The 2002 NatWest series final between India and England is till date remembered and highly cherished by the fans for the match-winning partnership between Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif at Lord’s. The duo stitched a brilliant 121-run partnership as India chased down the target of 325 with three balls to spare and two wickets in hand. Apart from this thrilling chase, another thing which became immortal that day was India’s then-skipper Sourav Ganguly‘s iconic shirtless celebration from the Lord’s balcony.
The moment when India crossed the finishing line, Ganguly took off his shirt and joyously waved it to celebrate India’s win. Recently, BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla, who was India’s team manager during that series, revealed some unheard details about the celebration.
Shukla, who appeared on Ranveer Allahbadia‘s YouTube show ‘TRS’, stated that after England had given a target of 325 to India, he got so tensed that he had to take a blood pressure pill.
“That moment in Lord’s, when we thought we were about to lose, I took a pill to control my blood pressure. But when the target of 325 was set, I asked Sourav Ganguly about the score. I was tensed, but he said, ‘Sir, let us at least go on to the field.’ He was full of confidence,” said Shukla.
Talking about the celebration, Shukla revealed that when India were about to win the match, Ganguly had asked the entire team to take off their shirts and celebrate. This was actually being done to mock England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, who did the same thing after an ODI series win in Mumbai.
“When that winning moment was about to come, Sourav told the entire team they would take off their shirt and wave it in celebration, probably because Andrew Flintoff had done the same in Mumbai,” said Shukla.
“But Sachin told me in the dressing room, ‘Don’t let the entire team do this. It’s a gentleman’s game. It won’t look good. So I told Sourav if you want to do it, go ahead. He did it, and it became a historical image. He was the first captain to bring aggression into the Indian team,” he added.
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