The Cricket World Cup (officially known as ICC Men's Cricket World Cup)[4] is the international championship of One Day International (ODI) cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), every four years, with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament. The tournament is one of the world's most viewed sporting events and considered as the "flagship event of the international cricket calendar" by the ICC.[5] It is widely considered the pinnacle championship of the sport of cricket.
The first World Cup was organised in England in June 1975, with the first ODI cricket match having been played only four years earlier. However, a separate Women's Cricket World Cup had been held two years before the first men's tournament, and a tournament involving multiple international teams had been held as early as 1912, when a triangular tournament of Test matches was played between Australia, England and South Africa. The first three World Cups were held in England. From the 1987 tournament onwards, hosting has been shared between countries under an unofficial rotation system, with fourteen ICC members having hosted at least one match in the tournament.
The current format involves a qualification phase, which takes place over the preceding three years, to determine which teams qualify for the tournament phase. In the tournament phase, 10 teams, including the automatically qualifying host nation, compete for the title at venues within the host nation over about a month. In the 2027 edition, the format will be changed to accommodate an expanded 14-team final competition.[6]
Australia are the current champions after winning the 2023 World Cup in India. The subsequent 2027 World Cup will be held jointly in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
The first multilateral competition at international level was the 1912 Triangular Tournament, a Test cricket tournament played in England between all three Test-playing nations at the time: England, Australia and South Africa. The event was not a success: the summer was exceptionally wet, making play difficult on damp uncovered pitches, and crowd attendances were poor, attributed to a "surfeit of cricket".[11] Since then, international Test cricket has generally been organised as bilateral series: a multilateral Test tournament was not organised again until the triangular Asian Test Championship in 1999.[12]
The number of nations playing Test cricket increased gradually over time, with the addition of West Indies in 1928,[13]New Zealand in 1930,[14]India in 1932,[15] and Pakistan in 1952.[16] However, international cricket continued to be played as bilateral Test matches over three, four or five days.
In the early 1960s, English county cricket teams began playing a shortened version of cricket which only lasted for one day. Starting in 1962 with a four-team knockout competition known as the Midlands Knock-Out Cup,[17] and continuing with the inaugural Gillette Cup in 1963, one-day cricket grew in popularity in England. A national Sunday League was formed in 1969. The first One-Day International match was played on the fifth day of a rain-aborted Test match between England and Australia at Melbourne in 1971, to fill the time available and as compensation for the frustrated crowd. It was a forty over game with eight balls per over.[18] The success and popularity of the domestic one-day competitions in England and other parts of the world, as well as the early One-Day Internationals, prompted the ICC to consider organizing a Cricket World Cup.[19]
The inaugural Cricket World Cup was hosted in 1975 by England, the only nation able to put forward the resources to stage an event of such magnitude at the time. The first three tournaments were held in England and officially known as the Prudential Cup after the sponsors Prudential plc. The matches consisted of 60 six-ball overs per team, played during daytime in the traditional form, with the players wearing cricket whites and using red cricket balls.[20]
Eight teams participated in the first tournament: Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, and the West Indies (the six Test nations at the time), together with Sri Lanka and a composite team from East Africa.[21] One notable omission was South Africa, who were banned from international cricket due to apartheid. The tournament was won by the West Indies, who defeated Australia by 17 runs in the final at Lord's.[21] Roy Fredricks of West Indies was the first batsmen who got hit-wicket in ODI during the 1975 World Cup final.[22]
The 1979 World Cup saw the introduction of the ICC Trophy competition to select non-Test playing teams for the World Cup,[23] with Sri Lanka and Canada qualifying.[24] The West Indies won a second consecutive World Cup tournament, defeating the hosts England by 92 runs in the final. At a meeting which followed the World Cup, the International Cricket Conference agreed to make the competition a quadrennial event.[24]
The 1983 event was hosted by England for a third consecutive time. By this stage, Sri Lanka had become a Test-playing nation, and Zimbabwe qualified through the ICC Trophy. A fielding circle was introduced, 30 yards (27m) away from the stumps. Four fieldsmen needed to be inside it at all times.[25] The teams faced each other twice, before moving into the knock-outs. India was crowned champions after upsetting the West Indies by 43 runs in the final.[19][26]
