Passionate cricket lovers will not forget two matches of the World Cup cricket since the ICC staged in England in 1975. Does not matter, it was a high or low scoring match but those saw phenomenon’s of the one-day game at the peak of their powers.
Whether it’s a Kevin O’Brien-inspired Ireland chasing down 328 or India recovering from 17 for five to claim victory, cricket fans have been on the edge of their seats from the start.
And as the world’s top 10 teams prepare to do battle for cricket’s greatest prize across 11 venues, a slew of new classic matches are sure to follow.
Here’s a walk down memory lane through the Cricket World Cup’s top 10 matches.
Australia v West Indies, 1975
The first Cricket World Cup final was always going to go down in the annals – but West Indies and Australia produced a game that stands the test of time as one of the tournament’s greatest.
Lord’s was the stage and scorching midsummer weather meant the crowds were spilling out of the bleachers, young fans romping onto the outfield with every boundary struck.
And Clive Lloyd played a canonical captain’s innings, hauling his side from 50 for three into the ascendancy thanks to a brutal century in a 149 fourth-wicket stand with Rohan Kanhai.
Despite a rousing run-chase, solidified by Ian Chappell’s 62, Australia fell 17 runs short of a target of 291 – ousted by Viv Richards’s excellence in the field, memorable executing three straight runouts.
India v Zimbabwe, 1983
There’s something sublime about a team romping unfettered to victory but there’s nothing that woos cricketing hearts more than a rousing recovery from batting oblivion.
India sunk to 17 for five in a top-order totter to match all others and it seemed their signal victory over reigning champions West Indies in the opening game would go to waste.
But skipper Kapil Dev smote 175 from 138 balls, somehow sending his side up to 266 and setting a stern run-chase for Zimbabwe.