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India Cricket Team
Cricketing icon Virat Kohli, part of the victorious 2024 squad, on Sunday lauded India for winning an unprecedented back-to-back T20 World Cup title, saying there was no match for the explosive cricket played by Suryakumar Yadav and Co. Kohli had announced his retirement from the shortest format after guiding India to a drought ending ICC title in Barbados back in June 2024. "Champions. Phenomenal win for Team India in Ahmedabad. Absolutely no match for the explosive cricket played by us throughout the tournament. Brilliant character shown by the boys to keep fighting in tough situations and become world champions once again. "Congratulations to all the players and all the members of the management for achieving this feat. Jai Hind," wrote Kohli on X. Batting legend Sachin Tendulkar said India were the deserving winners of the trophy. "Winning the World Cup twice in a row, the first time any team has done so in the T20 format. Totally deserving and rightful winners of the trophy.
India head coach Gautam Gambhir stated on Sunday that he is only accountable to the people in the dressing room, and dedicated India's successful T20 World Cup tile defence to stalwarts Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. With their 96-run shellacking of New Zealand in the summit showdown here, India became the first team to win three T20 World Cups (2007, 2024, 2026), the first to defend their title and also the first to do so at home. "My accountability is not for people on Social Media. My accountability is to those 30 people in that change room," Gambhir said during the post-match press conference. "A coach is as good as his team. Players made me the coach I am," Gambhir added. But even in the hour of his glory, Gambhir did not forget Dravid, who guided the team to triumph in 2024, and Laxman, the current head of the BCCI Centre of Excellence. "I would dedicate this trophy to Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. To Rahul bhai for putting Indian team in a place and Laxman for creating pipelin
Batting great Sachin Tendulkar hailed India as "totally deserving and rightful winners", while former England captain Michael Vaughan labelled them the "best white-ball team by a good distance" as the cricketing world lauded the Men in Blue for clinching a historic third T20 World Cup title. Continuing their ruthless show with the bat, India handed New Zealand a crushing 96-run defeat at the Narendra Modi Stadium to become the only team to win the T20 World Cup three times and the first to defend the title successfully. Tendulkar hailed the team's performance and shared a glimpse of celebrations outside his Mumbai home. "Winning the World Cup twice in a row, the first time any team has done so in the T20 format. Totally deserving and rightful winners of the trophy. What a fantastic performance by our team and a special brand of cricket on display. Well done, Team India. Jai Hind! "Not in Mumbai to witness the celebration happening outside my house and all over the country. What an