India secured a spot in the ODI World Cup semi-finals without losing a single game. Beyond the team's impressive victories, the players are particularly excited about receiving the 'Best Fielder' Medal, a unique dressing-room award presented by their fielding coach, T Dilip.
Dilip has been unveiling the winners in creative ways, adding an extra element of excitement to the announcements. For India's last league match against the Netherlands in Bengaluru, Chinnaswamy's groundsmen revealed Suryakumar Yadav as the recipient by holding up signs.
This was after the announcements of the three contenders were made on the big screen — KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. Eventually, it was Suryakumar who won the coveted award.
This has been a trend with Team India since their opening match against Australia. After the resounding 243-run victory over South Africa at Eden Gardens, the four contenders for the medal were asked to form a circle near the sight screen. A camera buggy panned across each player before settling on the eventual winner, Captain Rohit Sharma.
Similar dramatic announcements took place in Mumbai, where Sachin Tendulkar, a local hero and World Cup winner, declared Shreyas Iyer as the medal recipient after a massive win against Sri Lanka.
In Lucknow, following India's 100-run triumph over England, Dilip added a touch of suspense by plunging the entire stadium into darkness before illuminating the name of the winner, KL Rahul. Meanwhile, in Pune, after India's seven-wicket victory over Bangladesh, Dilip utilized the giant screen on the ground to announce Ravindra Jadeja as the deserving recipient of the Best Fielder Medal.
Meanwhile, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, India continued their unbeaten streak in the ongoing ODI World Cup with a commanding 160-run triumph over the Netherlands at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday, November 12. This victory marked India's ninth consecutive win in the World Cup 2023, propelling them to 18 points in the standings ahead of their upcoming semifinal clash against New Zealand on November 15.
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