Yuvraj is king as India avenge defeat at Ponting's hands 8 years ago

India woke up on Thursday wishing for two things - to see Sachin Tendulkar score his 100th century and for Dhoni & co to win the high-stakes quarterfinal.

For 18 overs, it seemed as if both wishes would be fulfilled, as Tendulkar batted with supreme poise while scoring 53 and crossing 18,000 runs in one-day internationals. His dismissal meant Indian fans had to settle for one. But no one was minding too much. With a mouth-watering semifinal beckoning against Pakistan at Mohali, and the possibility of a slot in the final at Mumbai, Sachin still has the opportunity to make history in the grandest of settings.

If India are still alive in the event, though, they owe a huge debt to a man who is now surely among the frontrunners to be declared the player of the tournament. For the fourth game in a row, Yuvraj Singh was the man of the match as India ended Australia's stranglehold on the World Cup.

Fittingly, Yuvraj finished the match with a four before screaming his lungs out in exultation ; Indians across the world were doing the same thing.

The Aussies won in 1999, 2003 and 2007 but they'll be returning home empty-handed this time. For good measure, India avenged their thrashing in the 2003 World Cup final at Johannesburg, the last time the two teams played in the World Cup, exactly eight years ago on March 23.

Ponting, who scored a century then, scored a century again at Motera, but this time it was in vain. Over the past few months, Ponting has looked a shadow of the imperious player who savaged India in 2003. But when the stakes were raised, he lifted his game. His 29th ODI century wasn't fluent or spectacular, and he often mistimed his shots. But it did showcase what a great player can achieve through sheer bloody-mindedness.

It wasn't easy for India-but then, against the Aussies, is it ever? Sachin's dismissal off a delivery that looked suspiciously close to being a no-ball had boosted Aussie hopes.

Yuvraj and Suresh Raina preferred to Yusuf Pathan-were the last recognized batsmen left with 74 runs to get off 75 balls. Thankfully, Raina justified his selection, scoring a valuable 34 off 28 balls as Yuvraj coasted to 57 off 65. The duo kept its cool as, for once, the Aussies wilted under pressure.

Before the match began, Ponting had said that 250 would be a reasonable target. It was but it wasn't ungettable.

Turning Points

1. Shane Watson's early exit | 9.6 overs | The in-form Australian opener was bowled by R Ashwin going for a slog sweep. That stopped the Aussies from moving a gear up

2. Zak's double strike | 33.3 and 41.2 overs | Zaheer Khan cleaned up Michael Hussey and Cameron White to prevent the Aussies from cutting loose.

3. Umpire Ian Gould's mistake: 44.3 overs | Bhajji had Ponting LBW but the umpire thought otherwise. India had no reviews left.

4. Sachin's dismissal | 18.1 overs | A controversial decision. Did Shaun Tait bowl a back-foot no ball?

5. Batsmen self-destruct | 28.3, 33.2 and 37.3 overs | Kohli caught off full toss, Gambhir run out after horrendous mix-up with Yuvraj and Dhoni dismissed off loose shot. India threatened to collapse again.

6. Lee-Tait hammered | 40 and 41 overs | Yuvraj and Raina pillage 14 and 13 runs as asking rate drops to just 4.5. India never looked back.