Former all-rounder Roger Binny has recently recalled India’s historic 1983 World Cup triumph over the West Indies, saying he never thought that Team India would be able to win the enthralling final.
Believed to be the underdogs and led by Kapil Dev, the Indian cricket team stunned the entire world and defeated the mighty Windies to win their maiden World Cup trophy at Lord’s back in 1983.
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In the prestigious global event in England, Binny had finished as the leading wicket-taker of the 1983 World Cup with 18 scalps in 8 games. The former Indian all-rounder also said winning the World Cup against the dominant West Indies lifted the spirit of the national team.
Binny told Sportskeeda in a Facebook live interview: “I really didn’t think I’d take 18 wickets or that we’d win the World Cup. For me, it was a comeback and there’s no better place for me than England. It all started with a game against West Indies - that was the first time they had lost a game in a World Cup. Beating them lifted the spirit of the team.”
Recalling the semi-final against the hosts England, he said: “We didn’t have very good fielders but if you saw them fielding! Not many runs were scored by Sunil but he was a real asset in the field. We crushed England, who were tipped by their press to crush us. They said ‘India is just another team’. After that game, we started to believe in ourselves.”
India’s historic World Cup triumph is remembered as one of the biggest underdog victories in cricket history as Kapil Dev and his team were bundled out for 183, setting an easy target for the two-time World Champions, but their brilliant bowling made their dream true at Lord’s.
And Binny pointed out how inspiring words from captain Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar lifted the spirits of the Indian team and they brilliantly fought and won the final by 43 runs at Lords.
He further recalled, “It was one of the most disappointing mornings for us, we were looking to post 220+. 240 was a winning score but when we got out for 183, we couldn’t believe it. We had to wait for 40 minutes for the overs we didn’t play, sitting in the dressing room and brooding. Nobody was talking.”
Binny signed off by saying, “Suddenly, Kapil Dev’s voice came on and he said, ‘Forget it, let’s go and bowl them out’. His words and Sunil’s words raised the tempo in the dressing room. A small score makes you fight harder. If we had scored 270, maybe they would’ve crushed us.”
(With Sportskeeda Inputs)
