Top 5 ODI teams in international cricket between 2000-2009

India v South Africa: Group B - 2011 ICC World Cup
Sachin Tendulkar went
strong
for more than 2 decades

One day cricket has witnessed periods of dominance by some great teams which were a cut above the rest during their peaks years. The Mighty West Indies had their heydays in the 70s and 80s when they were simply unconquerable.

Then you had Hansie Cronje’s South Africa which ruled ODI cricket in the late 90s. At the turn of the century, Australia raised the bar of excellence in ODI cricket and became an impregnable force first, under Steve Waugh and later Ricky Ponting.

Sri Lanka under Arjuna Ranatunga and India under Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni raised the bar during the 90s and 00s. All the champion sides of the yesteryears, be it the Windies or the Aussies were well-balanced units courtesy of a string of cricketing superstars who were simply the best.

These teams were led by courageous leaders and brilliant tacticians who brought the best out of their payers by leading from the front. So it would be interesting to draw a list of the top five international teams that dominated ODI cricket between 2000-2009.

To compile this list, consistency of the teams and their performances in major ICC tournaments have been taken into account:


#5 India

India became a formidable cricketing unit in the limited overs format under the captaincy of Sourav Ganguly. Ganguly instilled a 'never say die' attitude in the Indian team which made them a force to reckon with.

The Indian side was batting heavy and spearhead by 'Master Blaster' Sachin Tendulkar. Sachin formed a highly successful opening duo with Sourav Ganguly, which won many matches for the 'Men in Blue'.

The technically sound Rahul Dravid was indeed a 'Wall' in the middle order and anchored the innings well to set the tone for the stroke-makers to flourish. The immensely gifted Yuvraj Singh was sensational with his flashy strokeplay and won many matches along with Mohammad Kaif who possessed a calm head.

India had depth in their pace attack with Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar, Ashish Nehra and Irfan Pathan who were all wicket-takers. Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh spun webs around the opposition batsmen on subcontinental pitches.

The second half of the decade saw MS Dhoni taking over the reins from Sourav Ganguly. Dhoni brought in a degree of calm and composure into the team as team India improved on its dismal record in major finals.

Virender Sehwag emerged as a swashbuckling opener and provided India with some thunderous starts with Delhi team-mate Gautam Gambhir. Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni added firepower to the lower middle order with their hitting prowess.

The likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma proved their pedigree as world class batsmen and promised a bright future as the stalwarts walked into the sunset. All in all, the Indian team had the requisite arsenal to beat any of the top teams.

ODI Record Jan 2000 to Dec 2009

Played-307; Won-161; Lost-130; NR-16; Win%: 52.44

ICC Champions Trophy 2002: Champions

ICC World Cup 2003: Finalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2000: Finalist

#4 Sri Lanka

South Africa v Sri Lanka - ICC Champions Trophy
Sanath Jayasuriya was one of the pioneers of dashing batsmanship at the start of the innings

After their meteoric rise in the mid-90s, Sri Lanka established itself as one of the top ODI sides in the next decade. The Lankans had a power-packed batting lineup consisting of some of the best stroke makers of that era.

Their innings began with the destructive Sanath Jayasuriya who was a nightmare for any bowling side. Usually, Jayasuriya's strokeplay gave the Islanders some breezy starts which straightway put the opposition on the back foot.

Jayasuriya was supported by Upul Tharanga during the mid-2000s before Tillakaratne Dilshan became his permanent partner during the late-2000s. The middle order had two of the greatest batsmen of the era in Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, both having a penchant for scoring big hundreds.

While Sangakkara was a prolific run-getter across all conditions and rarely failed with the willow, Jayawardene was pleasing to the eye with his wristy strokeplay. The depth in batting was provided by quality all-rounders like Russel Arnold, Farveez Maharoof and later Angelo Mathews, all of whom could accelerate the scoring rate with some big hitting.

In the bowling department, the island nation was spoilt for choice as Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas took care of most batsmen. Both bowlers were Sri Lanka's strike weapons and won many matches on all conditions.

Murali had good support from fellow spinners like Upul Chandana, Russel Arnold and Sanath Jayasuriya. The pace attack was spearheaded by Chaminda Vaas who was a clever exponent of seam bowling. Vaas was well partnered by Nuwan Zoysa and Dilhara Fernando.

With the emergence of Lasith Malinga, the Lankans had one of the best death over bowlers who cartwheeled stumps with his lethal inswinging Yorkers. Malinga was well supported by Nuwan Kulasekara, who was quite an effective seam bowler in his own merit.

ODI Record Jan 2000 to Dec 2009

Played-276; Won-155; Lost-111; NR-19; Win%: 56.15

ICC Champions Trophy 2002: Champions

ICC World Cup 2007: Finalist

ICC World Cup 2003: Semifinalist

#3 Pakistan

New Zealand v Pakistan - Twenty20: Game 1
Pakistan had the strongest pace attack

Unpredictable yet entertaining, Pakistan was one of the strongest ODI teams in the first decade of the new millennium. They played a fearless brand of cricket and was one of the most lovable teams across the international cricketing fraternity.

