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Every sport consists of something which is often reckoned as the biggest prize! The FIFA World Cup takes the cake when it comes to football, similarly, the Olympics is what every young athlete dreams of, so when it comes to the beautiful game of Cricket, it is the one and only World Cup.
The Cricket World Cup is a spectacle which is adored by the millions! The quadrennial tournament is one of the most watched sporting events around the globe and it's no secret that this period is nothing less than a festival for the ardent cricket enthusiasts.
The craze of the World Cup is immense and so is the joy of winning it. Winning the tournament is no piece of cake and the teams who have won it have admitted it being so special simply because it is such a demanding task. While winning the World Cup is no easy task, conquering the biggest prize in cricket with a 100% win record is a notch above in the difficulty chart.
Winning all the matches in the tournament is not something which happens every four years simply because every nation sweats it all to lay their hands on the majestic trophy and coming out on top by winning each and every game is a gigantic achievement.
The upcoming edition is set to be hosted in England and Wales, with the world excited to be part of this thrilling journey. The 12th edition of ICC Cricket world is a few days away and here we present 5 times when the winner won all matches en route cricket world cup glory:
#1 West Indies, 1975
The inaugural World Cup was won by a dashing West Indies side who ran through each and every opponent in their quest to become the first world champions. The dynamic West Indian contingent travelled to England under the leadership of Clive Lloyd, who later became the first man to captain his side to World Cup glory.
The Carribean side was a rampant force who literally were the most dominant unit back then. They were grouped together with the likes of Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, with all three nations facing the wrath of a ruthlessly brilliant West Indies side.
The knockout phase was no different as the Windies strolled past New Zealand in the semifinals before getting the better of Australia in the final to lay their hands on the first World Cup trophy.
#2 West Indies,1979
It is quite astonishing to realise that the West Indies won successive World Cups in 1975 and 1979, but what's more astonishing is the fact that they went through the two tournaments without a defeat! Clive Lloyd was at the helm again as he orchestrated yet another triumph for the Windies.
Players like Viv Richards, Gordon Greenidge and Michael Holding struck fear in the opposition camp way before the match could even commence and that is why many teams struggled against the Caribbean unit. The Windies topped their group, which consisted of New Zealand, Sri Lanka and India.
In the semi-finals, it was a masterclass from the Windies opening pair as both Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes scored brilliant half-centuries to help their side post a total of 293. Pakistan did put up a valiant effort but scoring 294 against the fearsome Windies bowling unit was always going to be a mighty tough task.
Clive Lloyd and company reached their second final in 4 years as they faced the hosts- England for the trophy. The English unit possessed some of the best talents but unfortunately, things didn't turn out to plan for them.
England were treated with a Viv Richards special as the commanding batsman smashed the English bowlers all around the park in his innings of 138. Windies won the match by 92 runs and claimed their second world title.
#3 Sri Lanka, 1996
Sri Lanka had a torrid campaign at the 1992 World Cup which was co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. The subcontinent giants had a dreadful time down under where they finished in the bottom half, only above Zimbabwe in the league table.
The Lankans were in to get rid of the ghosts of their previous campaign as Arjuna Ranatunga led the side's resurgence at the 1996 World Cup which took place in the subcontinent.
Sri Lanka went on to win the cup as they proved to be a rampant force who would go on to claim the World Cup without a single defeat to their name! The Lankans had a mighty talented squad as names like Sanath Jayasuriya, Aravinda da Silva and Arjuna Ranatunga wrote history by helping Sri Lanka win its maiden title.
The hosts went undefeated throughout the tournament as they registered a magnificently special cup win to give the home fans something to cherish for the rest of their lives.
#4 Australia, 2003
Australia has been the most dominant side in the world of ODI cricket, period. The Aussies have made a name for themselves by lifting the spectacular ICC World Cup on a record 5 occasions and it's no secret that they have time and again proved their mettle at the international tournament.
Back in 2003, South Africa hosted the 8th edition of the cricket world cup as all the contesting nations took the centre stage in a bid to become the world champions. Australia were the defending champions and entered the tournament as favourites and did live up to the tag as they went on to win the tournament pretty handsomely.
Ricky Ponting led the Australian side as he entered the tournament with a mission of replicating the success of 1999 and it is fair to say that he did so in an astonishing manner as Austalia won each and every game in its journey to the pinnacle.
Ponting was the star of the final where they humbled India as the skipper stole the spotlight, treating the fans to a batting masterclass with his innings of 140*.
#5 Australia, 2007
The Australian cricket team never fails to mesmerise us and they were at their lethal best in the 2007 edition also, hosted by the West Indies. Australia were the reigning champions as they had won the previous 2 editions and were looking to complete a hattrick & become the first side ever to win 3 consecutive World Cups.
Not many bets were against the Australian side as they literally possessed a world-class unit which was blessed with modern day greats in each and every department. Ricky Ponting was at the helm yet again as he looked to replicate Clive Lloyd's heroics from the 70s by becoming the second man to lead his nation in successive world cup triumphs.
The Australian fans were pretty optimistic going into this one as they had men like Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist and Glen Mcgrath in their side, something which frightened the opposition camp.
In total, the Aussies played 12 times throughout the tournament and prevailed in all as they registered yet another unbeaten campaign.
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