India and Pakistan jointly hosted the 1987 tournament, the first time that the competition was held outside England. The games were reduced from 60 to 50 overs per innings, the current standard, because of the shorter daylight hours in the Indian subcontinent compared with England's summer.[27] Australia won the championship by defeating England by 7 runs in the final, the closest margin in the World Cup final until the 2019 edition between England and New Zealand.[28][29] The 1992 World Cup, held in Australia and New Zealand, introduced many changes to the game, such as coloured clothing, white balls, day/night matches, and a change to the fielding restriction rules. The South African cricket team participated in the event for the first time, following the fall of the apartheid regime and the end of the international sports boycott.[30] Pakistan overcame a dismal start in the tournament to eventually defeat England by 22 runs in the final and emerge as winners.[31]
The 1996 championship was held in the Indian subcontinent for a second time, with the inclusion of Sri Lanka as host for some of its group stage matches.[32] In the semi-final, Sri Lanka, heading towards a crushing victory over India at Eden Gardens after the hosts lost eight wickets while scoring 120 runs in pursuit of 252, were awarded victory by default after crowd unrest broke out in protest against the Indian performance.[33] Sri Lanka went on to win their maiden championship by defeating Australia by seven wickets in the final at Lahore.[34]
In 1999, the event was hosted by England, with some matches also being held in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and the Netherlands.[35][36] Twelve teams contested the World Cup. Australia qualified for the semi-finals after reaching their target in their Super 6 match against South Africa off the final over of the match.[37] They then proceeded to the final with a tied match in the semi-final also against South Africa where a mix-up between South African batsmen Lance Klusener and Allan Donald saw Donald drop his bat and stranded mid-pitch to be run out. In the final, Australia dismissed Pakistan for 132 and then reached the target in less than 20 overs and with eight wickets in hand.[38]
A crowd of over 10,000 fans welcome the Australian team on completing the first World Cup hat-trick– Martin Place, Sydney.
South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya hosted the 2003 World Cup. The number of teams participating in the event increased from twelve to fourteen. Kenya's victories over Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, among others– and a forfeit by the New Zealand team, which refused to play in Kenya because of security concerns– enabled Kenya to reach the semi-finals, the best result by an associate.[39] In the final, Australia made 359 runs for the loss of two wickets, the largest ever total in a final, defeating India by 125 runs.[40][41]
In 2007, the tournament was hosted by the West Indies and expanded to sixteen teams.[42] Following Pakistan's upset loss to World Cup debutants Ireland in the group stage, Pakistani coach Bob Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room.[43] Jamaican police had initially launched a murder investigation into Woolmer's death but later confirmed that he died of heart failure.[44] Australia defeated Sri Lanka in the final by 53 runs (D/L) in farcical light conditions, and extended their undefeated run in the World Cup to 29 matches and winning three straight championships.[45]
Autographed bat of the World Cup winning captains till 2015 at the Blades of Glory Museum, Pune, India
India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh together hosted the 2011 World Cup. Pakistan was stripped of its hosting rights following the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in 2009, with the games originally scheduled for Pakistan redistributed to the other host countries.[46] The number of teams participating in the World Cup was reduced to fourteen.[47] Australia lost their final group stage match against Pakistan on 19 March 2011, ending an unbeaten streak of 35 World Cup matches, which had begun on 23 May 1999.[48] India won their second World Cup title by beating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where the Indian captain M.S. Dhoni along with the spinning all-rounder Yuvraj Singh chased 273 with notable performances from Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, making India the first country to win the World Cup at home.[47] This was also the first time that two Asian countries faced each other in a World Cup Final.[49]
Australia and New Zealand jointly hosted the 2015 World Cup. The number of participants remained at fourteen. Ireland was the most successful Associate nation with a total of three wins in the tournament. New Zealand beat South Africa in a thrilling first semi-final to qualify for their maiden World Cup final. Australia defeated New Zealand by seven wickets in the final at Melbourne to lift the World Cup for the fifth time.[50]
England perform a lap of honour around Lord's after their victory on 14 July 2019.
