Champions Trophy 2013 Final: England vs. India Lives Up to Expectations

India and England came into the 2013 Champions Trophy as the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the one-day rankings, respectively, per ICC-Cricket.com.

The two powerhouses did not disappoint in a thrilling final in Birmingham as India won by five runs, via the Globe and Mail.

England had an opportunity to come away with the title down the stretch, needing 20 runs with 16 balls remaining. But the English weren't able to rise to the challenge with the match on the line, losing four wickets in the span of eight balls.

There were plenty of heroes for India. There was top scorer Virat Kohli (43). There was Ravi Jadeja, the man of the match. There was Shikhar Dhawan, the player of the tournament. And there was Ishant Sharma.

Sharma's recovery after Morgan's blistering hook proved to be pivotal for India. Sharma took the wickets of Eoin Morgan (33) and Ravi Bopara (30) on consecutive balls and barely missed the hat trick when a delivery swept by the chin of Tim Bresnan.

India's resolve was commendable. Despite being inexperienced—Kohli was one of three players who remained from the 2011 World Cup-winning squad—and coming off news of a match-fixing scandal in the Indian Premier League, India was the team that rose to the occasion on Sunday, not England. The way things had been going for India off the field, you expected it would be India that would fall apart if a team was to do so in the final.

But England once again built its reputation of being a team that choked when the match was on the line. 

You may remember, England lost the final of the 2004 Champions Trophy to West Indies in brutal fashion. The team has also lost three World Cup finals.

In the end, the Champions Trophy came down to simple execution. England didn't need to do much to capture the trophy down the stretch, but completely melted under the pressure.

As India captain MS Dhoni told Sky Sports after the match, via CNN.com: "We handled the pressure really well. People talk about technique but the better players are the ones who respond to the pressure."