3 innings of 30 that changed India's 2011 World Cup campaign

#2 Raina's innings against Pakistan in the semi-finals

Raina added valuable runs late in the innings

A World Cup semi-final.

On home soil.

Against Pakistan.

It is the closest cricket can ever get to war. The Prime Ministers of the two nations were in the stadium that day. There are not enough words to describe the atmosphere in the stands and the emotions of the public glued to their TV screens. Amidst all the organised chaos, Suresh Raina scripted a story of his own.

Batting first on a two-paced Mohali pitch, India found the going tough against the Pakistani attack. Wahab Riaz was breathing fire. Spinners refused to give an inch. Yet, Pakistan were committing suicide on the field, dropping multiple catches of Sachin Tendulkar. Amidst all this drama, India found themselves tottering at 187 for 5 after 37 overs, with Tendulkar just having returned to the pavilion.

Enter Suresh Raina.

Five overs later, MS Dhoni departed as well, with the scorecard reading 205 for 6, leaving Raina in the company of the tail. But the southpaw had other plans. He didn't exactly set the stands on fire with towering sixes and booming drives. It wasn't an innings of that kind. One false shot and India could have been without a proper batsman at the crease.

Raina held one end like an anchor and kept finding gaps in the field, scoring everything that he could. In a sedate knock of 36 runs off 39 balls, he hit only three fours but ensured that he was there until the end. By the time India finished, they had 260 runs on board, giving the bowlers something to defend.

Although Tendulkar was adjudged the Man of the Match for his scratchy 85, Raina's innings was equally important, if not more. It turned out to be the most important knock of his career as India eventually bundled out Pakistan for 231, thus entering the finals.