The 2019 World Cup was hosted by England and Wales. The number of participants was reduced to 10. New Zealand defeated India in the first semi-final, which was pushed over to the reserve day due to rain.[51] England defeated the defending champions, Australia, in the second semi-final. Neither finalist had previously won the World Cup. In the final, the scores were tied at 241 after 50 overs and the match went to a super over, after which the scores were again tied at 15. The World Cup was won by England, whose boundary count was greater than New Zealand's.[52][53]
The 2023 Cricket World Cup was hosted by India. Ten teams participated, including The Netherlands, which returned to the tournament after a 12 year absence. The tournament was structured as a single group round-robin, with the top four advancing to the semi-final knockout stage. India were unbeaten in the group stage and defeated New Zealand to advance to the final; Australia lost twice during the group stage before defeating South Africa in the semi-finals. Afghanistan had their most successful World Cup, with four wins during the group stage, including over defending champions England; they also came close to defeating Australia before Glenn Maxwell's double century turned the match around. In the final, Australia defeated India by 6 wickets to win their sixth World Cup title.
From the first World Cup in 1975 up to the 2019 World Cup, the majority of teams taking part qualified automatically. Until the 2015 World Cup this was mostly through having Full Membership of the ICC, and for the 2019 World Cup this was mostly through ranking position in the ICC ODI Championship.[54]
Since the second World Cup in 1979 up to the 2019 World Cup, the teams that qualified automatically were joined by a small number of others who qualified for the World Cup through the qualification process. The first qualifying tournament being the ICC Trophy;[55] later the process expanding with pre-qualifying tournaments. For the 2011 World Cup, the ICC World Cricket League replaced the past pre-qualifying processes; and the name "ICC Trophy" was changed to "ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier".[56] The World Cricket League was the qualification system provided to allow the Associate and Affiliate members of the ICC more opportunities to qualify. The number of teams qualifying varied throughout the years.[57]
From the 2023 World Cup onwards, only the host nation(s) will qualify automatically. All countries will participate in a series of leagues to determine qualification, with automatic promotion and relegation between divisions from one World Cup cycle to the next.[58]
The format of the Cricket World Cup has changed greatly over the course of its history. Each of the first four tournaments was played by eight teams, divided into two groups of four.[59] The competition consisted of two stages, a group stage and a knock-out stage. The four teams in each group played each other in the round-robin group stage, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the semi-finals. The winners of the semi-finals played against each other in the final. With South Africa returning in the fifth tournament in 1992 as a result of the end of the apartheid boycott, nine teams played each other once in the group phase, and the top four teams progressed to the semi-finals.[60] The tournament was further expanded in 1996, with two groups of six teams.[61] The top four teams from each group progressed to quarter-finals and semi-finals.[62]
A distinct format was used for the 1999 and 2003 World Cups. The teams were split into two pools, with the top three teams in each pool advancing to the Super 6.[63] The Super 6 teams played the three other teams that advanced from the other group. As they advanced, the teams carried their points forward from previous matches against other teams advancing alongside them, giving them an incentive to perform well in the group stages.[63] The top four teams from the Super 6 stage progressed to the semi-finals, with the winners playing in the final.[64][65]
The captains of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
