Sachin Tendulkar, a legendary cricketer from India, recently shared how he motivated his team to shift their attention from their hunger to a crucial semifinal match against Pakistan in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup.
The 2011 World Cup semifinal match between two rival teams was not only about cricket. The Prime Ministers of both countries were present in the stadium to watch the match, which was the first time the two teams had played against each other in India since 2007.
Tendulkar remembered the intense security measures during the 2011 World Cup semi-finals between India and Pakistan, which coincided with his 50th birthday celebrations. Both prime ministers were in attendance, making it a serious event.
Tendulkar explained that upon arriving at the ground, the usual procedure involves having lunch before heading out onto the field for warm-up sessions, gradually leading up to the game.
Tendulkar mentioned that some players were unable to concentrate on the game because they didn’t have lunch at the right time.
Due to security concerns, the team’s food was delayed and they became anxious about not having lunch before the World Cup semi-finals.
Tendulkar noticed that some players were still thinking about something, even during their warm-up session, and decided to give an inspirational speech to motivate them.
During a huddle, I spoke briefly and reminded my team that the World Cup semifinals were not going to wait for us to have our pre-match lunch.
If you’re feeling hungry, prove your worth by demonstrating your ability to score runs or take wickets. Your meal habits are of no interest to anyone. This is the semifinals of the World Cup, so go out there and showcase your skills without holding back.
India showed a strong performance both batting and bowling, likely due to the words of encouragement they received. Tendulkar set the example by scoring 85 runs off 111 balls, making him the highest scorer of the day.
India’s lower-order batsmen helped them reach a score of 260/9, which turned out to be too much for Pakistan to chase. Although Pakistan started well, they kept losing wickets and ultimately, Misbah-ul-Haq was left with too much to do with the remaining batsmen.
Tendulkar was rightfully awarded the Player of the Match for his outstanding performance. Three days later, he fulfilled his lifelong dream of winning the World Cup, which was made even more special by playing in front of his home crowd at Wankhede in Mumbai.