India, Nov. 2 -- The most influential reference point in Indian cricket, inarguably, remains the ultimate glory at the 1983 Prudential World Cup in England.

True, by then, India had secured a 3-1 victory in New Zealand in 1967-68, and achieved back-to-back 1-0 triumphs in the Caribbean and England in 1971. However, there was a touch of the mysteriously alluring about those successes, because the only visual evidence, beyond newspaper reports, was through newsreels played in cinema halls before the start of a movie.

1983 was different. Thousands of Indians (television was still in its infancy in the country, so we will refrain from using 'millions') were privy to 'live' pictures from Lord's when, against all odds, Kapil Dev's Devils stun...