Just like the FIFA World Cup for football, cricket has its very own world cup. The ICC Cricket World Cup (ICC CWC) is the most coveted international cricket tournament. The International Cricket Council organizes this tournament. In this article, we shall look at the history of the ICC CWC, the world cup match format, qualification process, and recent winners of the Cricket World Cup. Furthermore, we shall look at India’s performance in the previous world cups.
Start of the ICC Cricket World Cup
Firstly, the idea of organizing a cricket world cup started developing in the early 1960s. During that time domestic teams in England started playing shorter versions of the Test format that is now known as the ODI and a series of such domestic ODI tournaments led to the first one day international. This ODI was played between England and Australia in 1971. As a result of the support and interest of the ODI tournaments in England and other parts of the world, the ICC felt the need to organize a cricket world cup.
Subsequently, England hosted the first Men’s Cricket World Cup in 1975 as they were the only nation able to fund the tournament at that time. The financial services company Prudential PLC sponsored the World Cup, therefore, the first 3 editions of the World Cup were officially named the Prudential Cup. All teams dressed up in traditional white and bowled 60 overs each. Australia, England, India, West Indies, Pakistan, New Zealand, East Africa, and Sri Lanka participated in the first World Cup. West Indies defeated Australia in the world cup finals match to claim the first-ever World Cup.
England hosted 1979 as well as the 1983 editions of the World Cup as well. A tournament to select non-test playing teams came to life in 1979 and It was known as the ICC Trophy. Canada and Sri Lanka qualified for the world cup through the ICC Trophy. West Indies emerged victorious in the second edition of the world cup as well. However, India bagged the third World Cup after defeating the 2-time winners of the cricket world in the finals.
Qualification Process
The qualification process has been very straightforward since the 1975 World Cup right up to the 2019 World Cup. The Full Members of the ICC automatically qualified for the World Cup matches. However, for those nations that were associate members or affiliates, there wasn’t any direct entry into the tournament, and they had to go through a qualification process. The very first Qualification tournament was the ICC Trophy.
Later on, in 2011 the name ‘ICC Trophy’ was replaced by ‘The ICC World Cup Qualifier’ and this qualifying tournament came to life to give associate members more opportunities to qualify for the World Cup. In addition, the number of teams that qualified each year varied. Furthermore, it has been recently decided that from the next world cup in 2023 only the host nations shall qualify directly. The selection and qualification of other nations will be determined through a series of leagues.
ICC Cricket World Cup Format
| Year | Teams | Host nation(s) | Matches | Format of first round | Format of latter stages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 8 | England | 15 | 8 sides divided in 2 groups playing each other once | Semi-finals and final |
| 1979 | 8 | England | 15 | 8 sides divided in 2 groups playing each other once | Semi-finals and final |
| 1983 | 8 | England | 27 | 8 sides divided into 2 groups playing each other twice | Semi-finals and final |
| 1987 | 8 | India & Pakistan | 27 | 8 sides divided into 2 groups playing each other twice | Semi-finals and final |
| 1992 | 9 | Australia & New Zealand | 39 | 1 groups of 9 with sides playing each other once | Semi-finals and final |
| 1996 | 12 | India, Pakistan & Sri Lanka | 37 | 2 groups of 6 with sides playing each other once | Quarter-finals, semi-finals and final |
| 1999 | 12 | England, Ireland, Netherlands & Scotland | 42 | 2 groups of 6 with sides playing each other once | 1 group of 6 (with sides playing the other group’s top 3 once), semi-finals and final |
| 2003 | 14 | South Africa, Kenya & Zimbabwe | 54 | 2 groups of 7 with sides playing each other once | 1 group of 6 (with sides playing the other group’s top 3 once), semi-finals and final |
| 2007 | 16 | West Indies | 51 | 4 groups of 4 with sides playing each other once | 1 groups of 8 (with sides playing the other group’s top 4 once), semi-finals and final |
| 2011 | 14 | India, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh | 49 | 2 groups of 7 with sides playing each other once | Quarter-finals, semi-finals and final |
| 2015 | 14 | Australia & New Zealand | 49 | 2 groups of 7 with sides playing each other once | Quarter-finals, semi-finals and final |
| 2019 | 10 | England | 48 | 1 group of 10 with sides playing each other once | Semi-finals and final |
| 2023 | 10 | India | 48 | 1 group of 10 with sides playing each other once | Semi-finals and final |
Selection Of Hosts
To begin with, the nations that are keen to host the World Cup place their bids. The executive council of the ICC then votes after careful examination of the bids made. The first 3 world cups were hosted by England as they had the finances to carry out the tournament. India had bid to host the third edition of the Cricket World Cup however the ICC found the extra daylight in England to be more favorable to finish a match in one day.
