The Indian 2023 World Cup team: Amongst 3 best ODI teams ever?

[Harsh Thakor]

No team in the history of the cricket world cup has been as head and shoulders above the opposition,or asserted superiority than equal scale,as India in 2023.Considering strength of opposition,number of games and margins of victories,India has overshadowed even the beat West Indies and Australian teams.India has blended mental resilience in their powerhouse of talent. Rarely has any team as clinically devoured opposition,shattering the base of the strongest opponents

In my view on West Indies of 1979,Australia of 2003 and 2007 and possibly South Africa and Pakistan of 1999,were better teams..In my view,they overpowered stronger opposition.I feel this side should be tested in English,Australian or South African conditions.

 

[MenInG]

No team in the history of the cricket world cup has been as head and shoulders above the opposition,or asserted superiority than equal scale,as India in 2023.Considering strength of opposition,number of games and margins of victories,India has overshadowed even the beat West Indies and Australian teams.India has blended mental resilience in their powerhouse of talent. Rarely has any team as clinically devoured opposition,shattering the base of the strongest opponents

In my view on West Indies of 1979,Australia of 2003 and 2007 and possibly South Africa and Pakistan of 1999,were better teams..In my view,they overpowered stronger opposition.I feel this side should be tested in English,Australian or South African conditions.

Regardless of the result of one game, the sentiments expressed here are justified.

 

[amit]

Indian team in 2011 was much better and more balanced than the current 2023 team. In 2011 Tendulkar, Sehwag and Yuvraj were decent with the ball. While Tendulkar and Sehwag didn't have much of a role with the ball but Yuvraj contributed with the ball taking 15 wickets. In the current team no one in the top 6 can bowl regularly. Also in 2011 Harbhajan was decent with the bat while his batting wasn't much needed but in current team no one from 8-11 can bat and this 2023 team is more of specialists oriented team with 6 batsmen and 5 bowlers. 2011 team was better and more balanced and had ARs and part-time bowlers

 

[BouncerGuy]

The current world cup team is surely one of the top 3 Indian world cup squads ever. Bowling has been top-notch, Batting has been doing fantastic. Total domination.

 

[WengerOut]

No team in the history of the cricket world cup has been as head and shoulders above the opposition,or asserted superiority than equal scale,as India in 2023.Considering strength of opposition,number of games and margins of victories,India has overshadowed even the beat West Indies and Australian teams.India has blended mental resilience in their powerhouse of talent. Rarely has any team as clinically devoured opposition,shattering the base of the strongest opponents

In my view on West Indies of 1979,Australia of 2003 and 2007 and possibly South Africa and Pakistan of 1999,were better teams..In my view,they overpowered stronger opposition.I feel this side should be tested in English,Australian or South African conditions.

Pakistan in 1999 is my fav Pak team ever, but they are not one of the best WC team. They lost to India, Ban and SA. Also lost heavily in the final. And what is this "proving in other conditions " in ODIs!!! How can a WC squad in 2023 be tested in other conditions?? How did SA and Pak circa 1999 performed in 2003?

 

[Ab Fan]

No South African or Pakistan team is anywhere close to this Indian team of 2023 till now. There has been not a single weakness exposed as of today in this side.

Among the teams that never won a World Cup, South Africa of 1999 was the best.

 

[Mamoon]

This Indian team would destroy any Pakistan ODI team in history. In fact, they would demolish an all-time Pakistan ODI XI.

It is by far the GOAT Asian ODI team.

 

[kron]

No team in the history of the cricket world cup has been as head and shoulders above the opposition,or asserted superiority than equal scale,as India in 2023.Considering strength of opposition,number of games and margins of victories,India has overshadowed even the beat West Indies and Australian teams.India has blended mental resilience in their powerhouse of talent. Rarely has any team as clinically devoured opposition,shattering the base of the strongest opponents

In my view on West Indies of 1979,Australia of 2003 and 2007 and possibly South Africa and Pakistan of 1999,were better teams..In my view,they overpowered stronger opposition.I feel this side should be tested in English,Australian or South African conditions.

Agree with your logic here but they still need to win in order to be amongst top 5. I would put them above Pakistan of 99 though.

They have been tested before in sena conditions. They reached semis in 2019 too and were unlucky to not go through.

This team is better than India's 2011 side. Martin crowe's kiwis and Australia of 2015 are another side that should be in the conversation too.

 

[saqib.rai]

West Indies of 75 and 79
Australia of 03 and 07

Were much better teams

Remember looking at the odds before the 03 And 07 finals and Australia were OVERWHELMINGLY favorites. Showed the gap between them and others

India is good. But Australia, South Africa and New Zealand are not too far behind them.

