World Cup 2019: 5 interesting records that might surprise you 

#4 Imran Tahir - the only spinner to bowl the first ball of a World Cup

Imran Tahir opened the 2019 WC with a wicket off the second ball

Batsmen have always liked pace on the ball as it is easier to score against them. The confidence of a batsman would also increase if he times a pacy delivery to a boundary in his first few deliveries.

In order to take away that advantage, New Zealand captain Martin Crowe gave the new ball to the off-spinner Dipak Patel in the 1992 World Cup. It paid rich dividends as he strangled the batsman in the powerplay. As New Zealand batted first in the game, Dipak could open the bowling only in the second innings.

Despite the quadrennial event happening in sub-continent thrice, no spinner has bowled the first ball of the tournament. Imran Tahir got the privilege of becoming the first spinner to bowl the first ball of a World Cup when he took the new ball to open the 2019 CWC.