Indian Blind team captain acknowledges Virender Sehwag's heartfelt wishes after their World T20 triumph

The visually impaired Team India defeated their arch-rivals Pakistan in the final of the T20 Blind Cricket World Cup by 9 wickets to lift their 2nd World Cup title. Set a competitive target of 198 to win, the other Men in Blue chased down the target with relative comfort losing just a solitary wicket in the process. Opener Prakash Jayaramaiah stitched together an 110 runs partnership with captain Ajay Kumar Reddy to steer India to the victory target.

“I was confident that my team would be able to pull this victory off. We did it in 2012 and I think this gave us a psychological edge over them. A loss in the group stage served us a wake-up call as were trying different combinations and got us to execute our plans better in the finals.”

“I have enjoyed leading my team to this success but my job is not over”. He revealed that despite winning the tournament most of his colleagues are without a proper job.

“Without a proper job it is difficult to manage playing. Though sponsorships have come up in the recent past we are expecting that the BCCI and the government look at our plight. Our boys are giving in so much but in return are not getting any recognition. It is time that they sort things out” Ajay who scored a crucial 43 in the Final was quoted as saying.

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Wishes poured in from the whole cricketing fraternity. Ajay however, said that someone like Virender Sehwag’s tweet where he termed them as the other Men in Blue serves as a good example. “We wear the same blue jersey, represent the same tricolour and play with equal pride and passion then why term us as ‘other’? It is appreciable that he congratulated us but then we are no others”, We too are the men in blue”

Congratulations to our #OtherMenInBlue on winning the T20 World Cup for the Blind. They have lit up smiles for a billion people. pic.twitter.com/sEZiz2mXxU

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) February 12, 2017

Opener Jayaramaiah who top scored with an unbeaten 99 said that playing against Pakistan was bound to bring the best out of him. “I have always thought about scoring big when the opponents are Pakistan. This occasion brings out a little bit extra for me and I use all my abilities to score more. However, not scoring a century in the final does not really matter for him as he contributed to the win.

“Since 2010, when I joined the Indian team, I have always tried to play down the ground. It is my favourite area and I use my senses to hit the ball straight and not blindly hoick the ball. I try to get in and plan my innings according to the situation of the match.

However, if the situation demands I do play attacking shots,” he further added. His innings was instrumental in giving India their 2nd Blind World Cup title. He rated this innings as one of his best and is looking forward to the next tournament in 2018.

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