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Follow UsWhen the ICC decided to trim the Cricket World Cup to a 10-team avatar from the 2019 edition, virtually to keep sides like the Netherlands at bay, things didn’t really go down well with a wider section of the cricket community. The kind of stagnant pool that international cricket had become with India-England-Australia dominance, the World Cup had always offered a breath of fresh air, with smaller cricketing nations getting their time under the Sun, but under the new version, it became a glamourised Champions Trophy.
It snatched away how many years of advancement teams could get in a few weeks and how cricket could truly move beyond its smaller packet avatar. Hence, the win for the Netherlands against a star-studded and in-form South Africa in Dharamsala on Tuesday makes for such a great story and one that could bring about a positive reinforcement than any other upsets in the previous editions.
Bangladesh’s historic victory against India, 2007
Bangladesh might have become a competent unit in white-ball cricket in the last 15 years, but when they beat India for the first time in the 2007 World Cup, virtually knocking them out of the tournament, it was a massive upset.
After a top-order failure, India had Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh to thank for their 66 and 47 runs, respectively, as the side managed 192 runs. Tamim Iqbal and Shahriar Nafees scored fifties for Bangladesh before Shakib Al Hasan provided the final touch to ensure the South Asian nation had their biggest World Cup moment in history.
Not only did the loss cause India deep anguish, but in the form of Tamim Iqbal and Shakib, Bangladesh unearthed two superstar cricketers who would go on to serve them with distinction for close to two decades.
Ireland cause a big World Cup upset in 2007
Ireland kick-started their international red-ball journey by playing against Pakistan in 2018. It was kind of perfect because it was by beating Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup that Ireland announced their arrival on the big stage.
On St Patrick’s Day of 2007, Ireland skittled out Pakistan for a mere 132, with Boyd Rankin being the star of the show with three wickets. So much so that not a single Pakistani batter could sustain the challenge that came from the future England pacer. When it was time for the chase, Kevin O’Brien and Trent Johnston stole the show to land Ireland a famous victory.
One of the greatest moments for Ireland, which led to a wild celebration among fans, was soon muted for something tragic as Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer died in his hotel room that night.
Odombe magic stuns Windies in 1996
Two-time champions West Indies were still a force to be reckoned with in the 1996 World Cup, but Maurice Odombe’s Kenya hardly cared for reputation. In the league game in Pune, after Courtney Walsh dismissed the top three Kenyan batters, Roger Harper and Curtley Ambrose were right in the money to dismiss the African side for 166. Steve Tikolo scored 29, but the biggest contributor to the total was 37 extra runs.
But cricket was hardly played on paper. In one of the gutsiest spells of bowling, Rajab Ali dismissed Brian Lara, and then skipper Maurice Odombe claimed 3-15 from his 10 overs to skittle West Indies for just 93 runs. Kenya secured a 73-run, which is still considered one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history.
The O’Brien Magic of 2011
For obvious reasons, no one had given Ireland a chance against England in the 2011 World Cup. Not only had they started their campaign with a 27-run defeat against Bangladesh, but they were also facing an uber-confident English side, who had chased down 320 runs to tie a match against hosts India on their soil.
Batting first, the English batters were brimming with confidence, with three players scoring fifty-plus scores. Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell's 112-run stand for the fourth wicket built the foundation as England put up a mammoth target of 328.
Despite Bangalore's M Chinnaswamy stadium being a batting pitch with shorter boundaries, Ireland still needed a miracle to pull something exceptional. And to think that the miracle wouldn't even start until the Irishmen were five wickets down by the 25th over is utterly unimaginable.
What followed was an absolute massacre. O'Brien scored the then-fastest century in an ODI World Cup (in 50 balls), forged a 162-run stand with Alex Cusack, and brought Ireland from the throes of defeat to the verge of an epic win. The eventual victory brought the Englishmen down on their knees and had a ripple effect on their entire campaign that year.
