India Champions emerged as the winners of the inaugural edition of the World Championship of Legends as they defeated Pakistan Champions by five wickets in the title clash on Saturday (July 13) at Edgbaston.
Pakistan posted a decent score of 156/6 in their 20 overs after skipper Younis Khan won the toss and elected to bat first. Anureet Singh led the way among the Indian bowlers with figures of 3/43 while seam-bowling all-rounder Irfan Pathan (1/12 in 3) and left-arm spinner Pawan Negi (1/24 in 4) returned with economical spells.
In reply, India overhauled the target with five deliveries to spare. Ambati Rayudu was the top scorer with 50 off 30 balls, while Yusuf Pathan (30 off 16) and Gurkeerat Singh Mann (34 off 33) made crucial contributions with the bat.
When Yusuf departed, India still needed 7 runs from the last 10 balls. However, the duo of Irfan (5*) and Yuvraj (15*) held their nerves to seal the deal. Irfan slammed a boundary in the very first delivery of the final over to finish the match in style.
Celebrations erupted in the Indian camp as soon as Irfan Pathan’s hit took them over the line.
Ambati Rayudu received the Player-of-the-Match award in the final, while Yusuf Pathan was declared the Player-of-the-Tournament after India bagged the title.
