Indian cricket fans hold the national flag as they celebrate their Twenty20 World Cup victory in Ahamadabad, India. India bowled out Pakistan for 152 on Monday to win the inaugural World Twenty20 tournament by five runs in Johannesburg on Monday. - AP

MUMBAI (Reuters):

INDIA WAS celebrating a surprise victory in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup yesterday, six months after the team's ignominious first-round exit in the 50-over version of the tournament.

The tense five-run win over sub-continent rivals Pakistan in the final in Johannesburg on Monday ended a 24-year wait for a World Cup triumph and promoted rapturous celebrations in the cricket-crazy country.

"I am absolutely delighted, what a great performance," Kapil Dev, India's 1983 World Cup-winning captain, told Reuters yesterday.

The victory achieved by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's side drew parallels with the 1983 win when Kapil's equally unsung team pulled off an upset victory over mighty West Indies at Lord's.

Kapil believes this team could form the nucleus of the side for the 50-over World Cup to be hosted in the sub-continent in 2011.

"If they keep on playing well, yes this is the team. (But) We should go step by step and not start imagining things," he said.

The national team was slammed after its flop in this year's World Cup in the Caribbean and began as rank outsiders in the Twenty20 event with Dhoni named captain after Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly opted out.

"Excellent, we have found the right captain now," Kapil said of Dhoni's leadership.

The flamboyant wicketkeeper-batsman was named one-day captain for home series against Australia and Pakistan after Dravid's sudden resignation as skipper this month after the series against England.

Brilliant effort

"It was a brilliant effort by the team ... Dhoni led the team to a fabulous victory and I can say Indian cricket is in safe hands," Tendulkar was quoted by Indian media yesterday.

"Young blood in a billion hearts," screamed the headline on the main page of national daily Indian Express with a picture of the team in wild celebration and Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq slumped to the ground.'"Top of the world', read the headline in the Hindustan Times, while the Times of India said 'Pakistunned'.

The Indian cricket board announced a ticker-tape welcome for the team when it arrives in Mumbai today.