In 2007, India won the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup, beating their arch-rival Pakistan in the final to lift the trophy. The win was important as Indias were knocked out of the group stage of the ODI World Cup earlier in 2007. It was a great team effort as the Indian batters stepped up to play at some point or the other at crucial junctures. Be it Rohit Sharma’s 50* against South Africa in the last group stage match (sealed progress to the knockouts), or Robin’s 50 against Pakistan in the first game – all such contributions ensured India won the World Cup. According to the cricket statistics and latest cricket updates, here is the list of top batters who performed wonderfully in 2007. 

• Yuvraj Singh – 58(16) vs England in Durban

After winning the toss, India elected to bat first in this all-important fixture. They came into the game following a washout vs Scotland, a win over Pakistan (in a bowl-out), and a 10-run loss against New Zealand. To keep up the hopes of the Indian fans, India needed to win this game. 

From the first ball, India batted aggressively whereas Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir gave 136 runs in 14.4 overs losing one wicket, building a great foundation for the batter to follow. When Yuvraj took the charge on the field, he scored 155/3 with 20 balls remaining in the innings. He picked up the game by scoring three fours in his first 6 deliveries. 

After a clash with Andrew Flintoff just before the beginning of the 18th over, Yuvraj was all fired up to beat the opponents. Then, he became the first batter to hit 6 sixes in an over in a T20I, smashing Stuart Broad on the pitch. The iconic commentary of Ravi Shastri made the moment such a special memory for Indian fans. The southpaw was eventually adjudged the Man of the Match and India won the match by 18 runs.

• Gautam Gambhir – 75(54) vs Pakistan in Johannesburg

This was the most important game of the tournament, the final. India elected to bat first and Yusuf Pathan came up for the attack alongside Gautam Gambhir while Sehwag was missed in that match. Uthappa scored 8 off 11, Yuvi got 14 off 19, and Dhoni at 6 off 10 balls and these figures weren’t enough to get India going for a win. That’s when Gambhir did the bulk work, scoring 50% of the runs for India’s innings. His contribution helped India to stay at a good run rate throughout the innings as it maintained team India to be firm. Sharma’s quick-fire 30 towards the end pushed India to post a respectable total of 157/5.

In response, Irfan Pathan (who was adjudged the Man of the Match for his 3/16) gave a wonderful bowl, and RP Singh and Joginder Sharma moved India to successfully defend the trophy and win the summit clash by 5 runs.

• Yuvraj Singh – 70(30) vs Australia in Durban

In the semi-finals, India won the toss and was elected to bat first. After giving the heroics against England in the group stage, India needed Yuvi to perform well again. 

However, India was in dire need to score more while it was at 41/2 in 8 overs when he walked in to bat.

Pairing with Robin Uthappa, Yuvi stitched 84 run partnership in 6.3 overs which gave a tough encounter to unsettle Australia which had Brett Lee, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, and Mitchell Johnson. 

In that match, Yuvi smashed 5 fours and multiple sixes hitting the ball long-on fence. He comfortably moved India to 155/4 in 17.3 overs. MS Dhoni finally pushed India to 118/5, scoring 36 off 18 and India got victory by 15 runs. Yuvraj got his 2nd Man of the Match award in the tournament. 

• Rohit Sharma – 50*(40) vs South Africa in Durban

Arguably, Rohit Sharma’s one of the most important knocks in the early phase of his career came in a crunch situation during the match. A semi-final berth was on the line for the India squad who elected to bat first.

Rohit walked in at 33/3 in 5.1 overs with Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Dinesh Karthik back in the hut to take charge. It wasn’t easy as the South African pace unit of Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini and Morne Morkel were fierceful. India needed to stabilize the innings and Rohit did exactly that, staying unbeaten.

Rohit structured his innings quite well and he was 28 off 29 balls at the end of the 16th over, captain MS Dhoni batted alongside. He then accelerated in the death overs – adding 22 runs off 11 balls. He was adjudged the Man of the Match and India won the game by 37 runs.

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