Plus majority Indian squad hasn't won a SINGLE ICC event

Maybe the 5th best ODI team of all time? Definitely not 3rd

 

[Harsh Thakor]

No South African or Pakistan team is anywhere close to this Indian team of 2023 till now. There has been not a single weakness exposed as of today in this side.

Among the teams that never won a World Cup, South Africa of 1999 was the best.

Not Pakistan of 1999?With such diverse talent.

 

[Harsh Thakor]

West Indies of 75 and 79
Australia of 03 and 07

Were much better teams

Remember looking at the odds before the 03 And 07 finals and Australia were OVERWHELMINGLY favorites. Showed the gap between them and others

India is good. But Australia, South Africa and New Zealand are not too far behind them.

Plus majority Indian squad hasn't won a SINGLE ICC event

Maybe the 5th best ODI team of all time? Definitely not 3rd

Agree with you.sound analysis

 

[mominsaigol]

West Indies of 75 and 79
Australia of 03 and 07

Were much better teams

Remember looking at the odds before the 03 And 07 finals and Australia were OVERWHELMINGLY favorites. Showed the gap between them and others

India is good. But Australia, South Africa and New Zealand are not too far behind them.

Plus majority Indian squad hasn't won a SINGLE ICC event

Maybe the 5th best ODI team of all time? Definitely not 3rd

Current aus and sa are far behind brother so is NZ.

However this current Indian team is losing to classic Australia and classic West Indies comfortably.

 

[Usman Chadda]

India is really good, but I don't think they have or will be tested in this World Cup. The finalist of this World Cup got thrashed in their first two games and were on the brink of getting humiliated by Afghanistan of all teams. One of the semi-finalists dropped a game to Netherlands at Dharamshala of all venues, while the other came into the semi-finals on the back of four defeats, where their bowling attack conceded 350+ and was enroute to conceding 402 to an average Pakistan team aswell.

You could say India is the only one that has played cricket acceptable to international level, while the rest have blown hot and cold.

 

[Devadwal]

India is really good, but I don't think they have or will be tested in this World Cup. The finalist of this World Cup got thrashed in their first two games and were on the brink of getting humiliated by Afghanistan of all teams. One of the semi-finalists dropped a game to Netherlands at Dharamshala of all venues, while the other came into the semi-finals on the back of four defeats, where their bowling attack conceded 350+ and was enroute to conceding 402 to an average Pakistan team aswell.

You could say India is the only one that has played cricket acceptable to international level, while the rest have blown hot and cold.

Same can be said about Australian team of past as they were defeated all the team in one sided affairs and not tested enough .

 

[Usman Chadda]

Same can be said about Australian team of past as they were defeated all the team in one sided affairs and not tested enough .

South Africa '99 was a really good team, Australia had to work tooth and nail to win there. India in WC2003 wasn't as bad as any of Australia, South Africa and New Zealand have been in this World Cup. Neither were India or New Zealand bad in 2015. Even South Africa was incredible in 2015.

You have to agree the quality of cricket from every team bar India in this World Cup has not been up to the mark.

 

[sweep_shot]

Windies of 80's and Aussies on early-2000's were the ultimate ATG teams.

This Indian team is a level below those two teams. But, they are definitely one of the best in contemporary times.

 

[jnaveen1980]

10 out of 11 players contributing consistently to team's success never seen before. They have thrashed teams both with batting and bowling. I have never seen this kind of domination. Only two times they were in trouble . 2/3 in the opening game. Then Mitchell/Kane partnership for 10 over period. Other than India was in no trouble. In contrast all the other teams did go through some anxious moments. I won't consider 1975/79 teams. Nobody knew how to play ODIs back then. 2003 Australian is t he closes to dominating everyone. 2007 is also the same. But with India/Pakistan bowing out Australia hardly had any challenge in the group games.

If i got outside world cup. India in 1985 benson hedges trophy dominated the entire tournament, like nobody ever dominated any tournament. Bowled out every single team except Pakistan in final who lost 9 wickets.

 

[sweep_shot]

Highly appreciate conclusion

Thanks.

I think there are 2 reasons why this Indian team is not an ATG team (like the 80's Windies team or 2000's Aussie team).

1) This Indian team couldn't win everywhere. They lost 0-2 in New Zealand and 1-2 in South Africa. Aussies dominated everywhere.

2) This Indian team didn't win many ICC trophies. They haven't won any ICC trophy after 2013.

