New Zealand is our Nemesis

flag-6326894_1280In large tournaments that have been called World Cups or mini World Cups, we have won the following knockout matches and finals against the following countries…

Australia (4)
1. 1998 ICC Knockout Quarter Final
2. 2000 ICC Knockout Quarter Final
3. 2007 T20 World Cup Semi Final
4. 2011 ODI World Cup Quarter Final

Pakistan (4)
1. 1985 Benson & Hedges World Series Final
2. 1996 ODI World Cup Quarter Final
3. 2007 T20 World Cup Final
4. 2011 ODI World Cup Semi Final

South Africa (3)
1. 2000 ICC Knockout Semi Final
2. 2002 Champions Trophy Semi Final
3. 2014 T20 World Cup Semi Final

England (2)
1. 1983 ODI World Cup Semi Final
2. 2013 Champions Trophy Final

Sri Lanka (2)
1. 2011 ODI World Cup Final
2. 2013 Champions Trophy Semi Final

Bangladesh (2)
1. 2015 ODI World Cup Quarter Final
2. 2017 Champions Trophy Semi Final

West Indies (1)
1983 ODI World Cup Final

Kenya (1)
2003 ODI World Cup Semi Final

There is only one major country missing from this list.
New Zealand.
We have never beaten them in a crunch ICC match.

In the 2000 ICC Knockout Trophy final, they beat us when Tendulkar & Co were at their peak.
In the 2019 ODI World Cup Semi Final, they beat us and spoiled Dhoni’s farewell party.
In the 2020 World Test Championship Final, they beat us when Kohli & Co were at their peak.

4 languages have won 18/21 FIFA World Cups

europe-32847_1280Only 2 continents have ever won: Europe and South America.
None from North America, Africa, Asia or even Russia and Australia.

In fact, only 6 languages have ever won the World Cup…

Spanish (Uruguay, Argentina, Spain)
German (West Germany, Germany)
Portuguese (Brazil)
Italian (Italy)
French (France)
English (England)

The top 4 have won 18/21.

Interestingly all these languages emanated from one zone in North-West Europe and they are all neighbours clustered together.

Finalists who never won…

Netherlands (Thrice)
Czechoslovakia (twice)
Hungary (Twice)
Sweden
Croatia

Semi-finalists/Top 4 teams who never reached the final…

USA
Austria
Chile
Portugal
Russia
Poland
Belgium
Bulgaria
South Korea
Turkey

Most improved cricketing teams in recent times

cricket-150559_1280Most improved white ball team since 2010…

England.

1975-2009: Zero Big Tournament wins (Comprising 5 or more teams).

2010-22: 3 World Cups.

Most improved red ball team since 2015…

India.

9 straight Test series wins from 2015-17.

First 3-0 Test series win (and whitewash) on foreign soil, Sri Lanka, 2017.

Home whitewashes:

3-0, New Zealand, 2016.

3-0, South Africa, 2019.

First ever Test series win in Australia, 2019, repeated in 2021.

Topped the rankings for inaugural Test championship in 2021.

Undefeated at home since 2012.

But most missed opportunities without winning…

2014: T20 World Cup Final.

2016: T20 World Cup semis.

2015: ODI World Cup Semis.

2017: ICC Champions Trophy Final.

2019: ODI World Cup semis.

2021: Test Championships Final.

2022: T20 World Cup Semis.

India has been choking for quite some time now

virat-kohli-5835741_1280In the 2014 T20 World Cup India played spectacularly winning 5 matches in a row including the semis where they comfortably chased a target of 173 against South Africa.

Then in the final they crashed to an abysmal 130 in 20 overs to lose.

In the 2015 ODI World Cup, we bettered this league performance winning a whopping 7 matches in a row including a 300+ score versus Bangladesh in the quarters.

In the semis, we crashed to 233 all down chasing 329.

In the 2016 T20 World Cup in the semis, we couldn’t even defend a score of 192, as West Indies won by a good 7 wickets and 2 balls to spare.

In the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, we were humiliated by Pakistan, crashing to 158 all down chasing 339.

In the 2019 ODI World Cup semis, we couldn’t even chase a target of 240, getting 221 all down.

In the inaugural Test World Championship, we topped the global rankings but crashed to 170 all down in the second innings when even a 220 might have been enough to draw the match thanks to all the rain delays.

And in the recent T20 World Cup we got thrashed by 10 wickets in the semis.

If we had bad teams and lost to a better team it would have been different. But we have been doing consistently well in the leagues and then crashing at the last moment.

The only silver linings have been the Asia Cups we won in 2016 and 2018.

We really are missing MS Dhoni (he was in severe decline in the above-mentioned period) and his Golden Era when from 2007-13, we won the T20 World Cup (2007), the ODI World Cup (2011) and the ICC Champions Trophy. Apart from the 2016 Asia Cup, Dhoni also won us the 2010 edition and our first ever tri-series win on Australian soil in 2008.

