It had been a while since India won the Asia Cup. 1995 was the last time India won the World Cup - subsequent efforts had been futile with their neighbors being a step above. 2010 was going to be different with MS Dhoni at the helm of affairs in Sri Lanka.
The Indian team defeated Bangladesh, Pakistan but lost to Sri Lanka in league matches to qualify for the final against the hosts by a better margin. How many times have the Indian team kept their fans on tenterhooks before making it to the final? Countless. While the match against Bangladesh was easy as usual, India-Pakistan match had its own moments of tension and nerve-wracking moments. Harbhajan Singh and Gautam Gambhir led the way to win over the rivals but not without arguments and fights with their opponent teams.
The final was revenge-time for the Indians, having suffered a big loss against the hosts in the league match. The Indian team had the emerging hero, Virat Kohli, as part of the team along with the recalled Suresh Raina. Hence, the balance was maintained with the mantle being passed from Dravid and VVS to the newcomers. Good contributions by all players in the batting lineup meant that the Indian team put on a challenging total on board to test the Lankans. Ashish Nehra repeated the performance that he had displayed against England in 2003 World Cup again to take out the big wickets. Jadeja ensured that the tail did not wag and with astute captaincy, Dhoni lifted the Asia Cup after a long period in the wilderness.
The Indian team defeated Bangladesh, Pakistan but lost to Sri Lanka in league matches to qualify for the final against the hosts by a better margin. How many times have the Indian team kept their fans on tenterhooks before making it to the final? Countless. While the match against Bangladesh was easy as usual, India-Pakistan match had its own moments of tension and nerve-wracking moments. Harbhajan Singh and Gautam Gambhir led the way to win over the rivals but not without arguments and fights with their opponent teams.
The final was revenge-time for the Indians, having suffered a big loss against the hosts in the league match. The Indian team had the emerging hero, Virat Kohli, as part of the team along with the recalled Suresh Raina. Hence, the balance was maintained with the mantle being passed from Dravid and VVS to the newcomers. Good contributions by all players in the batting lineup meant that the Indian team put on a challenging total on board to test the Lankans. Ashish Nehra repeated the performance that he had displayed against England in 2003 World Cup again to take out the big wickets. Jadeja ensured that the tail did not wag and with astute captaincy, Dhoni lifted the Asia Cup after a long period in the wilderness.
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