 

[Suleiman]

It looks better than it actually is because the other current teams are out of form or phasing out finished players.

It’s still one of the best ODI teams to have played in WCs… but saying it is the absolute best for sure… ehh not too sure about that.

 

[sweep_shot]

It looks better than it actually is because the other current teams are out of form or phasing out finished players.

It’s still one of the best ODI teams to have played in WCs… but saying it is the absolute best for sure… ehh not too sure about that.

Exactly.

Windies of 80's and Aussies of 2000's had to play much tougher oppositions.

If we look at today's world cricket, there are only 4-5 genuinely competitive teams. Teams like SL and Windies have declined massively. Competition is less now than before.

 

[OMB]

Windies and Aussies were more feared. India 2023 team is fantastic but yet to be win the WC like those other teams did.
Whether you agree or not, history books record only the victories, not the best misses.

 

[160KPH]

Better to wait until they win to have these kind of discussions. But the legendary West Indies and Australian teams won multiple WC’s and not just at home. Sri Lanka also had a dominant World Cup in 1996 where they were part hosts.

If Australia win this WC, will they be spoken in that way? They would have managed to win a WC away from home along with another massive list of accomplishments the last couple of years.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Exactly.

Windies of 80's and Aussies of 2000's had to play much tougher oppositions.

If we look at today's world cricket, there are only 4-5 genuinely competitive teams. Teams like SL and Windies have declined massively. Competition is less now than before.

80s windies did not win a single world cup, it is only 70s Windies won where competition was even less. Just 3 teams. But even those 2 teams were nowhere close to Windies. did not win Benson hedges too. Australia 2000 > West Indies 80s. Australia had competition atleast.

 

[kingusama92]

This is gonna be awkward if Australia wins tomorrow.

In all seriousness, I would say India 2023 is among the top 5 best ODI teams of all time rather than top 3.

Australia 2003
Australia 2007
West Indies 1979
West Indies 1975

Then I would put India 2023 somewhere near the bottom of this list. The main reason for doing this is the "weaker" competition as well as them having home advantage compared to all of these other teams.

On a side note, Australia 1999, South Africa 1999, and Pakistan 1999 were all excellent teams too. They just happened to face each other in the same World Cup and weren't as clinical throughout the tournament. Not top 5 caliber but certainly well-rounded teams.

 

[sweep_shot]

80s windies did not win a single world cup, it is only 70s Windies won where competition was even less. Just 3 teams. But even those 2 teams were nowhere close to Windies. did not win Benson hedges too. Australia 2000 > West Indies 80s. Australia had competition atleast.

They won in 1975 and 1979.

80's as in that period (not literally only 80's).

1970s to 1980's belonged to West Indies.

I agree with you that Aussie team was better than Windies team.

 

[jnaveen1980]

They won in 1975 and 1979.

80's as in that period. You are taking things too literally.

1970s to 1980's belonged to West Indies.

West Indies won only when nobody had clue about ODIs. you are saying Windies had "stiff competition"? They virtually had nobody to fight against. Atleast now we have more competition in variety of conditions. Competition is tougher. Afghanistan trounced a defending champion. They also defeated supposedly world no.1 ranked side Pakistan. If you strictly talk about tournament wins West indies had zilch in the 80s. failed in 1983 and 1987. Lost B&H in 1985.

 

[sweep_shot]

West Indies won only when nobody had clue about ODIs. you are saying Windies had "stiff competition"? They virtually had nobody to fight against. Atleast now we have more competition in variety of conditions. Competition is tougher. Afghanistan trounced a defending champion. They also defeated supposedly world no.1 ranked side Pakistan. If you strictly talk about tournament wins West indies had zilch in the 80s. failed in 1983 and 1987. Lost B&H in 1985.

Check West Indies's Test record during that period (1970's and 1980's). They dominated all formats.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Australia 2000s handsdown the best team.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Check West Indies's Test record during that period (1970's and 1980's). They dominated all formats.

This is about best "world cup ODI team". So we can't use Tests/ bilateral stats.

 

[sweep_shot]

This is about best "world cup ODI team". So we can't use Tests/ bilateral stats.

They won 1975 and 1979 World Cups. 2 ODI World Cups.

No other team won 2 World Cups until Aussies did it in 1999.

Cricket world was quite competitive in the 70's and 80's (New Zealand, Australia, Pakistan, West Indies, and England). South Africa were banned; otherwise, they could've increased competition even more.

 

[jnaveen1980]

They won 1975 and 1979 World Cups. 2 ODI World Cups.

