LONDON: It was a journey down the memory lane as India's 1983 World Cup heroes relived the historic occasion by walking down the pitch and then victorious captain Kapil Dev opening a champagne bottle from the hallowed balcony of the Lord's pavilion last night, as he did exactly 25 years ago.
"It (the 1983 victory) was one of the greatest moments in history," both Kapil and BCCI President Sharad Pawar said. Later at a dinner hosted in honor of the 15 men who had created history, Pawar, along with liquor baron Vijay Mallya, presented a replica of the Prudential Cup to each one of them.
Mallya, whose UB Group sponsored the event, unveiled a cricket bat adorned with 25-carat diamonds and a specially designed ball, encrusted with diamonds, which would be auctioned by Sotheby's with the proceeds to be presented to the 15 heroes equally.
Noting that the 1983 World Cup victory had given "self-belief" to all the Indians, Pawar told the packed gathering that both M S Dhoni, captain of the victorious World Twenty20 Cup team, and Virat Kohli, who led India to Under-19 World Cup title in Malaysia, were inspired by 'Kapil's Devils'.
Pawar said though an Indian team first visited England in 1932, "history was created by Kapil and his teammates by winning the World Cup in 1983". Kapil, who has fallen out with the BCCI after joining the 'rebel' ICL, thanked Pawar for honouring the cricketers.
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