"This is a greater victory than the World Twenty20" - When MS Dhoni made a huge statement on India's triumph in a one-day series

Australia v India - Commonwealth Bank Series 2nd Final - Source: Getty
Former India captain MS Dhoni (Image Credits: Getty Images)

Team India's 2007 T20 World Cup win under MS Dhoni is arguably one of the nation's greatest cricketing triumphs. Having suffered an early exit in ODI World Cup held in the same year in West Indies, there were not too many hopes from the team that was picked for the T20 World Cup played in South Africa. However, a young side, led by Dhoni, exceeded all expectations and won the ICC event.

Amazingly, Dhoni described India's victory in the 2008 Commonwealth Bank (CB) series in Australia as a greater victory than the T20 World Cup triumph. The 2008 CB series was a tri-series featuring India, Australia and Sri Lanka. The Men in Blue and the Aussies made it to the best-of-three finals. India, however, won the first two matches to clinch the series and register a famous win Down Under.

Reacting after the Men in Blue won the 2008 Commonwealth Bank series, Dhoni said (as quoted by ESPNcricinfo):

"This is a greater victory than the World Twenty20."
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Having led the team to two major wins in less than a year, the legendary keeper-batter downplayed his role as captain and added:

"The role of the captain was not the only one. The captain is one guy who gathers the pressure and then channels it to the individual player and then it depends on how that individual reacts. We didn't start that well but we improved as the tournament went on and the credit should go to every player."

Team India beat Australia by six wickets at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in the first final of the 2008 CB series. The Men in Blue then registered a nine-run victory in the second final at The Gabba to be crowned winners.


Tendulkar starred in India's 2008 CB series triumph

The legendary Sachin Tendulkar made huge contributions in both of Team India's triumphs in the 2008 CB series final. He scored an unbeaten 117 off 120 in the first final as the Men in Blue chased down 240 in 45.5 overs. Rohit Sharma also contributed a vital 66 off 87 balls.

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India batted first in the second final in Brisbane and put up 258-9 on the board. Tendulkar again top-scored with 91 off 121 balls, hitting seven fours, while Yuvraj Singh and Dhoni contributed 30s. In the chase, Australia were bowled out for 249 as Praveen Kumar claimed 4-46, while fellow pacers S Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan chipped in with two wickets each.

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Edited by Renin Wilben Albert
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