No other team won 2 World Cups until Aussies did it in 1999.

Cricket world was quite competitive in the 70's and 80's (New Zealand, Australia, Pakistan, West Indies, and England). South Africa were banned; otherwise, they could've increased competition even more.

Not it was not. They were nowhere close to West indies. England and Australia were the distant second competition. With no bouncer restriction, noball monitoring they were able to bully teams back then. Real competition started in 1980s.

World cup record in the 1980s. Look where West indies in the world cup. Behind India/England/Australia.

 

[sweep_shot]

Not it was not. They were nowhere close to West indies. England and Australia were the distant second competition. With no bouncer restriction, noball monitoring they were able to bully teams back then. Real competition started in 1980s.

World cup record in the 1980s. Look where West indies in the world cup. Behind India/England/Australia.

So, in a nutshell, are you saying Windies team from 70's and 80's weren't an ATG team?

If you say that, you are in the minority. Windies's ATG status is pretty much undisputed.

 

[jnaveen1980]

This is called domination. Australia won 22 out of 22 in 2000s

 

[jnaveen1980]

So, in a nutshell, are you saying Windies team from 70's and 80's weren't an ATG team?

If you say that, you are in the minority. Windies's ATG status is pretty much undisputed.

You are conflating their bilateral performances with world cup performance. This thread is "world cup team". Why are you expanding the filter.

 

[sweep_shot]

You are conflating their bilateral performances with world cup performance. This thread is "world cup team". Why are you expanding the filter.

They won two World Cups. Even without expanding the filter, their ATG status during that period was cemented.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Post 2010 India has clearly dominated

 

[sweep_shot]

Post 2010 India has clearly dominated

Why only 1 World Cup then?

No trophy since 2013.

That is not domination.

 

[jnaveen1980]

They won two World Cups. Even without expanding the filter, their ATG status during that period was cemented.

That was to your downplaying of current world cup stating "there is no competition" . You should have seen the competition that Windies had.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Why only 1 World Cup then?

No trophy since 2013.

That is not domination.

Why are you starting randomly at 2013 lol 2011 India won 2013 India won.

 

[sweep_shot]

Why are you starting randomly at 2013 lol 2011 India won 2013 India won.

2013 was the last time India won a trophy. So, I started from 2013.

If India were dominating (as you wrote), they would've won more ICC trophies like Windies did in the 70's and Aussies did in 2000's.

They did well but weren't an ATG. That's my point.

 

[jnaveen1980]

2013 was the last time India won a trophy. So, I started from 2013.

If India were dominating (as you wrote), they would've won more ICC trophies like Windies did in the 70's and Aussies did in 2000's.

Windies have won grand total of 2 world cups back in the 70s where limited over concept was not established and fairly new. Lost in 80s, 90s where they still had great team. Real greatness comes when you compete against worthy opponents like Austrlaia did in the 2000s. Windies hardly had any worthy opponents in the 70s.

 

[sweep_shot]

Windies have won grand total of 2 world cups back in the 70s where limited over concept was not established and fairly new. Lost in 80s, 90s where they still had great team. Real greatness comes when you compete against worthy opponents like Austrlaia did in the 2000s. Windies hardly had any worthy opponents in the 70s.

So, in a nutshell, you are saying Windies from the 70's and 80's weren't an ATG team.

If you believe that, you are in the minority.

 

[jnaveen1980]

So, in a nutshell, you are saying Windies weren't an ATG team.

If you believe that, you are in the minority.

Not a better world cup team than Australia. Not even close.

 

[sweep_shot]

Not a better world cup team than Australia. Not even close.

Aussies were better. I agree. They won 3 World Cups. They won 2006 CT also. They won Test series everywhere (including England and India).

After the Aussies, Windies from 70's and 80's were clearly the 2nd ATG team.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Aussies were better. I agree. They won 3 World Cups. They won 2006 CT also. They won Test series everywhere (including England and India).

But, after the Aussies, Windies from 70's and 80's were clearly the 2nd ATG team.

If India wins this one they will be right up there. But the question of the OP is not that. How well you dominate all the teams in a world cup. Show me a world cup where a team has absolutely brutalized every single team. I can't recall. Even the west indies of 70s had a close wins like Windies added 64 runs for the 10th wicket against Pakistan to win a match while chasing. Then won the final by narrow maring of 17 runs.

1975 Widnies just had to play 5 matches to win the world cup
1979 windies just had to play 4 matches to win the world cup.

You cannot compare with teams that dominate for 10 matches in a row.

