A kitemaker displays his kites decorated with pictures of Indian and South African cricket players in Amritsar on June 28, 2024, on the eve of the ICC men's Twenty20 World Cup 2024 final cricket match between India and South Africa. - AFP
NEW DELHI (AFP): Fan frenzy mounted Friday in India after their team reached the T20 World Cup final with a big win over England, putting the country on the brink of a first major title in over a decade.
Despite cricket's huge popularity in India and the nation being the epicentre of the T20 game through the lucrative IPL, their only triumph in the competition came 17 years ago.
India's last major silverware of any kind was the Champions Trophy in 2013 and their hopes have been repeatedly dashed since.
They came agonisingly close to winning the 50-over World Cup at home last year but lost to Australia in the final, breaking the hearts of 1.4 billion Indians.
On the eve of Saturday's final against South Africa in Barbados, Indian fans dared to dream.
"The excitement has reached its peak," said Pritam Kumar Sinha, an accountant and die-hard cricket fan in the eastern city of Patna.
"It has been a while since India won any world title. If India can win on Saturday it will be a fitting finale for Rahul Dravid, the outgoing coach," the 58-year-old told AFP.
In the capital New Delhi, college student Varsha Sinha said she could hardly wait for the final to start.
"We have been undefeated in the tournament so far and I am praying the trend continues," said the 20-year-old, who rejigged her weekend plans in order to watch the action on TV.
India knocked out defending champions England by 68 runs in a rain-hit semi-final after skipper Rohit Sharma laid the foundations by top-scoring with 57 in a total of 171-7.
It was the opener's third fifty of the tournament and second in as many games following his blistering 92 against Australia.
Left-arm spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel then took three wickets apiece to restrict England to 103 all out.
Nitin Gadkari, India's minister for road transport and highways, praised the team's "stellar" performance in Guyana.
"Best of luck for the final match -- bring home the trophy! Your determination and skill are truly inspiring. Let's make history," he said in a social media post.
Fans also took to social media to send their best wishes to their beloved team.
"Well played Team India. Let's celebrate the victory and all the best for the finale," wrote one user on X, formerly Twitter.
"Climbing that one last step often takes the most courage and it is the most difficult," IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru posted.
"But we know Team India is not going to settle for anything lesser." - AFP