Our previous golden period was 1984-86, when we won the ODI World Cup in 1983, the Asia Cup in 1984 and the Benson & Hedges World Series in 1986 apart from other smaller tournament wins.

Let’s see when the next golden period begins.

Why Indian cricketers aren’t poor travellers and ace foreign tours

plane-841441_960_720England is yet to win a major multi-nation ODI tournament outside England. South Africa and New Zealand have not won any World Cup anywhere. Forget a Test series—Sri Lanka has never even won a single Test in India. Pakistan won their first Test series in West Indies quite late in 2017 as against India way back in 1971.

The truth is that when you combine all three formats of the game, then only Australia and India are the best travellers. Only these two teams have won maximum multi-nation tournaments in maximum countries. It’s a myth that Indians are poor travellers in international cricket overall.

We have won in…

united-kingdom-1043062_1280England.
1 ODI World Cup—1983.
1 ICC Champions Trophy—2013.
3 Test series—1971, 1986, 2007.
1 ODI Tri-series—2002.
4 ODI series—1986, 1990, 2014, 2022.
2 T20 series—2018, 2022.
Total = 12.

sydney-3680862_960_720Australia.
1 Mini World Cup—Benson & Hedges World Series 1985.
2 Test series—2019, 2021.
1 ODI Tri-series—2008.
1 ODI series—2019.
2 T20 series—2016 (Australia’s only whitewash in any format on home soil ever since 1877), 2020.
Total = 7.
(India retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Aus by tying the Test series in 2004)

South Africa.
1 T20 World Cup—2007.
1 ODI series—2018.
1 T20 series—2018.
Total = 3.

Lanka-2099225_1280Sri Lanka.
1 ICC Champions Trophy—2002.
1 Asia Cup—2010.
3 Test series—1993, 2015, 2017.
3 ODI Tri-series—1998, 2009, 2018.
5 ODI series—2008, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2021.
Total = 13.

West Indies.
5 Test series—1971, 2006, 2011, 2016, 2019.
1 ODI Tri-series—2013.
6 ODI series—2002, 2009, 2011, 2017, 2019, 2022.
2 T20 series—2019, 2022.
Total = 14.

pakistan-641446_960_720Pakistan.
1 Test series—2004.
2 ODI series—2004, 2006.
Total = 3.

New Zealand.
2 Test series—1968, 2009.
2 ODI series—2009, 2019.
1 T20 series—2020.
Total = 5.

dubai-1113262_960_720UAE.
7 multi-nation tournaments—1984, 1985, 1988, 1995, 1998, 1998, 2018.

Bangladesh.
2 Asia Cups—1988, 2016.
4 Test series—2000, 2004, 2007, 2010.
1 ODI Tri-series—1998.
3 ODI series—2004, 2007, 2014.
Total = 10.

Canada.
2 ODI series—1997 (Pak), 1999 (WI).

clover-445255_960_720Ireland.
1 ODI series—2007 (SA).
2 T20 series—2018, 2022 (Ire).
Total = 3.

Zimbabwe.
1 Test series—2005
4 ODI series—1998, 2013, 2015, 2016.
2 T20 series—2010, 2016.
Total = 6.

Grand Total = 85, that includes 5 World Cups/mini WCs, second only to Australia’s 6 away such wins.

India has won at least one 5-nation plus tournament in Australia, South Africa, England, Sri Lanka, UAE, Bangladesh and India.

(This blog was first published on October 1, 2018. This is an updated version of the same)

India’s Greatest Test Overseas Era ends

cricket-players-2027502_640With Virat Kohli stepping down as captain, India’s Greatest Test Overseas Era (2015-21) has ended…

In Australia: From 1947-2014 we have had Zero Test series wins on Australian soil. Now we have won two back to back 2018 & 2020.

In Sri Lanka: We won the 2015 series 2-1 and followed it up with a 3-0 in 2017, our first 3-0 outside India in history and the first time we won 3 Tests in a series overseas after New Zealand 3-1.

In England: We lead 2-1 in the 2021-22 series where the last Test is yet to be played.

In West Indies: We won 2 series 2-0 quite comfortably.

In South Africa: In both series we went down 1-2 and at stages had chances to win the series.

mahendra-singh-dhoni-5835730_12802007-13 was our Greatest Shorter Formats Era under MS Dhoni…

We won the ODI World Cup (2011), the T20 World Cup (2007) and the ICC Champions Trophy (2013) for the ICC tournaments hat-trick. We launched the IPL (2008) and won the Asia Cup (2010). We won our first ODI Tri-series in Australia (2008) and first series with South Africa outside India (Ireland, 2007).