the winners went on to play the Final of the Cup.

Group1: Pakistan, Srilanka, Australia, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya

Group2: India, South Africa, England, West Indies, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Ireland

Quarter-final

This was the first-ever edition of the World Cup where the quarter-finals were played 

Semifinals

The First semifinal was played between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Colombo. This match was remarkable as this was Muralidharan’s last match on Sri Lankan soil. Batting first, New Zealand got bowled out for 217 runs, as Ajanta Mendis and Lasith Malinga destroyed the NZ batting, claiming three wickets each. In reply, Sri Lanka got off to a decent start and lost their first wicket at 40, thanks to an in-form Sangakkara and Dilshan, the Lankans comfortably defeated the Kiwis. Sri Lanka marched on to the Finals.

The Second semi-final was played between the arch-rivals, India and Pakistan. India won the toss and chose to bat first, the backbone of Indian cricket, Tendulkar was dropped four times in the match before he was dismissed at a score of 85. Raina’s cameo innings of 36 led India to a score of 260. Pakistan’s opening gave the men-in-green a solid start. The class captaincy by MS Dhoni, led to India defeating their arch-rivals by 29 runs. India was all set to play the final with Sri Lanka.

Finals

This was the second consecutive final appearance for the island nation. Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat on the Wankhede wicket. Indian bowlers kept the scoring rate low, for the first 10 overs. Due to, Mahela Jayawardene’s ton, Sri Lanka scored 274 runs. India was off to a nervous start as explosive Virender Sehwag departed for a duck. Soon, the hopes of the Indians were shattered as Tendulkar departed on the score of 31-2. 

Gambhir and Kohli were eager to rebuild the innings. Kohli was dismissed for 35 when the Captain came out to bat. Keeping an eye on a bigger partnership, Dhoni and Gambhir kept the scoreboard ticking. Dhoni on one end attacked Muralidharan, and Gambhir played his shots on the other. The left-hander was dismissed three runs short of his century. As Yuvraj Singh replaced Gambhir, India was in a comfortable position. Dhoni brought India close to victory, with only four runs required off 11 balls, MSD hit the ball into the crowd. India lifted the World Cup after 28 years. Tendulkar, who was playing his last World Cup received a dream farewell. Yuvraj Singh’s all-round performance with 362 runs and 15 wickets, earned him the “Man of the Tournament” title. 

Statistics

Top Run Scorer

Top Wicket Taker