#OnThisDay: M.S. Dhoni became first captain to win all major ICC trophies as India won Champions Trophy in 2013

History was created on June 23, 2013 as MS Dhoni's India went on to clinch the Champions Trophy title, beating hosts England by five runs in a nail-biting final at Edgbaston. That the victory was built around a fresh young core of players made the win sweeter for Dhoni, who also became the first captain to win all three major ICC trophies at the time.

 

Having won the ODI World Cup at home in 2011, the achievement of winning a global title in England was historic for India and Dhoni. However, for most parts of the final, it didn't seem like a game would happen at all due to the incessant rains in Birmingham. Ultimately, when the heavens cleared, the ODI contest was reduced to a 20-over-a-side clash, effectively a T20I but played under the rules of an ODI format. With all the weather around and damp conditions, Alastair Cook opted to field at the toss, hoping to cash in on the inevitable moisture in the surface.

 

Cook's pacers started well too, as Stuart Broad castled Rohit Sharma to give India an early dent. However, Shikhar Dhawan's cameo of 31 gave India some momentum, but they continued to lose wickets due to the two-paced nature of the surface. The pressure of having to play a 20-overs innings all of a sudden in a Cup final wasn't ideal, and it took Kohli's resolve to hold them together as he stroked a 34-ball 43 to anchor the innings. India still saw failures from their gun finisher in Dhoni (0) and Suresh Raina (1), but Jadeja came to the party with a priceless knock.

 

The all-rounder struck 33 off 25 balls to get India to a respectable total, one that they could bowl at although it seemed under-par at the halfway mark. That the pitch aided slow bowling was evident from Ravi Bopara's spell as his dibbly-dobblies fetched him three wickets for just 20 runs in four overs. In reply, England's top order, not quite accustomed to T20 norms, were unable to get off to a flying start and soon, pressure told on the home side. Umesh Yadav had taken out Cook early while Ashwin and Jadeja turned on the screws with their spells.

 

It took a counterpunch from Eoin Morgan (33) and Bopara (30) with the latter having a great all-round game, just like Jadeja for India. The partnership between Morgan and Bopara looked set to take England home, only for Ishant Sharma's double-strike to send them both back off successive deliveries to turn the game on its head. It was the momentum push India desperately needed, and they choked England's run flow thereafter to create history. Ashwin, bowling the final over, held his nerve against England's lower order as India won their third ICC title in six years.

 

Brief scores:

India 129/7 in 20 overs (Virat Kohli 43, Ravindra Jadeja 33*; Ravi Bopara 3-20) beat England 124/8 in 20 overs (Eoin Morgan 33, Ravi Bopara 30; Ravichandran Ashwin 2-15) by five runs

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