INDIA WON TWENTY 20 WORLD CUP

India defied all Twenty20 theories

India defied all preconceived theories about cricket's newest format by relying on their natural skills to beat Pakistan by five runs to win the inaugural ICC World Twenty20.

The last of the world's leading countries to embrace Twenty20 cricket - they had only played one match before the start of the tournament - India chose a young and energetic side for the two-week event.

Their decision to leave behind players like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid paid dividends, however, when their next generation completed a last-over victory over arch-rivals Pakistan at the Wanderers.

Marginal underdogs before the start, their chance appeared to have gone when they were limited to 157 for five at a ground which has three 200-plus totals during the tournament.

But a combination of accurate bowling, explosive fielding and a sub-standard batting display from Pakistan ensured their biggest rivals were dismissed for 152 in reply.

Their outstanding achievement was all the more remarkable for the fact that India chose to throw in off-spinning all-rounder Yusuf Pathan for his debut after reliable opener Virender Sehwag was ruled out with groin problems.

They soon reaped the rewards as the 24-year-old half-brother of fellow all-rounder Irfan Pathan launched Mohammad Asif for six down the ground in the opening over for his first scoring shot in international cricket.

Yusuf fell in the third over after hitting a promising 15 off eight balls and set the tone for the majority of India's top order with none of them able to contribute significant scores to the total.

It was left to opener Gautam Gambhir to provide nearly half of India's runs by scoring a superb 75 off 54 balls, which included eight fours and two sixes, and at least guided his side to a competitive total.

India's only significant stand was between Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh, who struggled to find the fluency which helped him play match-winning innings against England and Australia and singled him out as the biggest threat to Pakistan's hopes of victory.

Having hit 12 sixes in the tournament, this time Yuvraj struggled throughout and contributed only 14 to a 63-run stand off only 48 balls before offering a return catch to Umar Gul.

That was the first of three wickets for Gul, who struck in his next over to demolish Mahendra Dhoni's stumps two balls after unsettling him with a waist-high beamer.

Gul, who finished with impressive figures of three for 28, also removed Gambhir in his final over when he reverse-swept to Asif at short fine leg.

Pakistan's reply was undermined from the start with left-arm seamer Rudra Pratap Singh striking twice in his first two overs to leave them reeling at 26 for two.

Imran Nazir reacted to the early setbacks by hitting seamer Shanthakumaran Sreesanth for 21 in his first over, but was brilliantly run out from mid-on by Robin Uthappa throwing down the stumps at the batsman's end as Pakistan attempted a quick single.

With Younis Khan also chipping seamer Joginder Sharma to mid-on in the ninth over, Pakistan had slumped to 65 for four and the momentum appeared to have turned towards India.

It was then that Dhoni called Irfan Pathan into the attack and he delivered a match-winning spell by claiming three for 16 in his four consecutive overs which all but ensured India would lift the trophy.

Perhaps fortunate with his first dismissal, which Shoaib Malik pulled straight to midwicket, his intelligent change of pace claimed Shahid Afridi first ball when he was caught in the deep while Yasir Arafat was bowled attempting a big heave.

But just as India looked on course for victory, Misbah Ul-Haq launched a late onslaught which turned the tide back towards Pakistan needing 13 off the final over of the tournament from Joginder Sharma.

He bowled a wide with the first delivery and two balls later Misbah came down the wicket to launch him back over his head for six to leave Pakistan needing only six off the final three balls.

Attempting to scoop the next ball from outside off-stump, however, he was caught by Sreesanth at short fine leg to depart for 43 off 38 balls, which included four sixes.


India crowned Twenty20 Champions

India have won the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa after a thrilling final in which arch-rivals Pakistan fell five runs short of their victory target of 158 in Johannesburg.

They were up against it when Umar Gul (3-28) helped restrict them to 157-5, which Gautam Gambhir's 75 dominated.

But RP Singh struck twice early on and Irfan Pathan took 3-16 as a succession of batsmen tossed away their wickets.

Misbah-ul-Haq (43) smashed three sixes in a Harbhajan Singh over and one more in the final over off Joginder Sharma but was caught to end an amazing game.

It brought a hugely entertaining tournament to a fitting climax and was always likely - after all the teams tied their group game and there was a similar frenzied atmosphere when the latest instalment in their rich rivalry commenced at a packed Wanderers.

Gambhir was a figure of calm assurance, however, after debutant Yusuf Pathan and Robin Uthappa perished with mis-timed heaves during a frenetic opening.

