Summary

This brings us to the end of the 50 victories that have redefined Indian cricket. The following is a summary of the matches that have given us great joy over the years.

• 1975-1983 World Cup

1. West Indies wins that gave confidence to the Indian team
2. Kapil Dev's knock against Zimbabwe
3. 1983 World Cup final victory

• Till 1987 World Cup

1. Asia Cup win
2. World Championships win in Australia
3. Sharjah win defending 125
4. Sixer Siddhu 
5. Gavaskar century and Chetan Sharma hat-trick

• Till 1992 World Cup

1. Asia Cup win
2. Kapil's hat-trick on way to another Asia Cup win
3. First win over Pakistan in 1992 World Cup

• Till 1996 World Cup

1. Sachin with the ball in the last over
2. Anil Kumble's heroics at Hero Cup
3. Sachin opens the batting
4. Sachin's first century 
5. Asia Cup win at Sharjah
6. Second win over Pakistan in World Cup

• Till 1999 World Cup

1. Kumble and Srinath win with the bat
2. Ganguly stars in Toronto
3. Last-over wins against Pakistan
4. Desert Storm against Australia
5. 1999 World Cup wins

• Till 2003 World Cup

1. Sunil Joshi at Nairobi 
2. Highest Partnership in ODI history
3. 2000 Champions Trophy wins
4. Agarkar's fastest fifty
5. 2002 win at Lords
6. 2002 Champions Trophy win
7. Fourth win over Pakistan in World Cup
8. India's memorable journey in World Cup

• Till 2007 World Cup

1. Wins in Pakistan
2. Dhoni Era begins
3. Six-One for India
4. Solo win in World Cup 

• Till 2011 World Cup

1. Tri-series win in Australia
2. Five-nil over England
3. Sachin's double
4. Asia Cup win
5. Five-nil over New Zealand
6. Fifth win over Pakistan in World Cup
7. India's World Cup WIN

• Till 2015 World Cup

1. Sehwag's double
2. Kohli's Era begins
3. Champions Trophy WIN
4. Dhoni's last over win
5. Tallest ODI chase for India
6. Rohit's double
7. Stuart Binny's feat
8. Revenge win at England
9. Rohit's another double

10 World Cups have passed and a eleventh is about to start soon. The Indian team will hopefully add one more crown to the two they have won so far.

All the best to the Indian team. Chak De India!

Win #50 - Double Double at Kolkata

Rohit and double. They seem  to like each other.When the Sri Lankan team agreed to  come to India as replacement for the cancelled West Indies tour, little did they know they would be part of history. Eden Gardens was the venue where Rohit scored his double double. 264 with 33 boundaries and nine sixes studded the knock that finished of the last ball of the over.

After his earlier double, Rohit had again gone into a shell where there were low scores continually, once again giving voice to his critics. Question marks were raised whether he should go back to middle order and give way to  Rahane. Rohit had other ideas and implemented  all of them against the hapless attack.

Sri Lanka were demoralized after the knock - the Indian bowlers had more than 400 runs in the bank and a tired batting team. The result was a 150 runs win.

Win #49 - Revenge win at England

England in 2011. India could not win a single match during the tour even during the ODIs. Most of the matches were affected by rain but that did not reflect the low confidence afflicting the Indians. 2014 in England. The Indians had lost the test series 1-3. But they were determined to do well in the ODI series. The Indians were seeking revenge for the previous series - this was a slightly different team in the ODIs with youngsters providing the vigor and athleticism missing in the tests.

The second ODI saw Suresh Raina score a century on English soil that helped  India past the 300 mark. With Jadeja and Ashwin coming to the party with the ball, India completed a grand win over the hosts at Cardiff.

The third ODI saw the Indian spinners, led by Ashwin, strangle England after a good start by the openers. Good contributions by everyone with an unbeaten 60 by Rayudu saw the Indian team romp home with ease.

India finished the series win in the next ODI itself by following the same pattern - dismissing England for a low score (this time Shami was the leading wicket-taker) and chasing with ease - Rahane and Dhawan demolished England with a 180+ opening stand.

Win #48 - Stuart Binny decimates Bangladesh at Dhaka

Binny. Not Roger but Stuart. Playing for a second-string Indian team in Bangladesh, Binny decided to make his presence felt. Suresh Raina captained the team on pitches that were favoring the bowlers big-time. The Indians were determined to try maximum options before the World Cup year to find players who could provide an edge to the team.

In the second ODI of the series. India were dismissed for 105 within thirty overs - the captain Raina top-scored with 27. Since it was the lowly Bangladesh team (as well as the helpful surface), the Indians felt they had a chance. After Mohit Sharma picked up early wickets, Binny was introduced first change. Pitching the ball up and moving it ever so slightly, Binny picked wickets regularly, averaging a wicket every four balls! The final figures were great - Six for Four in less than Five Overs. This was the best bowling figures by an Indian as well as the least score that India had defended in ODIs.

Win #47 - 200 by Rohit Sharma

Sachin, Sehwag and then Rohit. The list of Indian batsmen who have scored a double in ODIs continue to grow. Rohit Sharma joined the club at Bangalore in the 7th ODI of the bizarre series against Australia. Being regularly hounded for his regular low batting scores, Rohit made his mark during this match to silence his critics.

Having  run out Kohli for a duck, Rohit was determined to make up for it - he did in a great manner by hitting 16 sixes and 12 boundaries. The innings was marked for the clean big hitting throughout his innings and continuous partnerships with others. Shami and Jadeja pulled back the Australian chase of 383 that India had put up. Vinay Kumar suffered the ignominy of conceding more than 100 runs in an ODI during Australia's response. 

Win #46 - Kohli leads the Chase

With the rule changes (only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle), it was going to  be difficult for the fielding side especially on the subcontinental pitches. This ODI series was known for high scores - in fact, five of  the top ten scores between India and Australia were scored in this series.

The highest Indian chase in ODI cricket happened at Jaipur in 2013. The top 5 Aussie batsmen scored fifties to post a total of 359. That India won with more than six overs to spare by nine wickets should give you an idea of the chase. Was T20 really making its mark in the ODI scene? Had Run-making become so easy? Kohli scored the fastest Indian century in ODIs to shepherd the chase with Rohit scoring at almost two runs per ball. Rohit himself scored a century to take India  home.

Win #45 - Dhoni's last Over win

Dhoni is regarded as Ice-Cool. He has shown his characteristics to win the match from a losing position many a time during the IPL and in ODI matches. During the Tri-Nation series final in the Caribbean, MSD reiterated this image with another knock despite being hampered by injury.

In the earlier league matches against Sri Lanka and West Indies, Virat Kohli led the team astutely with good performances from himself. Dhoni was drafted in for the final match and even though it was an easy target (thanks to Bhuvi and Jadeja), India got into trouble with nine down and twenty runs to win. Ishant Sharma came to the crease with the Indian captain at the other end. What happened later has been explained very well here by Sid. Seam, spin and bounce along with a skilled Sri Lankan bowling could not stop MSD on this day.