3 innings of 30 that changed India's 2011 World Cup campaign

#1 Kohli's innings in the Final

Kohli's partnership with Gambhir laid the platform for the chase

The master of run-chases was taking baby steps towards batting divinity when a small knock of his set the stage for India's greatest triumph in modern cricket. On the night of the final, 275 runs stood between India and cricket's ultimate glory.

Sri Lanka's plans were working just fine, as Lasith Malinga sent back Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, with just 31 runs on the board. A generation of fans had grown up with bitter memories of the 2003 World Cup final. Another generation had lived through the humiliation of 1996. Kohli must have had vivid memories of both.

On a night when the cricketing world held its breath, Kohli and Gautam Gambhir stitched a vital partnership of 83 runs off 93 balls for the third wicket. Kohli had an excellent start to his first World Cup, hitting a century off 85 balls in the first match against Bangladesh. He had rather quiet returns post that knock.

He brought all his powers to the fore in a high-pressure chase, scoring 35 runs off 45 balls with four hits to the fence. By the time he departed, India were 114 for 3 in 21.4 overs, still far from victory. However, after an early collapse, he had seen India through a tough period. In the process, the platform was laid for MS Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir to take India to victory. The rest, as they say, is history.

Kohli himself said in an interview that he thought the match was over when Sachin got out. Seeing the composure that he displayed that night, he might well have been joking. After all, he walked in just after Sachin's wicket, amidst a shellshocked stadium in complete silence.

In hindsight, that might have just been the beginning of the Kohli era.