It felt like 1983 all over again!

After watching the current Indian team at the Champions Trophy I felt Rohit Sharmarsquos side had the same fire and passion as the 1983 World Cupwinning Indian teamEvery player in both triumphs was on the same page hungry to perform determined to make historyRohit answered critics wellThe attitude and intense focus of Rohit amp Co on the goal was nothing short of inspiring And Rohit answered his critics in the best possible way by leading from the front letting his bat do the talking Winning the championship was the perfect icing on the cakeTrue champions donrsquot waste their energy on political dramas They believe their performance will speak the loudest But some people desperate for relevance try to pull sportspersons and celebrities into their cheap publicity stunts They forget that real heroes stay focused on their craftAlso ReadKlinger Wersquove given Mumbai Indians a scareI had no doubt that Rohitrsquos bat would speak in the final that every teammate would stay locked in and play their role with precision And they didIrsquom over the moon mdash not just because we won but because we didnrsquot play in Pakistan India mercilessly beat Pakistan and by making it to the final the last match of the tournament had to be played Dubai Karma has its way of striking where it hurts the mostI toured Pakistan twice with the Indian team on goodwill visits apart from Test tours in 198283 and 198485 We went there with a spirit of friendship while their team mdash 11 players and two umpires mdash focused on underhand tactics from balltampering with crown caps to anything they could get away with I do feel for the common people of Pakistan who love cricket and admire Indian cricketers but their leadershellip well less said of them the betterShami steps upBack to the Champions Trophy This Indian team showed what true determination is all about Without Jasprit Bumrah our matchwinner Mohammed Shami stepped up Despite getting hit on the shoulder he carried the bowling attack like a warrior Every Indian spinner read the game brilliantly adapted to the situation and Rohit handled them masterfully mdash just like Kapil Dev did in 1983 And like what happened in that historic 1983 win when Sunil Gavaskar offered advice at the right time guiding the team with his experience and wisdom Virat Kohli did the same here The few dropped catches were mostly efforts of sheer athleticism mdash had they stuck they would have been absolute stunners The real gamechanger was the early dismissals of Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra That turned the tide From there the bowlers seized the moments not letting the pressure ease Even when New Zealand got the prized wicket of chasemaster Kohli early the solid foundation laid by Rohit and Shubman Gill ensured we stayed on trackNo spin ammo for Black CapsThe Black Caps lacked the spin ammunition to trouble our batters Calm and composed each player played their part to perfection mdash Hardik Pandya with his nevergiveup attitude and KL Rahul with his cool head guiding the chaseThis victory belongs to every player and support staff member and to every Indian across the world Watching you play was pure joy You didnrsquot just win atrophy mdash you taught us all how to respond how to stay focused and how to rise above the noiseWaheguru bless you all Many congratulationsThe author was part of Indiarsquos 1983 ODI World Cupwinning team