Dilip Vengsarkar Hails 1983 World Cup Win As Defining Moment In Indian Cricket, Lauds Kapil's Stellar Exploits In Tournament

Vengsarkar hailed India's 1983 World Cup maiden victory as a defining moment for the sport in the country, saying the nation never had to look back since that day in the sport which is now a religion in this part of the world.

ICC World Cup

New Delhi: Former Indian batting mainstay Dilip Vengsarkar turned the clock back to one of Indian cricket's most cherished moments that unfolded on this very day of June 25 in 1983. Vengsarkar recalled India's maiden World Cup winning campaign as he was an integral part of that path breaking team which lifted their maiden World Cup title at Lord's in England. Vengsarkar hailed India's 1983 World Cup maiden victory as a defining moment for the sport in the country, saying the nation never had to look back since that eventful day in the sport which is now become a religion or sorts in this part of the world. It was on June 25, 1983 that Team India, under the leadership of Kapil Dev, defied all odds and won their first-ever World Cup trophy. Tagged as 'Underdogs', India went into the World Cup with hardly any expectations as nobody considered them as tournament favourites or title contender, considering the inexperience the team had of playing ODI cricket. Before the tournament, the Indian team were relatively inexperienced as they had played only 40 ODIs and had won only one match in the previous two editions of the prestigious event. "It's one of the greatest things to have happened for Indian cricket," Vengsarkar told IANS on Thursday. Part of India's 15-member World Cup winning squad, Vengsarkar lauded his skipper Kapil's stellar efforts and leadership throughout the tournament. Kapil led from the front, scoring 303 runs at an average of 60.60 including the belligerant 175 not out against Zimbabwe, regarded as one of the greatest ODI innings of all time, and also scalped 12 wickets. "Indian cricket never looked down after that. It always looked up. I remember Kapil Dev was so good and he was the Man of the Tournament almost. "We defied all odds to win against the mighty West Indies. Kapil was brilliant throughout the tournament," added Vengsarkar. The image of Kapil lifting the World Cup trophy from the iconic Lord's balcony is still etched in the memories of cricket fans. It was a moment which told the cricketing world about the arrival of India on the big stage.