The format used in the 2007 World Cup involved 16 teams allocated into four groups of four.[66] Within each group, the teams played each other in a round-robin format. Teams earned points for wins and half-points for ties. The top two teams from each group moved forward to the Super 8 round. The Super 8 teams played the other six teams that progressed from the different groups. Teams earned points in the same way as the group stage, but carried their points forward from previous matches against the other teams who qualified from the same group to the Super 8 stage.[67] The top four teams from the Super 8 round advanced to the semi-finals, and the winners of the semi-finals played in the final.[68]
The format used in the 2011 and 2015[69] World Cups featured two groups of seven teams, each playing in a round-robin format. The top four teams from each group proceeded to the knock out stage consisting of quarter-finals, semi-finals and ultimately the final.[70]
In the 2019 and 2023 editions of the tournament, the number of teams participating dropped to 10. Each team is scheduled to play against each other once in a round robin format, before entering the semifinals,[71] a similar format to the 1992 World Cup. The 2027 and 2031 World Cups will have 14 teams, with the format same as the 2003 edition.[72][73]
The ICC Cricket World Cup Trophy is presented to the winners of the World Cup. The current trophy was created for the 1999 championships, and was the first permanent prize in the tournament's history. Prior to this, different trophies were made for each World Cup.[74][clarification needed] The trophy was designed and produced in London by a team of craftsmen from Garrard & Co over a period of two months.[75][76]
The current trophy is made from silver and gilt, and features a golden globe held up by three silver columns. The columns, shaped as stumps and bails, represent the three fundamental aspects of cricket: batting, bowling and fielding, while the globe characterises a cricket ball.[77] The seam is tilted to symbolize the axial tilt of the Earth. It stands 60 centimetres (24in) high and weighs approximately 11 kilograms (24lb). The names of the previous winners are engraved on the base of the trophy, with space for a total of twenty inscriptions. The ICC keeps the original trophy. A replica differing only in the inscriptions is permanently awarded to the winning team.[78]
Media coverage
The tournament is one of the world's most-viewed sporting events,[79][80][81] and successive tournaments have generated increasing media attention as One-Day International cricket has become more established.[dubious–discuss] The 2011 Cricket World Cup was televised in over 200 countries to over 2.2billion viewers.[75][82][bettersourceneeded][dubious–discuss]Television rights, mainly for the 2011 and 2015 World Cup, were sold for over US$1.1billion,[83] and sponsorship rights were sold for a further US$500million.[84] The ICC claimed a total of 1.6billion viewers for the 2019 World Cup as well as 4.6billion views of digital video of the tournament.[85] The most-watched match of the tournament was the group game between India and Pakistan, which was watched by more than 300 million people live.[86]
The International Cricket Council's executive committee votes for the hosts of the tournament after examining the bids made by the nations keen to hold a Cricket World Cup.[94]
England hosted the first three competitions. The ICC decided that England should host the first tournament because it was ready to devote the resources required to organising the inaugural event.[95] India volunteered to host the third Cricket World Cup, but most ICC members preferred England as the longer period of daylight in England in June meant that a match could be completed in one day.[96] The 1987 Cricket World Cup was held in India and Pakistan, the first hosted outside England.[97]
Many of the tournaments have been jointly hosted by nations from the same geographical region, such as South Asia in 1987, 1996 and 2011, Australasia (in Australia and New Zealand) in 1992 and 2015, Southern Africa in 2003 and West Indies in 2007.
In November 2021, ICC published the name of the hosts for ICC events to be played between 2024 and 2031 cycle. The hosts for the 50-over World Cup along with T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy were selected through a competitive bidding process.[98][99]
↑ England was the sole designated host, but matches were also played in Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands, Scotland and Wales.
↑ South Africa was the sole designated main host, but matches were also played in Zimbabwe and Kenya.
