An unbeatable World Cup XI featuring one legend from each Champion team

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Australia won the 1999 ICC World Cup on English shores

Nearly a century after the first Test match was played in 1877, an 8-team tournament in an altogether different format was played to arrive at a World Champion in 1975. Since then the quadrennial tournament has become the most sought after event in the world of cricket.

Till date, a total of 11 World Cups were played in which 5 teams - West Indies, India, Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka - have won the tournament. While Australia leads the charts with five titles to their name, India and West Indies are next on the table with two trophies in their kitty.

As the next tournament is just a few months away, we have tried to compile an unbeatable World Cup XI featuring one outstanding performer from each of the 11 champion sides. 

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Openers

#1 Adam Gilchrist (wk) (Australia - 1999, 2003, 2007)

Adam Gilchrist was Australia's big match player

Adam Gilchrist is one of the greatest wicket-keeper batsmen the world of cricket has ever seen. He is the second successful wicketkeeper in World Cup history with 52 dismissals and 1085 runs in 31 matches, next only to Sri Lank's Kumara Sangakkara's 54 dismissals and 1532 runs.

He played a pivotal role in Australia's hat-trick of World Cup wins - 1999, 2003, and 2007. IN addition to scoring 8 half-centuries in WC history, he scored his only World Cup century in his last World Cup match in the 2007 finals against Sri Lanka. His 104-ball 149 made the rain-truncated match a completely one-sided affair as he helped his side score 281 runs in just 38 overs.

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#2 Sachin Tendulkar (India - 2011)

Sachin Tendulkar is the highest run scorer in World Cup history

A 10-year old Sachin Tendulkar was inspired by India's triumph at the 1983 World Cup. 28 years later, his dream of winning the World Cup for India got fulfilled after five failed attempts. In the 44 innings that he played for India at the World Cup, Sachin scored a total of 2278 runs and is the highest run-getter in World Cup history.

In the six tournaments, Sachin registered six centuries, the most by any batsman in WC history. Even though he has six centuries, the 85 that he scored against Pakistan in 2011 World Cup semi-final helped India get one step closer to their second title.

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