Five lessons India learnt from the ICC Champions Trophy 2013

India’s Suresh Raina (R) celebrates with India’s Virat Kohli after Kohli had run out Pakistan’s Junaid Khan during the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy at Edgbaston in Birmingham, central England, on June 15, 2013. (Getty Images)

3. The 12th man

India’s fielding efforts have been heavily rewarded in this competition. They have improved in that area gradually and the origin of that cultural change can perhaps be traced back to the Sourav Ganguly – John Wright regime. Since the advent of MS Dhoni, India have invested a lot of faith in youth.

The youngsters are more agile and more importantly they carry a positive attitude. As Dhoni pointed out in the post-match interview, the source of that change is the growing infrastructure in Indian cricket. The new generation of Indian cricket is more athletic, more willing to put their bodies on the line and that is a huge step forward. Efforts must continue in this direction.