Harbhajan Singh Told Me To Look At The Scoreboard And Play Smart, That Really Calmed Me Down – Mohammad Kaif Recalls NatWest 2002 Final

Former India batter Mohammad Kaif recalled the scenes of the 2002 NatWest Trophy final, ahead of the second ODI of the three-match ODI series between India and England, which was played at the Lord’s, London on July 13, 2002.

The 2002 NatWest Trophy final, where then India captain Sourav Ganguly waved his jersey on the Lord’s balcony, was played between India and England and Mohammad Kaif played a pivotal role in India’s victory. He scored unbeaten 87 runs off 75 balls to win the Player of the Match award.

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Winning the toss and batting first in the 2002 NatWest Trophy final, England were able to post 325/5 on the board with the help of Marcus Trescothick and Nasser Hussain’s centuries.

Chasing the target, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif played crucial knocks to help India win the final by 2 wickets with 3 balls remaining.

I remember we had a crucial partnership of 47 runs – Mohammad Kaif

Kaif and Harbhajan Singh had a crucial 47-run partnership in the match against England in the NatWest 2002 final. They recently spoke to Sportskeeda about that match, and the partnership they had shared.

“I remember we had a crucial partnership of 47 runs,” said Kaif. 

“During that partnership, I hit a ball off Collingwood that almost carried to third man and we took a single. Then you (Harbhajan Singh) came to me and said, ‘Kaif, what are you doing? Look at the scoreboard. It is almost a run-a-ball. Play smart.’ This really calmed me down and I kept the scoreboard ticking by picking up singles and an odd boundary.”

Kaif added that Harbhajan advised him to play smart cricket but he himself got castled by Andrew Flintoff while trying to smash a boundary.

“But what did you do? You told me to play smart and then yourself hit a one-handed six! (Laughs). Then you tried to back away and hit a boundary and you got clean bowled. So I said to myself, ‘Wow, he himself was telling me to play smartly and now he is out,” he added.

Also Read: Sourav Ganguly Believes That Indian Cricket Is In Good Condition

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