Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Sunday announced cash rewards of Rs 25 lakh for each player of the Indian team for becoming the number one Test squad in the world.Earlier in the day, team India led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni had defeated Sri Lanka by an innings and 24 runs on the fifth and final day of the third and penultimate Test match to win the series 2-0 and claim the top spot in the ICC Test rankings.
The win gave three points to India, taking its tally to the top at 122 points in the rankings, which left South Africa and Sri Lanka behind.
"We have decided to give each Indian cricket team member Rs 25 lakh for becoming the number one in ICC Test rankings. Each of the support staff and selection committee members will be given Rs 10 lakh," said Shashank Manohar, BCCI President at a award function here.
It was a team effort from the Indians which saw them creating history, as after piling on a mammoth 729 for 9 in the first innings, it was the bowlers who responded with brilliant individual performances.
Zaheer (5/72) started with a ripper in the first over to get rid of captain Kumar Sangakkara (137), who was the lone Lankan batsman to stand tall amid the Lankan ruins.
Harbhajan and Pragyan Ojha scalped two wickets each, while the hero of the Kanpur Test, Srisanth bagged one.
This was the third time in the last four years that India has won two matches in a row. Once Sangakkara was gone, it was a matter of time before India romped home