↑ Eight member countries of the West Indies Cricket Federation hosted matches – Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Tournament summary
Twenty nations have qualified for the Cricket World Cup at least once. Six teams have competed in every tournament, five of which have won the title.[19] The West Indies won the first two tournaments, Australia has won six, India has won two, while Pakistan, Sri Lanka and England have each won once. The West Indies (1975 and 1979) and Australia (1999, 2003 and 2007) are the only teams to have won consecutive titles.[19] Australia has played in eight of the thirteen finals (1975, 1987, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015 and 2023). New Zealand has yet to win the World Cup, but has been runners-up two times (2015 and 2019). The best result by a non-Test playing nation is the semi-final appearance by Kenya in the 2003 tournament; while the best result by a non-Test playing team on their debut is the Super 8 (second round) by Ireland in 2007.[19]
Sri Lanka, as a co-host of the 1996 World Cup, was the first host to win the tournament, though the final was held in Pakistan.[19] India won in 2011 as host and was the first team to win a final played in their own country.[100] Australia and England repeated the feat in 2015 and 2019 respectively.[50] Other than this, England made it to the final as a host in 1979. Other countries which have achieved or equalled their best World Cup results while co-hosting the tournament are New Zealand as finalists in 2015, Zimbabwe who reached the Super Six in 2003, and Kenya as semi-finalists in 2003.[19] In 1987, co-hosts India and Pakistan both reached the semi-finals, but were eliminated by England and Australia respectively.[19] Australia in 1992, England in 1999, South Africa in 2003, and Bangladesh in 2011 have been host teams that were eliminated in the first round.[101]
Teams' performances
An overview of the teams' performances in every World Cup is given below. For each tournament, the number of teams in each finals tournament (in brackets) are shown.
The table below provides an overview of the performances of teams over past World Cups, as of the end of the 2023 tournament. Teams are sorted by best performance, then by appearances, total number of wins, total number of games, and alphabetical order respectively.
The New Zealand national cricket team represents New Zealand in men's international cricket. Nicknamed the Black Caps, they played their first Test in 1930 against England in Christchurch, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. From 1930 New Zealand had to wait until 1956, more than 26 years, for its first Test victory, against the West Indies at Eden Park in Auckland. They played their first ODI in the 1972–73 season against Pakistan in Christchurch. New Zealand are the inaugural champions of WTC which they won in 2021 and they have also won ICC CT in 2000. They have played in the CWC final twice and the T20 WC final once.
International cricket matches are played between the teams representing their nations, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The main forms are Test matches, One-Day matches and Twenty20 matches.
The Pakistan national cricket team, has represented Pakistan in international cricket since 1952. It is controlled by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), the governing body for cricket in Pakistan, which is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Pakistan compete in cricket tours and tournaments sanctioned by the PCB and other regional or international cricket bodies in Test, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 International (T20) formats. Pakistan are current ICC Champions Trophy holders.
The ICC Champions Trophy, also called the "Mini World Cup" or simply "Champions Trophy" is a cricket tournament organised by the International Cricket Council every four years. Inaugurated in 1998, The ICC conceived the idea of the Champions Trophy – a short cricket tournament to raise funds for the development of the game in non-test playing countries. It remains as one of those ICC events that had the same format as that of another big cricketing event, like the Cricket World Cup, with the format being One Day Internationals. The tournament is one of the world's most viewed sporting events.
The Kenya men's national cricket team represents the Republic of Kenya in international cricket. Kenya is an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) which has Twenty20 International (T20I) status after the ICC granted T20I status to all its members.
The Hong Kong men's national cricket team is the team that represents Hong Kong in international competitions. It played its first match in 1866 and has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1969.
The United Arab Emirates men's national cricket team is the team that represents the United Arab Emirates in international cricket. They are governed by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) which became an Affiliate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1989 and an Associate Member the following year. Since 2005, the ICC's headquarters have been located in Dubai.
The Scotland national cricket team represents the country of Scotland. They play their home matches at The Grange, Edinburgh, and also some other venues.
The Netherlands men's national cricket team, usually referred as "The Flying Dutchmen " is a team that represents the Netherlands in men's international cricket and is administered by the Royal Dutch Cricket Association.
