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A Lord’s Flex For Ages: When Sourav Ganguly Answered Flintoff’s Mumbai Shirt Off

Aakash Saini

Sourav Ganguly celebrating India's win [Source: @RandomCricketP1/x]Sourav Ganguly celebrating India's win [Source: @RandomCricketP1/x]

India’s epic chase in the 2002 NatWest Series final at Lord’s stands as a defining chapter in the country’s cricketing journey. Facing a daunting 325-run target in the heart of England, a fearless new breed of Indian cricketers like Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif rose to the occasion, signalling a seismic shift in belief and intent for generations to come for the ‘Men in Blue’.

But perhaps even bigger than the win itself was the image that followed, with then captain Sourav Ganguly holding his shirt in hand and roaring from the Lord’s balcony to mark a moment that shattered conventions and etched itself permanently into India’s rich legacy.

OTD In 2002: Shirt For Shirt, From Mumbai To London

Team India, under the leadership of Sourav Ganguly, outclassed England by two wickets in a last-over thriller at Lord’s on July 13, 2002 to lift the 2002 NatWest ODI Tri-series. Crashing to 146-5 in a tall chase of 326 runs, then youngsters Yuvraj Singh (69 off 63) and Mohammad Kaif (87* off 75) scripted India’s spirited fightback with a partnership to remember.

Shortly after Kaif and his tail-end batting partner Zaheer Khan notched up the winning runs off the final over of the match against Andrew Flintoff, Ganguly celebrated the crowing instant by waving his shirt at the Lord’s balcony to settle his score with the English paceman.

To catch the highlights of the historic England vs India NatWest 2002 final, click here

For the unversed, the unforgettable shirt-flinging spectacle from Sourav Ganguly was itself committed as a fiery response to Andrew Flintoff’s winning celebration against India at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium months earlier, after the Englishmen had sealed a tense thriller to level the six-match series 3-3.