India achieved a historic milestone with the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the moon, evoking immense pride and joy across the nation. In a unique twist, Mumbai Indians (MI), an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, interpreted this achievement as a positive omen for cricket.
Reflecting on the significance, MI drew a parallel between the space agency ISRO and the Indian cricket team’s fortunes, highlighting the year 2019 as a turning point. In 2019, ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 mission faced disappointment as the spacecraft failed to achieve its mission. Coincidentally, Team India also suffered a setback when they were defeated by New Zealand in the 2019 World Cup semi-final.
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Fast forward to 2023, India celebrated its first-ever landing on the moon’s south pole. With this achievement coinciding with another World Cup year, Mumbai Indians expressed hope that history would repeat itself on the cricket field as well.
MI creatively depicted the contrast by juxtaposing images of former ISRO chief K Sivan and Indian captain Rohit Sharma from 2019. Sivan’s emotional response to the spacecraft’s failure mirrored Rohit’s sentiments after India’s loss in the World Cup semi-final.
𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗘𝗩𝗘 🇮🇳#OneFamily #Chandrayaan_3 #Ch3 #Chandrayaan3 #VikramLander pic.twitter.com/kU9InzTlD4
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) August 23, 2023
In contrast, beneath this comparison, MI included an image of current ISRO chairman S Somnath congratulating his colleagues and the nation for Chandrayaan-3’s successful landing. Employing the slogan “Believe,” the franchise expressed optimism about Team India’s success in the upcoming World Cup.
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ISRO’s live streaming of the event on their official website and YouTube channel garnered an impressive 80 lakh viewers, making it a record-breaking global live event on the platform. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi, currently in South Africa, joined the historic moment through a video link.
As India strives to break its ICC trophy drought since the 2013 Champions Trophy, the anticipation is high for the 2023 World Cup being hosted on home soil. With Dhoni’s leadership in 2011 marking the last ICC trophy win, fans are eager for the national team to replicate the feat and end the decade-long wait for another significant triumph.
