The Indian cricket team would find themselves at a lot of places in the game’s records’ books. However, the unique record of winning the 60-over, 50-over, and the 20-over World Cup lies solely with India. Not Australia, not West Indies, or any other country in the world has managed to accomplish what the Indian Cricket has. What began as a heist in 1983, the Indian team saw its another homecoming in 2007, and it eventually ended with a final stamp of authority in 2011!

The Indian team, under the leadership of Kapil Dev, surprised people across the globe when they beat the then World Champions West Indies in the 1983 World Cup. It was on this day, i.e. June 25 that the Indian team won its first World Cup in its history, 35 years back in the year 1983. The win in the 60-over format World Cup marked the beginning of India’s upswing in the world of cricket.

1983 World Cup (60 Overs) | Kapil Dev Receiving World Cup Trophy (Photo Credits: Twitter @CricketWorldCup)

However, it took another 24 years for the Indian team to win another World Cup in 2007. This time it was an under a young-Indian captain MS Dhoni under whose captaincy the Indian team won the 20-over format World Cup. The inaugural T20 World Cup that took place in South Africa saw the underdogs (Indian side) romp to victory against Pakistan in a nail-biting finale at Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.

2007 T20 World Cup (20 Overs) | Indian Team With World Cup Trophy (Photo Credits: Twitter @ICC)

It was a shot at redemption for the young Indian team after the senior pros had failed to qualify for the next round in the 2007 ICC World Cup (50 overs format). It was a second coming for the Indian team, where the Indian team ushered under the captaincy of MS Dhoni and scaled newer heights in that period.

2011 World Cup (50 Overs) | MS Dhoni With World Cup Trophy (Photo Credits: Twitter @ICC)

The Indian team went on to become the number one Test team in the world and also were ranked one in One Day International (ODI) rankings during that period. The pinnacle of that glorious era was when the Men in Blue went on to win the World Cup again in 2011. It was Sachin Tendulkar’s swansong and the victory at Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai, ensured that the Master Blaster lived his dream, along with a billion people who were rooting for the Men in Blue to win the World Cup.

There were many highs and lows recorded in the game’s history for the Indian cricket team in those years. The Desert Storm against Australia in 1994; Match-Fixing Scandal in 2000; winners of Natwest Series in 2002; World Cup finalists in 2003; First round exit in World Cup 2007; the Indian team had witnessed the ups and downs of Cricket like no other cricket team. Nonetheless, with all said and done, the Indian team won the ICC T20 World Cup in 2007 against all the odds; the rest they say is history!

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 25, 2018 04:53 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).