The Afghanistan men's national cricket team represents Afghanistan in international cricket. Cricket has been played in Afghanistan since the mid-19th century, but it was only in the early 21st century that the national team began to enjoy success. The Afghanistan Cricket Board was formed in 1995, becoming an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2001 and a member of the cricket confederation, Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in 2003. After nearly a decade of playing international cricket, on 22 June 2017 full ICC membership was granted to Afghanistan. Alongside Ireland, this took the number of Test cricket playing nations to twelve. Afghanistan is the first country to achieve Full Member status after holding Affiliate Membership of the ICC. In view of the persistent conflict and insecurity in Afghanistan, following this status, the team moved to a new home ground in Dehradun, in India. The current home ground of the Afghanistan Men's Cricket team is the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in the UAE.
The Malaysia national cricket team represents the country of Malaysia in international cricket matches. The team is organised by the Malaysian Cricket Association which has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 1967.
The 2006 ICC Champions Trophy was a One Day International cricket tournament held in India from 7 October to 5 November 2006. It was the fifth edition of the ICC Champions Trophy. The tournament venue was not confirmed until mid-2005 when the Indian government agreed that tournament revenues would be free from tax. Australia won the tournament, their first Champions Trophy victory. They were the only team to get one loss in the tournament, as all other teams lost at least two matches. West Indies, their final opponents, beat Australia in the group stage but were bowled out for 138 in the final and lost by eight wickets on the Duckworth–Lewis method. West Indies opening batsman Chris Gayle was named Player of the Tournament.
The ICC Men's T20 World Cup, is the Twenty20 International cricket tournament, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2007.
The 2009 ICC Champions Trophy was a One Day International cricket tournament held in South Africa between 22 September and 5 October, at Wanderers Stadium and Centurion Park, both in the Gauteng province. Originally, the tournament was scheduled to be hosted by Pakistan in 2008, but due to security concerns it shifted to South Africa. It was the sixth ICC Champions Trophy, and was previously known as the ICC Knock-out. Two teams from two groups of four qualified for the semi-finals, and the final was staged in Centurion on 5 October. Australia successfully defended the title by beating New Zealand by six wickets in the final.
Marais Erasmus is a South African former first-class cricketer who is currently serving as an international cricket umpire. He is a member of the Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and stands in matches in all three formats of international cricket – Test matches, One Day Internationals (ODIs), and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).
The Namibia men's national cricket team, nicknamed the Eagles, is the men's team that represents the Republic of Namibia in international cricket. It is organised by Cricket Namibia, which became an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1992.
The ICC World Test Championship, also referred to as the Test World Cup, is the international championship of Test cricket. It is a league competition run by the International Cricket Council (ICC), with its inaugural season starting in 2019. In line with the ICC's goal of having one pinnacle tournament for each of the three formats of international cricket, it is the premier championship for Test cricket. Australia are the current champions, having defeated India in the 2023 final. India have played in each WTC final, finishing runners up in both.
The 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup was the 13th edition of the Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was hosted from 5 October to 19 November 2023 across ten venues in India.
The 2017 ICC Champions Trophy was the eighth ICC Champions Trophy, a cricket tournament for the eight top-ranked One Day International (ODI) teams in the world. It was held in England and Wales from 1 to 18 June 2017. Pakistan won the competition for the first time with a 180-run victory over India in the final at The Oval. The margin of victory was the largest by any team in the final of an ICC ODI tournament in terms of runs.
The 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup was the eighth ICC Men's T20 World Cup tournament. It was played in Australia from 16 October to 13 November 2022. In the final, England beat Pakistan by five wickets to win their second ICC Men's T20 World Cup title and draw level with the West Indies, who also won 2 ICC Men's T20 World Cup titles in both the 2012 and the 2016 edition. Sam Curran was named the Player of the match and also the Player of the tournament.
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England 
India 
South Africa 
Zimbabwe 
Namibia 
Australia (6th title)
