By Sirshendu Panth, IANS,
Mumbai : After leading India to their second World Cup triumph with an unbeaten 91, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said Saturday his team had peaked at the right moment and reaped dividends from one-and-a-half years of preparation.
“About one or one-and-a-half years back, we had set our eyes on the World Cup. We had a long-term goal. We started preparing for the World Cup,” Dhoni told mediapersons after handing Sri Lanka a six-wicket defeat in the final at the Wankhede Stadium here.
“As part of the build-up, the Indians had taken all measures to keep the “prospects and the best eleven in best form”.
“We knew there were quite a few league games. We wanted the best players to be in their best form.”
“We knew it was a big challenge. We took it series by series. And all these preparations helped us to reach this position,” said Dhoni, who scored an unbeaten 91 and was involved in a match-winning 109-run stand with Gautam Gambhir (97).
In the World Cup, the Indians were in good shape and “each and every individual was throwing themselves around.”
“They applied their reserve batteries. We peaked at the right time. And carried the momentum into the final,” said Dhoni, who also lead India to the Twenty20 World Cup title in 2007.