Top 3 moments from Irfan Pathan's international career

#1 The 2007 ICC World T20 final against Pakistan

Pathan (R) was named the Man of the Match in the 2007 ICC World T20 final

A decade and a bit ago, India calamitously exited the ICC Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean in the group stages, a result that had far-reaching consequences. Ironically, one of the short-term implications was that India fielded a second-string side, at least on paper, for the inaugural edition of the ICC World T20 the same year, a team that was to be led by MS Dhoni.

Contrary to expectations though, MS’ fearless warriors left each opponent in their wake en route an unprecedented appearance in the final. And, rather fittingly, the Men In Blue clashed swords with their arch-rivals Pakistan in an encounter that had the potential to define an entire generation of Indian cricketers.

India batted first and they put up a challenging total of 157 on the board, largely due to Gautam Gambhir’s brilliance at Johannesburg. However, Pakistan started off briskly by rattling past 50 in the PowerPlay, although they lost three wickets.

Thereafter, in the middle phases, Irfan began sprinkling his magic as he got rid of the likes of Shoaib Malik, Yasir Arafat and most importantly, Shahid Afridi.

In the process, it enabled India to edge past their eternal nemesis by the tiniest of margins, meaning that the country’s thirst for a global cricketing crown was finally quenched.

And, while most of the members of that side carved out an exceptional niche for themselves in Indian cricket, Irfan unfortunately succumbed to injuries. Yet, one can’t ignore the impact the pacer had on perhaps the nation’s biggest watershed moment in the 21st century.