In terms of talent, they were second to none with a plethora of match winners. Pakistan boasted of a strong batting lineup with aggressive stroke makers like Inzamam Ul Haq, Misbah, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf who formed the core of their batting lineup.

Pakistan never had an apt replacement for the great Saeed Anwar but the likes of Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Hafeez and Salman Butt did a pretty decent job opening the innings.

With Wasim and Waqar fading away, Shoaib Akhtar emerged as the new spearhead. The 'Rawalpindi Express' could decimate the best of batting lineups with his sheer pace.

Akhtar was well supported by the likes of Umar Gul, Mohammad Sami, Shabbir Ahmed and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan who were all genuine wicket-takers. The Green brigade had quality all-rounders like Abdul Razzaq and Azhar Mahmood who lent the required balance to the side.

In Saqlain Mushtaq, Pakistan had one of the best off-spinners who picked up wickets in a heap. Saqlain bamboozled the batsmen with his 'Doosra' and became Pakistan's go-to man in the slog overs.

Moin Khan was a cheeky stroke player who was tidy with his glove work. Last but not the least you had the enigmatic Afridi who was an outright match winner on his day. The hard-hitting Afridi kept the Pakistani fans at the edge of their seats with his flashes of brilliance.

ODI Record 2000 to Dec 2009

Played-267; Won-151; Lost-111; NR-19; Win%:56.55

ICC Champions Trophy 2000: Semifinalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2004: Semifinalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2009: Semifinalist

#2 South Africa

South Africa v West Indies - 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup
AB De Villiers is one of the most innovate batsmen of this era

South Africa were a potent outfit in limited overs cricket and had plenty of batting and bowling arsenal to beat the top teams on their day. The Proteas were second to none in the fielding department lead by Jonty Rhodes.

The South Africans were well led by, perhaps, their greatest captain in Graeme Smith for most of the decade. While the dependable Graeme Smith and the maverick Herschelle Gibbs gave them solid starts up the order, the middle order was marshalled by Mr Consistent Jacques Kallis who stood like a rock providing stability to the innings.

AB De Villiers was simply mesmerizing with his 360-degree stroke play and could flay bowling attacks at will. The lower middle order had experience in abundance with seasoned campaigners like JP Duminy, Mark Boucher and Justin Kemp, leading the charge.

The South African seam attack was quite formidable as the likes of Shaun Pollock, Makhaya Ntini, Steyn and Jacques Kallis proved a handful for any batting lineup.

The Proteas were simply phenomenal, almost unbeatable at home as well as proving a tough nut to be cracked overseas. However, the only bloat on their impressive CV was the lack of any major ICC tournament victory, where they crumbled under pressure during the knockout stages, thereby, earning the tag of chokers.

ODI Record Jan 2000- Dec 2009

Matches-254; Won-157; Lost-86; Tied-4; NR-7; Win%: 61.81

ICC World Cup 2007: Semifinalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2000: Semifinalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2002: Semifinalist

ICC Champions Trophy 2006: Semifinalist

#1 Australia

Australia v Pakistan: Group A - 2011 ICC World Cup
This Australian team was perhaps the greatest side of this generation

Australia were the Kings of ODI cricket during the initial decade of the 21st century. The Kangaroos were an indomitable force which boasted of a galaxy of cricketing superstars who could win matches on their own.

The Aussies were brilliantly first, by Steve Waugh and later, Ricky Ponting, both of whom instilled a high degree of resilience and combativeness into their playing style. The Australian batting was a well-oiled machine where each batsman played his role to perfection.

The big and burly Hayden and the destructive Adam Gilchrist formed a lethal opening duo which tore apart the best of bowling attacks. Ricky Ponting was a prolific run scorer who spearheaded the middle order comprising of Damien Martyn, Lehmann and Steve Waugh. The Australians possessed two of the finest finishers in Michael Bevan and Michael Hussey during the decade.

The Kangaroos had quality all-rounders a plenty in Andrew Symonds, Tom Moody, James Hopes and Ian Harvey who provided valuable contributions with both bat and ball.

The pace attack comprised of tearaway seamers who could run through the defences of the best batting line-ups. Led by Glen McGrath, whose immaculate line and length troubled all top order batsmen, the Aussies also contained speedsters Brett Lee, Mitchell Johnson and Shaun Tait who could torment top quality batsmen with their sheer pace.

Left-arm seamer Nathan Bracken was one of their most successful bowlers in limited overs cricket. Spin wizard Shane Warne was arguably their greatest match-winner as he bamboozled batsmen with his big turning leg spinners and produced some magical spells at major ICC tournaments.

The Australians were the most athletic side on the field and raised the bar of fielding with the likes of Ricky Ponting, Micheal Clarke and Andrew Symonds throwing themselves around. The Australians played their best cricket at major ICC events and won back to back ICC World Cups in 2003 and 2007 and even lifted successive Champions Trophy titles in 2006 and 2009.

ODI Record Jan 2000- Dec 2009

Matches-282; Won-202; Lost-66; Tied-3; Win%: 71.63

ICC World Cup 2003: Champions

ICC World Cup 2007: Champions

ICC Champions Trophy 2006: Champions

ICC Champions Trophy 2009: Champions

ICC Champions Trophy 2004: Semifinalist

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Edited by Debjyoti Samanta