‘Oh no, what just happened? Why is Dhoni being made to toss again? This cannot be a good omen. Can we really win this World Cup?’ 42-year-old Shailesh Bhat had found himself pondering.

“When Viru Paaji (Virender Sehwag) got out, you could hear a pin drop. The stadium was unusually quiet. At times, I could hear people chanting. (smiles) Sochke hassi aata hai abhi (I now laugh thinking about it). It was a different experience, we were all one that night. We would get nervous if the players looked nervous, we would laugh if they laughed…cricket makes you do crazy stuff,” he nostalgically recalled India’s triumphant 2011 World Cup campaign, on the sidelines of Mumbai Indians’ IPL 2024 showdown at Wankhede.