He placed and timed the ball elegantly, particularly through the covers, as he brought up his fifty in 38 balls.

The left-hander put India on course for a formidable total, but Yuvraj Singh - India's hero against England and Australia - never got going as Gul exerted control with his clever variations in pace and length.

Gul took a return catch after Yuvraj top-edged a pull and sent skipper Mahendra Dhoni's leg-stump flying as the scoring slowed dramatically between the 14th and 18th overs.

Gambhir quite literally hurt Gul's figures by smashing the ball into the scoreboard over the mid-wicket fence but Gul had the last word by having him snapped up at short fine-leg pouched the ball to become the leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 13.

Sharma collected successive fours off Yasir Arafat and Mohammad Hafeez helped a swipe off Sohail Tanvir over the wide long-on boundary to take the score past 150.

But India still had a lot of work to do to clinch their first major silverware since the 1983 World Cup final and deny their neighbours the chance to emulate their 1992 50-over triumph.

Their prospects looked brighter when Hafeez guided RP Singh's fifth ball to Uthappa to slip and Kamran Akmal lost his off-stump to an inswinger from the left-arm paceman.

But as long as Imran Nazir stayed at the crease the run rate was never likely to be an issue.

He battered two fours and two sixes off an atrocious first over from the unruly Sree Santh which cost 21 runs.

Younus Khan was nowhere near as convincing, although he managed to get bat on ball to collect successive leg-side fours off Santh to take the team past 50 in the sixth over.

The innings then capitulated from 52-2 to 77-6 as Dhoni's bowling changes took the pace off the ball.

Nazir, who went into the game with a groin problem and was refused a runner, was short of the crease when Uthappa's throw from mid-off hit the stumps.

Younus holed out to mid-on, while skipper Shoaib Malik and dangerman Shahid Afrid, who went first ball, tossed their wickets away with ambitious heaves off Irfan Pathan.

The seamer cleaned up Yasir Arafat to end a brief revival but Misbah-ul-Haq swung off-spinner Harbhajan between cow corner and long-on, and Tanvir flicked the returning Santh for two more maximums to provide a massive twist in the tale.

Crucially, Santh ended the over by knocking out the tail-ender's off-stump and RP Singh cleaned up Gul with his penultimate delivery.

Joginder Sharma was entrusted with the final over and began with a horrible wide and when Misbah battered another six down the ground the game looked up but Misbah's gamble of trying to loft it over the keeper's head backfired horribly.

Super Dhoni leads India to history

Mahendra Singh Dhoni led India to a five-run over Pakistan in the final of the Twenty20 World Cup, chasing a target of 158, Pakistan were bowled out for 152 runs in 19.3 overs.

Earlier, Gautam Gambhir scored 75 runs off 54 balls even as Umar Gul bowled brilliantly to scalp three Indian batsmen.

Gul dismissed the big-hitting Yuvraj Singh, skipper Mahendra Dhoni and a well-set Gautam Gambhir as India were restricted to 157-5 after electing to bat.

A packed house consisting largely of Indian and Pakistani fans waved flags and shouted slogans in support of their teams. Shouts of India jeetega and Pakistan zindabad rent the air as the two teams clashed in the final of a world level event for only the second time, the first occasion being the Benson and Hedges World Championship in Australia in 1985.

But the two men everyone thought capable of giving an impetus to the Indian score failed on the big occasion, both falling to Gul in his two successive overs.

The slower pitch was not to the liking of Yuvraj and a frustrated heave ballooned up and was taken by the bowler himself. Gul then played an old trick on Dhoni as he unleashed a bouncer and then slipped in a yorker.

Gambhir, who played the anchor-sheet but still managed to show his penchant for cuts and pulls, compiled a neat 75 off 54 deliveries with eight fours and a pulled six each off Shahid Afridi and Gul before trying a pre-determined sweep and being caught at short fine-leg

Earlier, Yusuf Pathan's baptism by fire promised a lot as he smashed a six off Mohammad Asif off only the second ball he faced. He scored 15 off eight deliveries but was caught at mid-on by Shoaib Malik off the same bowler. Yusuf, playing his first match for India in any form of the game, came in for the injured Virender Sehwag.

Robin Uthappa followed without doing much either, which left the left-handed pair of Gambhir and Yuvraj to play the middle overs, who completed a fifty partnership in just 40 balls.

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