On June 25, 1983, an unparalleled wave of enthusiasm enveloped the country as India won the famous World Cup trophy at Lord's, leaving a lasting impression on the hearts of millions.
That day has been forever etched in the annals of not just Indian cricket history, but also Indian sporting history as it changed how cricket was perceived in the country, turning the sport into a religion and the players of the squad into demigods.
Everyone loves an underdog story, and India's victory over West Indies - who were, at the time, the two-time defending world champions - in the final is as good an underdog story as it gets.
40 years later, TSN revisits the historic day as we take a walk down the memory lane.
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1983 World Cup Final: The most mismatched final of all time?
The 1983 World Cup Final between India and West Indies was a typical 'David vs Goliath' contest.
The 1983 World Cup was only the third-ever cricket World Cup, with the first two editions being played in 1975 and 1979. West Indies won on both occasions and made it to their third straight final in 1983.
It wasn't surprising that the odds were heavily stacked against India, a team that had won just one out of their six games in the previous two World Cups combined. India had failed to make it past the group stage in both the editions.
The bookmakers gave India 66-1 odds for winning the final.
India made it to the final after beating England in the semi-finals, remembered for Sandeep Patil's unbeaten 32-ball 51-run knock while chasing 214, which was the fastest fifty scored by an Indian in a World Cup game before Sachin Tendulkar broke the record against Bermuda at the 2007 World Cup (26 balls).
India has lost all five ODIs against England in England prior to the semi-final. But they defied the odds to make it to their first-ever World Cup Final.
There, they would meet West Indies after they defeated Pakistan by 8 wickets. West Indies, at the time, was the best team in the world, and inarguably the greatest-ever cricket team of all time.
However, India had already defeated West Indies in their opening encounter of the 1983 World Cup, and the belief that India could pull off a miraculous win against the mighty West Indians was strong, more so after wins against Zimbabwe in the group stage after India had lost to West Indies in the reverse fixture and to Australia in consecutive games.
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How India defeated West Indies in the 1983 World Cup Final
West Indies won the toss and sent India in to bat first.
The Indian innings was opened by Sunil Gavaskar and Krishnamachari Srikkanth. Gavaskar's poor run of form during the tournament continued as he was dismissed by Andy Roberts for just two runs.
Mohinder Amarnath, the Man of the Match in the semi-final, stitched a 57-run partnership for the 2nd wicket with Srikkanth. Srikkanth took the attack to the West Indies bowlers, scoring 38 runs in 57 balls, while Amarnath was overly cautious in his approach and supported his partner by not taking much risks and just hanging in.
After Srikkanth's departure, Yashpal Sharma joined Amarnath to create a 31-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, but that was the last partnership in the innings that exceeded 30 runs.
Amarnath was dismissed for 26 off 80 balls with India struggling at 90-3. Yashpal was dismissed just minutes later, leaving India treading heavy water at 92-4.
In came Kapil Dev, who smothered three balls of his first eight balls to race to 15 runs. However, India's greatest hero wouldn't be able to produce any heroics with the bat in the final as he was dismissed by Larry Gomes.
With the half the side back in the pavilion, India were staring at the possibility of being bundled out for a paltry total. But vital contributions with the bat from Sandeep Patil, Syed Kirmani, and Madan Lal helped India reach 183.
In reply, West Indies had a dreadful start as Balwinder Sandhu knocked the wood of the dangerous Gordon Greenidge to put them under pressure.
In came Sir Vivian Richards, who was clear in his intent as he was in rampant touch. West Indies raced to 50 in no time, thanks to Richards' blistering batting. Just as West Indies seemed to be getting away with the game, Madan Lal took rose up to the occasion to bowl a sensational spell, dismissing Desmond Haynes and Richards in quick succession. Richards' wicket will be remembered because of Kapil Dev's wonderful catch.
With two new batsmen at the crease in the form of skipper Clive Lloyd and Larry Gomes, Lal continued his carnage with the ball to send the latter back to the pavilion. Roger Binny piled on more misery as he dismissed Lloyd immediately, leaving West Indies struggling at 66-5.
Faoud Bacchus' wicket was then taken by Sandhu, who returned for another spell following his spell with the new ball to claim his second wicket.
West Indies offered some resistance as Jeff Dujon and Malcolm Marshall stitched a 43-run partnership for the 7th wicket, but Amarnath worked his magic with the ball in what was an incredible spell of medium-pace bowling.
The West Indies innings ended at 140 runs in 52 overs in what was a shocking result.
India won the final by 43 runs and produced one of the biggest upsets in sporting history to win their first-ever World Cup.
This game will live forever in the hearts of the millions of Indians, including those who haven't had the privilege to watch the game.