An interesting parallel between the two major Indian victories - the 1983 World Cup and the recent Twenty20, is the captains. India has had suave, polished and thinking captains like Sunil Gavaskar and Rahul Dravid, larger-than-life players like Sachin Tendulkar, loners like Mohammed Azharuddin and aggressive ones like Saurav Ganguly.

But none of these won us a World Cup.

The two who did, Kapil Dev and now MS Dhoni, are of a similar breed. They play from the heart, are truly fearless and unconcerned with cricketing political correctness. They are game for a challenge with a never-say-die attitude. Moreover, they give their players a feeling that the captain is 'one of them' and act as an inspiration to their teams. Most importantly, they lead from the front.

'They play from the heart, are truly fearless and unconcerned with cricketing political correctness'

This is the breed of a captain that has won us two World Cups. The 1983 comeback from the brink against Zimbabwe (from 17 for five, India went on to win - backed by 175 from Kapil) and the first-round Twenty20 game against Pakistan that India won in the bowl-out, were both significant turning points in the respective tournaments.

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