Cricket World Cup History: 5 most memorable games
The 1st instalment of the ICC World Cup was played out in 1975 in England and since then, the tournament has only gone from strength to strength.
Each edition has witnessed a plethora of nail-biting finishes while those games have been extremely high on the drama quotient too. Unsurprisingly, the competition has become one of the most watched global events and one can expect it to scale higher viewership peaks come the latest chapter of the World Cup.
The 2019 World Cup commences on the 30th of May with hosts, England locking horns with the perennial underachievers, South Africa. Thus, the game looks primed to provide the ultimate spectacle, considering both cricket world cup teams haven’t yet tasted World Cup success.
However, over the years, there have been several such matches which have lived up to the expectations and have been etched in the memory of every cricket fan.
Thus, with the current segment only a stone’s throw away, it is fitting that we take a walk down memory lane and re-live some of the most memorable encounters to have ever been played on the grandest stage.
Without further ado, here is a look at them.
(Honourable Mentions: West Indies vs Australia, 1975 WC Final; India vs Australia, 1987; India vs Zimbabwe, 1983; New Zealand vs Australia, 2015 Group Stage)
#5 England vs Ireland (2011)
The England vs Ireland fixture played out at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru also came to be known as the ‘Kevin O’Brien’ game and rightly so.
The English arrived at the Chinnaswamy on the back of some patchy form and having indulged in an absolute classic with India at the same venue a few days back. They got off to a decent start and posted a total of 327 in their stipulated 50 overs. The Three Lions’ innings was powered by Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott.
Thus, many would’ve been forgiven to think that the tie was indeed done and dusted at the half way mark, owing to the fact that such a score had never been chased down before in World Cup cricket.
The people of such an opinion seemed to be vindicated at the start of Ireland’s innings as they found themselves tottering at 111 for 5. However, a stocky, right hander by the name O’Brien had different ideas.
Kevin conjured one of the finest innings on the biggest stage as he smashed the English bowlers all around the park. He ended up completing his ton off 50 deliveries and that remains the fastest century in the World Cup till date.
Yet, it was the authority that he displayed at the crease that made the chase simply astonishing.
On many an occasion, a David beats a Goliath when the latter has an off-day. However, on the 2nd of March, 2011, England gave a pretty good account of themselves only to be completely flummoxed by the bravery of their neighbours.
In hindsight, the aforementioned defeat also signalled the downward spiral England were to endure in the first half of the 2010s whereas for the Irish, it represented a ‘coming off age’ victory.
Thus, the said game just had to find a place in our list of the most memorable WC games ever.
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