On this day in 2003: India defeat Pakistan in a high-octane World Cup encounter
Sachin Tendulkar’s international career is embellished with so many knocks of unmatched brilliance. After all, when someone has scored 100 international hundreds, it would be very tough to just pick a handful of his great knocks, isn’t it?
But then, ask any cricket fan about the innings that Tendulkar played on 1st March 2003, and they will probably rank it right at the top. In fact, Tendulkar did not even score a century in that match. But, the memories of his dazzling 98 against possibly the best Pakistan bowling attack ever, is sure to send the fans into a tizzy even today.
Also read: Sachin Tendulkar’s 98 against Pakistan – a timeless masterclass of audacity
On 1st March 2003, arch-rivals India and Pakistan locked horns in the 2003 World Cup at Centurion. The Pakistan side won the toss and decided to bat first. The Pakistan openers provided a sedate start to their side, with Saeed Anwar and Taufeeq Umar involved in a 58-run stand for the opening wicket before Umar was removed by Zaheer Khan. And, even though Pakistan lost wickets at regular intervals, they scored runs at a good clip throughout their innings. And, at the end of their allotted 50 overs, the Pakistan side finished with a total of 273 runs on the board, with Saeed Anwar smashing a 126 ball 101.
The Pakistani side had the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar in its bowling arsenal, and the Indian side needed its batting talisman, Sachin Tendulkar to step up. And, that is exactly what Tendulkar did. India’s batting maestro was positive right from the outset and ripped apart the Pakistan bowlers. In fact, in the second over of the Indian innings, Tendulkar smashed Shoaib Akhtar for a magical six over point and a couple of boundaries to signal to the opposition that he will take them on.
The duo of Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag provided India with a blistering start, as the ‘Men in Blue’ crossed the 50-run mark inside the first 6 overs. But then, Pakistan came back strongly, by scalping the wickets of Sehwag and skipper Sourav Ganguly in quick succession. But then, Tendulkar kept India in the hunt. The Master Blaster scored a splendiferous 98 off only 75 deliveries, and by the time Tendulkar was dismissed, the Indian scorecard read 177/4 off just 27.4 overs.
After Tendulkar’s departure, Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh guided India home with a sparkling undefeated partnership of 99. While Dravid scored an unbeaten 76 ball 44, Yuvraj helped himself to a half-century as India beat their arch-rivals by 6 wickets and 4.2 overs to spare. And needless to say, the ‘Man of the Match’ award went to Tendulkar, for helping India to one of their most famous World Cup wins ever.
