Indian mixed-disability team reenacts Sourav Ganguly’s Lord’s balcony celebration after 118-run win at Lord’s

India’s mixed disability cricket team recreated Sourav Ganguly’s famous Lord’s balcony celebration after beating the England side by 118 runs at Lord’s Cricket Ground on Wednesday, August 19, in the seventh and final match of a seven-match T20I series, posting 206/4 and restricting the hosts to 88. The win served as a consolation victory as England won the series 4-3.

The Differently Abled Cricket Council of India released video of the moment on its official X account, posting: "When India wins at Lord’s, the celebrations hit different. A moment of pure cricketing joy on the Lord’s Balcony — coats off, spirits high, and the Tricolour flying with pride.118 runs. One unforgettable celebration.@imRaviKChauhan@official_idca pic.twitter.com/o6IuoRJto8" The footage shows team members removing their blazers while one player waved his shirt and the Indian tricolour was flown from the balcony.

Sourav Ganguly’s original balcony celebration took place on July 13, 2002, when India, under his captaincy, chased 326 to win the NatWest ODI series at Lord’s. The source account describes Ganguly’s action as a shirt-wave performed "in a fit of anger," and says the shirtless image became an inspiration for a generation of cricketers.

The 2002 celebration followed earlier on-field provocation: according to the same account, Ganguly’s response came after England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff had mocked India following England’s victory at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium earlier that year. The article links that sequence of events as context for Ganguly’s reaction.

The recent recreation at Lord’s occurred 24 years after Ganguly’s original gesture, and the same iconic image has also been reproduced in promotional material for a biopic of Ganguly that features Rajkummar Rao; producers recreated the balcony moment on a recently released film poster. The mixed-disability team’s action at Lord’s echoed that recreated image.

Mohammad Azharuddin was mentioned in the original report as the first Indian captain to lead India to an ODI series win on English soil. The story was filed by Subhomoy Datta, who "has been a sports writer since 2022," holds a BSc in Microbiology from Rastraguru Surendranath College, WBSU, and is "currently pursuing his master’s at NIT Surathkal."