Moments after India sealed the Champions Trophy, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli broke into an impromptu ‘Dandiya' dance, holding the stumps. Head coach Gautam Gambhir walked around the field with a rare wide grin, hugging his wards.
Those were not unusual scenes after such a resplendent night. Beyond the obvious, that footage carried a profound inner meaning for the troika. Few individuals in the last six months have been hounded as much as Gambhir, Rohit and Kohli after the team's largely ordinary run.
While the criticism might have had some merit in it, the way it was directed at them was not justified. But now, they have a lifeline, a firmer ground to control their own destiny and a much clearer path to the future for the team.
It came after wholehearted trust in the process that the management set in place before this event, as indicated by Rohit.
"Someone was telling me that we've lost only one game in the last three ICC tournaments. So, it's a great milestone to have. So, it shows a lot of quality in the team, a lot of depth, a lot of understanding within the group," skipper Rohit said after the title triumph on Sunday night.
Rohit said that attitude helped the team to ward off external “pressure.” "There's too much pressure from outside. If India loses one game. There's so much speculation that happens. But, the boys have actually managed to put that aside and focus on how to win games and how to enjoy the game," he added.
Rohit was the first one to be targeted because of the way he got out after making those seemingly invaluable 30s and 40s in the longer versions of the game.
The 37-year-old saw a different side to it after making a match-winning 76 against New Zealand in the title clash.
"See, representing India is not a joke. Everyone wants to represent India with a lot of integrity. I contributed a lot in the 2019 World Cup, but we didn't win. So, it wasn't fun. Even if you score 30 or 40 runs and win the match, you get more satisfaction and happiness.
"So, I think it was very important for me to do something and bring the team in a position where there is a little comfort for the rest of the batting order," he added.
But to reach this point, India had to wade through a sea of criticism, particularly after the management's decision to pick five spinners — Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy and Washington Sundar.
The first four played and contributed consistently in India's victories — either by taking wickets or choking the run flow.
But the thought leaders were never in doubt of their strategy, and close observations of the earlier matches in Dubai such as ILT20 helped them arrive at that decision.
"We knew the conditions would be difficult, but we adapted well. We had to go with more spinners than the seamers."
Staying in Dubai for the ICC showpiece was a decision beyond their control, for which the team came under fire for no real reason.
Unmindful of such outside talks, Rohit said India were smart enough to use the conditions to their advantage.
"We saw how much these surfaces were used before we came here. I knew that the slower bowlers will come into play. So, we wanted to pick the squad based on that,” he said.
However, selecting the right squad is different from actually winning the matches because, as Gambhir hinted earlier, the four pitches used at the DICS offered different challenges to the team.
"Keeping the teams under 240s under 250 is a big effort. We think that the wicket is helping the spinners. But you must have seen that in a few matches, no ball has turned in such a way that the ball is turning every time, in every over," Rohit acknowledged.
While the bowlers might have had a certain edge because of that unpredictable spin, it put the batters under greater peril.
"Sometimes, one or two balls turn in between, but that is the challenge that you are facing as a batter. You don't have to be ready for the ball that is turning. But it's the straight ball.” Kohli's dismissal in the final underlined that point.
The master batter, who has made 218 runs at an average of 54 with a hundred and a fifty to quell the talks around his form, played for the turn but off-spinner Michael Bracewell's stock ball was straighter than he expected to get caught in front of the wicket.
"The straight ball that is coming, which is 80% out of 100, or 70%, you have to be ready for that. So, I think that is the adaptation and that is what these guys have shown in the middle.
"I am proud of them because India is a bloody good team without a doubt," he said.
Now they have two global trophies to show as a validation as well.