The list of the hosts throughout the years are as follows:
- 1975 – 1979 – 1983 – England
- 1987 – India & Pakistan
- 1992 – Australia & New Zealand
- 1996 – Pakistan, India & Sri Lanka
- 1999 – England & Wales
- 2003 – South Africa
- 2007 – West Indies
- 2011 – India, Sri Lanka & Bangladesh
- 2015 – Australia & New Zealand
- 2019 – England & Wales
- 2023 – India
Winners Of The Cricket World Cup Till Date
Firstly, to date, 6 different nations have been crowned champions of the ICC Cricket World Cup. To begin with, West Indies bagged the first-ever World Cup against Australia, and they repeated success by defeating England in the final. Later on, in the 3rd edition of the world cup, India snatched the Trophy by defeating the defending champions West Indies. Furthermore, the next 3 world cups were won by Australia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka respectively. Additionally, Australia won 1999, 2003, and 2007 titles in succession.
After that, the world cup saw a brilliant performance by a star-studded India team in the 2011 world cup. Consequently, India bagged the World Cup that year. Australia came back to rightfully claim the World Cup in 2015 with an outstanding victory over New Zealand and very recently in the 2019 World Cup, New Zealand was robbed their victory in another world cup final, and this time it was England that emerged victoriously.
Media Coverage
The cricket world cup is nothing less than the FIFA world cup. In fact, the ICC cricket world cup is one of the most-viewed sporting events in the world. Moreover, the worldwide sporting event has a cumulative average audience of about 1.6 billion. Additionally, the 2011 and 2015 world cup viewing rights were sold for close to US$1.2 billion, and the sponsorship rights were sold for an additional US$500 million. Furthermore, in 2015 a record 1.1 million world cup match tickets were sold.
Also, Star India reportedly bagged around rupees 1,200 crore – 1,500 crore through TV advertising in the recent 2019 edition of the ICC CWC. Click here to read more about the revenue earned by Star through TV advertising.
World Cup Records
To begin with the batting records, Sachin Tendulkar holds the record for the most number of runs (2,278) as well as most runs (673) in a single world cup. Additionally, Sachin also shares the record of most hundreds (6) with Rohit Sharma. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma has a record of most hundreds (5) in a single world cup all to his credit. Furthermore, Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels hold the record for the highest partnership with a score of 372 runs in the 2015 world cup and the New Zealander Martin Guptill holds the record for the highest score of 237 runs in a single match in that very world cup.
On the other hand in bowling, Glen McGrath is the record holder for the most number of wickets (71) and Mitchell Starc holds the record for the lowest average of 14.81 in the ICC CWC. Additionally, the Australian bowlers have two more records to their credit, best bowling figures (7/15) to Glen McGrath and most wickets in a tournament (27) to Mitchell Starc. Furthermore, Mohammed Shami holds the record for the best strike rate (18.6).
Team India In The World Cup
India has a rather exceptional record in the World Cup. To begin with they have been two-time champions of the prestigious trophy. Additionally, they were runners-up in the 2003 world cup and, they have been 4-time semi-finalists and have an amazing win-loss record in the world cup of 53-29.
Furthermore, India’s most notable world cup win was the 2011 final against Sri Lanka which included outstanding players that have now become legends of the sport. Click here to read more about the 2011 World Cup Final.
In conclusion, the taste of victory is no stranger to the Indian cricket team and hopefully, they look forward to winning the 2023 World Cup that will be held on home soil.
FAQs Regarding ICC Cricket World Cup
India has won the world 1983 world cup as well as the 2011 world cup. In addition, they missed being winners of the cricket world cup in 2003.
The Australian national team has been crowned champions of the CWC 5 times till date and additionally have managed to bag three of their titles in succession.
The Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar holds the record for the most number of runs (2,278) scored in the World Cup.
The two-time runners up New Zealand are yet to win a world cup. They have missed winning the trophy on two occasions in 2015 as well as 2019.
The ICC CWC had mascots from the 1996 world cup till the 2011 world cup. The mascots’ names were Googly, Willow, Dazzler, Mello, and Stumpy.
Editor’s Note | ICC Cricket World Cup
To sum up, the ICC CWC has united many nations through the sport of cricket. Additionally, it has created a huge fan base for itself and has brought joy to all cricket lovers worldwide. Furthermore, being able to represent your nation at such a big stage is surely motivating and encourages players to excel in the sport and the ICC has done just that by creating a platform for cricketers all around the world to display their phenomenal talents. In conclusion, the world cup has become a source of entertainment not only for cricket lovers but sports lovers in general, and hopefully, it continues to bring smiles to the faces of millions around the globe that come out to support their nations.
