The date of 2nd April, 2011 is etched into the hearts of Indian fans. The 28 year old wait finally ended as Dhoni's six pierced the Wankhede sky to land right into the hearts of fans. India were crowned as the world champions, and Dhoni's men lifted the trophy as well as the spirits of a billion people. The only 2nd occasion of team winning a ODI world cup post Kapil Dev's 1983 heroics, the day united the nation like no other thing could've ever done. People from every region, religion came together and celebrated the occasion when God of cricket finally had his hands on the prestigious World Cup.

If 1983 world cup was the foundation stone of the Indian cricket, the 2011 was the penthouse of a high scraper which throned the empire of cricket. The 1983 world cup was a piece of magic, and 2011 was a piece of sheer bravery and will which eventually led to the title. While one agrees to the fact that during the 1983, with no infrastructure for cricket and no hopes from the team, it was a difficult task for Kapil's men. But it also highlights the fact that there was comparatively less pressure on the team. In 2011 however, the team had too many accolades at the international level, the BCCI was the richest board in the world, and plus the world cup happening home had an added pressure of a billion people.

And with the immense pressure, every single game was played by the team. Especially knowing the fate and early exit of giants India in the past 2007 World Cup, this tournament was even more important for the team. But Indian team was well prepared for the obstacles to come. They had the home advantage and used it to the benifit of the team. And knowing that it was the last chance for Sachin Tendulkar to lift the world cup, gave the team a reason to perform even better. And every single played played with their hearts on the sleeves, and contributed equally to fetch the nation glory.

Sehwag started every single match in his style with a boundary, just like he started the world cup with his sensational knock of 175 runs. Sachin scored a total of 482 runs, consisting of 2 centuries and one half century in the semifinals. Gambhir switched his position to one down, but made sure his contribution is still going good. Raina performed when it mattered the most in quarter and semi-finals. A young Virat showed his abilities by scoring a hundred on his world cup debut and held his nerve in the final. Yusuf showed his Pathan Power, and the fighter in the form of Yuvraj Singh fought his battle with life, while fighting for the nation.

The batters scored well, and the bowlers didn't allow the opposition to score well. Zaheer Khan rattled the opposition at the most crucial time, giving India crucial breakthroughs and ended up being the highest wicket taker of the tournament. His nail biting yorkers against England helped the team pull off a tie. Sreesanth gave nightmares to the opponents. Ashish Nehra did the same what he did in 2003 world cup. Munaf Patel quietly followed his discipline, when the limelight was on others. Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Ravichandran Ashwin and part time spinners spun the web to perfection.

Every single member performed well in the tournament, under a captain who hardly did anything wrong as a leader. The tournament saw it all for India. The campaign saw the team register a massive victory in the inaugural match, an unexpected tie in the second match, a loss and a batting collapse against South Africa, India defeating the 3 time defending champions Australia, a India Pakistan knockout match, a 38 year old Sachin diving on the boundary to save 1 run and a fighter like Yuvraj playing for his team in spite of vomiting blood. And a result of all these was the team reaching in the finals. And everyone eagerly waited for 2nd April to arrive, in hopes of victory.

And finally the day arrived. The question was on who of the two amongst Sachin or Muralitharan is going to have the trophy. As usual Zaheer set the tone for India with 3 consecutive maidens and the wicket of Tharanga. And slowly and steadily as Sri Lanka reached to a good total, India had the task of chasing 275. And in response when in form openers failed, the duo of Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir steadied the ship. Gambhir then paired with captain Dhoni. The duo brought India back to life, and took the team ahead. The dive by Gambhir, and strike rate of Dhoni showed what intent the two had. A result of which during the last 30 runs, every single run was celebrated wildly by Indians. And then finally, Dhoni sealed the match with his unforgettable six, thereby making India as the champions.

Wave of happiness engulfed the nation, which cherished the occasion of being crowned as world champions on 2nd occasion. One hardly saw Sachin Tendulkar running out of joy to celebrate the win, but the world saw him doing that on that special occasion. The every aggressive Harbhajan was seen shedding tears of joy as his happiness knew no bounds. One saw Yuvraj Singh showing his emotions. The heroes of the evening Zaheer, Gambhir and Dhoni were patting each other's back while doing the victory lap. And as Sachin realised his dream of world cups while playing his 6th one, the team carried him on the shoulders. The world saw this happen, and the Indians captured the moment in their eyes with pride.

Today, 13 years later, ask any Indian fan about it and they will tell you the story of that day explaining the minute details of the incident with the same enthusiasm. And rightly so, the moment is unforgettable. Although the winning the world cup doesn't solve the issues country faces, but it does the job of uniting people and making everyone happy, which is a massive success. A cricket crazy country like India saw many of the fans turn to the sport post 1983 world cup, who never felt the joy of seeing their team lift the world cup. Which is why, when the team did it in 2011, the victory felt very personal. It seemed like it's not just the team, but all of us who are victorious. And hence, this day will be written in golden words in the history of Indian cricket, and will always be special for Indian fans. We thank the entire team of 2011 to give us a moment for lifetime.