Best knock of the world cup final?

[vcs]

Mahela, ridiculously easy on the eye. Will definitely be cheering on SL if they go further than India in WC '15, don't want guys like Sanga and Mahela missing out on a WC medal.

[_Ed_]

Mahela - I actually thought it was the innings of the tournament.

[jeevan]

Among the knocks played against India in this tournament - would rate Strauss' 156 at least the equal or even higher of this, though of course Indian fielding was **** vs Eng.

Gambhir threw it away with that mad charge, had he not done that - easily his knock would've been the one. He came in at 0/1, watched both India's best batsmen in the shed before he was settled and left at about 230/4. Had he perished 20 or 30 runs later - with victory in clear sight - his contribution would've mostly been the same , 110 or so instead of 97, but would've been remembered differently.

When the commentators kept saying that no one who scored a century in a WC final had lost, the only response that came to mind was that one Indian batsman needed to get a ton. And for the bulk of the innings, that batsman looked like Gambhir.

[Maximus0723]

All pretty close. I went with Mahela.

[Prince EWS]

Jayawardene has an almost unique ability to make me look past runs, balls, chances given and match context when assessing an innings. He proves I'm human.

Agree with Spikey.

[Mark Rance]

Hi There! My name is Mark Rance I am new to the forum. Is there a newbies page??

Many thanks

Mark Rance

[Engle]

I always look beyond the obvious.

Dhoni led from the front by taking a risk and promoting himself. Came off beautifully. And he finished the WC final with a winning 6.

So for leadership and well calculated risk management, I vote for Dhoni

[zorax]

Mahela's knock was the best to watch, most technically pure and correct, some really glorious strokes and looked so effortless.

But Gambhir's was fantastic in the way he absorbed all the pressure, and same must be said for MSD who came in at a tricky juncture, put himself in the firing line, and took the team home.

I'd pick Gambhir's, but very hard to choose.

[8ankitj]

Wonder if Dhoni's knock is rated low by some because he made it ridiculously easy in the end, winning with 10 balls to spare. If he had scored 75 off 79, instead of 91 and scrapped to victory with 1 ball to spare, it would have got more accolades perhaps. Does happen often with effortless performances.

The point is independent of the comparison with Mahela's and Gambhir's knocks of course which were pure, pure class (especially Mahela's).

[Bun]

No difference really between Dhoni's and Mahela's. But considering Dhoni's came in a cup winning cause and under the pump, went for it. Mahela's was a delight for the connoisseur. .

[zorax]

Honestly expected this poll to be tighter tbh. A great innings isn't just based on the quality of the stroke making, but also the conditions under which it came. The pressure, the context, what was on the line. Gambhir and MSD's innings may not have been as technically pure and beautifully pace as Mahelas, but they were absolutely fantastic innings given the pressure they both would have been under. 2 early wickets down, Sri Lanka pumped, the weight of expectations of a whole nation on his back, especially given that said nation doesn't react well to losing at all. And then there is the added pressure that this match is something they have been building up to for a year and a half, the anxiety they've suffered throught the tournament. And that's just Gambhir - MSD had all that + the burden of most of the blame if they didn't win. And he sent himself up, instead of hiding back, and absorbed all that pressure, faced it, chewed it up and spat it out.

Incredible innings from the both of them, just as good, if not better, than Mahela's

[_Ed_]

Mahela was under pressure as well, though. Wickets were regularly falling at the other end, and he had to hold SL's notoriously shaky middle order together after Sangakkara got out.

It annoys me how first-innings knocks are often said to not be made under as much pressure just because they aren't chasing a total.

[Jono]

Originally Posted by 8ankitj

Wonder if Dhoni's knock is rated low by some

No one is rating it low. It's an amazing knock.

Mahela's was just slightly better in some people's opinions.

If someone came here and actually said Dhoni's wasn't a good knock, then they are nuts.

[8ankitj]

Originally Posted by Jono

No one is rating it low. It's an amazing knock.

Mahela's was just slightly better in some people's opinions.

If someone came here and actually said Dhoni's wasn't a good knock, then they are nuts.

Jono, my friend, respond to what I said and not what I didn't.

[Jono]

I agreed with the rest of your post, so didn't really feel the need to respond.