Paddy Upton Recalls Gary Kirsten's Remarks And Explains MS Dhoni's 'Brave Decision' In The World Cup Final

Former India mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton has recalled the final and discussed Dhoni’s decision to go ahead of Yuvraj Singh as the country commemorates its 11th anniversary on April 2.

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‘Dhoni finishes off in style,’ Ravi Shastri said from the commentator’s box, and no Indian fan will forget that. ‘A spectacular strike into the crowd.’ Every person who was glued to his television set witnessed a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Dhoni’s six against Sri Lanka’s Nuwan Kulasekara sealed India’s 2011 World Cup victory.

People from all over the country gathered on the roads to celebrate India’s victory, including the legendary Wankhede. India won the World Cup for the first time under Kapil Dev’s leadership in 1983, but it wasn’t until 2011 that they were able to hold the cherished trophy in their hands.

“MS Dhoni makes a play ahead of Yuvraj Singh. Yuvraj was obviously in fantastic shape at the time. Even if he didn’t score a run and didn’t take any wickets in the final, he was unquestionably the Man of the Series. He was in great shape. So, for Dhoni to go ahead of him in a final was a very bold decision, because Dhoni’s best score at the time was 35 or 36 “ Upton’s comments.

“Throughout the World Cup, he had made no significant impact (till then). But the man for the really big moment with a true big match temperament in that team, taking the team home, particularly in chasing, is MS Dhoni, as is widely known and has been demonstrated before and after it over and over again. He spent his entire career specializing in this.”

Gary Kirsten has complete faith in MS Dhoni’s abilities: Upton

Upton also recalled his conversation with head coach Gary Kirsten, who was confident in Dhoni’s abilities to lead the team through the run-chase. The skipper put on a 109-run fourth-wicket stand with Gautam Gambhir before securing the victory with a six-over long-on.

“Kudos to Dhoni for making that courageous decision in such a crucial situation, as great leaders do.” And it was just a quick talk between him and coach Gary Kirsten to realize that this huge moment is Dhoni’s moment,” he continued.

“We were still a long way from the total, from winning the trophy when Dhoni walked down to bat. ‘MS is going out there to fetch us the trophy,’ I recall turning to Gary and hearing. Gary has complete faith in MS Dhoni’s abilities.”

On this date 11 years ago, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Team India defeated Sri Lanka by six wickets in the World Cup final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, ending a 28-year drought for a title.

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