ICC Cricket World Cup Tournament
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The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup is the biggest tournament is world cricket. It is of ODI ( One Day International ) format which means that each team plays 50 overs. It is one of the most viewed sports events in the world. The Cricket World Cup is ICC’s most flagship event where the top teams battle out to become world champions. Each team not only wins a lot of money but the farther they go, the more they can brag about their achievements. Winning the World Cup in the ultimate dream of every nation involved.
History of the Cricket World Cup
The first ever Cricket World cup was hosted by England in 1975. 8 teams participated in that first tournament. West Indies won that first tournament by beating Australia in the final at the famous stadium, Lords. After this, each world cup was held 4 years after the previous except for one exception where the break lasted 5 years. Australia has won the most world cups in history with a total of 5 cups to their name. India and West Indies come in 2nd as both have won 2 World Cups each. While Pakistan, England and Sri Lanka have each won 1.
How is it played?
There have been many different formats used in the world cup. 8 teams with 2 groups of 4 out of which 2 teams qualified for the semis from each group. Another format which was used was a total of 16 teams divided into 4 groups. 2 teams from each group qualified into the quarters. The format used in the 2011 and 2015 world cup was 2 groups of 7 teams each and the top 4 teams from each group qualified for the knockout stages. All of these different formats were tried and tested.
The most recent world cup which was played in 2019 featured a different format similar to that of the 1992 World Cup. The number of participating teams was 10 which were selected through the ICC Rankings. Each team would then play against each other in a round robin format and the top 4 teams would eventually qualify for the semi-finals.
Cricket World Cup Prize Money
For the last two World Cups, the prize pool has been the same. A grand total of 10 Million US Dollars. Each team that does not make it pass the group stages is given $100,000. The winners of each match of the group stage get $40,000. The 2 teams which lose the semi-finals go home with $800,000. The runners-up of the tournament walk away with 2 Million Dollars. And the team which wins the final and are crowned as World Champions get a total sum of a whopping 4 Million dollars.
Cricket World Cup Individual Records
Some exceptional players have created amazing records in the history of ICC cricket world cup. Here are a few of the highest records ever made.
Cricket World Cup Batting Records
The most runs in the history of World Cups have been scored by the legendary Indian Batsman Sachin Tendulkar with a total of 2278 Runs. Sachin also holds the record for most runs in a single World Cup with 673 runs in the 2003 World Cup and is tied for the record for most centuries with his country mate Rohit Sharma with 6 centuries. The record for highest individual score is held by Martin Guptill of New Zealand who scored 237 runs not out against the West Indies in 2005. The record for highest partnership is held by Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels of West Indies who both stood together for a partnership of 372 runs in the 2015 world Cup. Rohit Sharma also holds the record for most centuries in a single World Cup as he scored 5 centuries in the 2019 World Cup.
Cricket World Cup Bowling Records
The record for the most wickets taken in World Cup history belongs to Glenn McGrath of Australia with a total of 71 wickets between 1996 and 2007. He also holds the record for best bowling figures when he picked up 7/15 against Namibia in 2003. Mitchell Starc of Australia holds the record for the most wickets taken in a single World Cup with 27 wickets in the 2019 World Cup. Mitchell Starc also has the lowest average (min. 400 balls bowled) with a shocking 14.81. Meanwhile Andy Roberts of West Indies had the best economy rate (min. 1000 balls bowled) with a figure of 3.24 between 1975 and 1983. Mohammed Shami of India holds the record for the best strike rate (min. 20 wickets) with a strike rate of 18.6.
Fielding Records
People don’t often realize this but fielding is as important a part of the game as batting or bowling and good fielding can also win you matches. The record for the most dismissals as a wicket keeper belong to Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka who has 54 dismissals to his name from 2003 to 2015. Ricky Ponting holds the record for most catches as a fielder with a figure of 28 between 1996 and 2011.
Team Records
The highest ever total score by a team in a World Cup was made by Australia in 2015 when they scored shocking 417 runs against Afghanistan. Speaking of totals runs, the lowest ever total was scored by Canada against Sri Lanka in 2003 when the whole team got out for a mere 36 runs. The record for highest win percentage by any team in World Cups is held by Australia with a win percentage of 74.73%. Australia also hold the record for most World Cups won with a total tally of 5 cups, out of which they won 3 in a row. Australia have also gone the most consecutive matches without defeat when they won 27 matches in a row between 20th June 1999 and 19th March 2011. All the teams involved in the world cup want to win it. It is the single biggest trophy in the cricketing world. All teams who play friendly matches and series against each other ultimately are preparing for the World Cup and that is their first priority. Winning the World Cup is the dream of every cricketer and they work hard for it throughout their care
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