Former India captain Sachin Tendulkar was actually the brains behind the decision of MS Dhoni's promotion ahead of Yuvraj Singh in the 50-over World Cup final against India on April 2, 2011.

Tendulkar revealed the reason behind the strategy change in a recent interview in which he also stated that he told Virender Sehwag to convey the message to captain Dhoni in the dressing room during India's 275-run chase.







The partnership between Gautam and Virat was flourishing and we wanted to be a couple of steps ahead of the opposition.That’s when I told Viru ... if a left-Hander (Gautam) gets out now, a left-hander (Yuvi) should go in, and if a right-Hander [Virat] gets out, a right-Hander (Dhoni) should go in.

"Yuvi was in tremendous form but Sri Lanka had two off-spinners going, so I thought a strategy change would work," Tendulkar told Times of India.