 

[kron]

If India wins this one they will be right up there. But the question of the OP is not that. How well you dominate all the teams in a world cup. Show me a world cup where a team has absolutely brutalized every single team. I can't recall. Even the west indies of 70s had a close wins like Windies added 64 runs for the 10th wicket against Pakistan to win a match while chasing. Then won the final by narrow maring of 17 runs.

1975 Widnies just had to play 5 matches to win the world cup
1979 windies just had to play 4 matches to win the world cup.

You cannot compare with teams that dominate for 10 matches in a row.

People are staying nz india game was close. What close? 70 plus run defeat. It wasn't close. At times they threatened that's about it. Lot of times teams can threaten. They are all elite players but end result is what matters.

 

[VForVendetta]

If India wins this one they will be right up there. But the question of the OP is not that. How well you dominate all the teams in a world cup. Show me a world cup where a team has absolutely brutalized every single team.

Aus 2007

I can't recall. Even the west indies of 70s had a close wins like Windies added 64 runs for the 10th wicket against Pakistan to win a match while chasing. Then won the final by narrow maring of 17 runs.

1975 Widnies just had to play 5 matches to win the world cup
1979 windies just had to play 4 matches to win the world cup.

You cannot compare with teams that dominate for 10 matches in a row.

 

[kron]

Better to wait until they win to have these kind of discussions. But the legendary West Indies and Australian teams won multiple WC’s and not just at home. Sri Lanka also had a dominant World Cup in 1996 where they were part hosts.

If Australia win this WC, will they be spoken in that way? They would have managed to win a WC away from home along with another massive list of accomplishments the last couple of years.

This aussie team is great but they did lose early one and scraped through for some wins. They nearly lost to Afghans and SA. So no they wouldn't be spoken about amongst the greats. Any team can win a one off. That's why Ko is all about temperament and mental strength on that particular day. It's about who holds nerves the best.

Shoaib said it best. Aussies have zero pressure given their players won't get lynched or jeered at home when they return. Australians generally don't care much apart from rugby. Cricket is their third sport.

Whereas sub continent teams have to deal with much more intense pressure from public as the population and expectations from fans is significantly higher.

 

[kron]

Goat Aussie side of 2003 and 2007
Goat w.indies side of 1979
Would say SA of 99 was a very good side. Could challenge this india team.
But they are mentally weak midgets.
Also india of 2011 would be up there too.
Sri Lanka of 96 were undefeated too. Don't they get a shout out?

So this team maybe number 5 or 6. If they win the WC and champions trophy then perhaps top 3.

 

[160KPH]

This aussie team is great but they did lose early one and scraped through for some wins. They nearly lost to Afghans and SA. So no they wouldn't be spoken about amongst the greats. Any team can win a one off. That's why Ko is all about temperament and mental strength on that particular day. It's about who holds nerves the best.

Shoaib said it best. Aussies have zero pressure given their players won't get lynched or jeered at home when they return. Australians generally don't care much apart from rugby. Cricket is their third sport.

Whereas sub continent teams have to deal with much more intense pressure from public as the population and expectations from fans is significantly higher.

I suppose the question is - does it matter? The point of the group stage is just so you can qualify for the semi final. And the only purpose of the semi final is to ultimately qualify for the final and win the trophy. If someone dominates the group stage but then loses to a team in the final that doesn’t dominate the group stage, I would still argue that the winner of the trophy had a much much better tournament than the team that simply dominated in the group stage.

Argentina lost to Saudi Arabia in the recent FIFA WC, but still pulled off winning the tournament. I don’t think that makes Argentina’s World Cup win worth any less.

 

[rhony]

No team in the history of the cricket world cup has been as head and shoulders above the opposition,or asserted superiority than equal scale,as India in 2023.Considering strength of opposition,number of games and margins of victories,India has overshadowed even the beat West Indies and Australian teams.India has blended mental resilience in their powerhouse of talent. Rarely has any team as clinically devoured opposition,shattering the base of the strongest opponents

In my view on West Indies of 1979,Australia of 2003 and 2007 and possibly South Africa and Pakistan of 1999,were better teams..In my view,they overpowered stronger opposition.I feel this side should be tested in English,Australian or South African conditions.

Pak 1999 was an ATG bowling unit. Relentless and aggressive through and through. They would have won the world cup if they chased. Batting wasn't though. Wajahutullah Wasti, Razzak, Ejaz aren't exactly ATG batting material. They batted deep though.

I think Australia 2007 team will beat this Indian team. This side has done well in Australia. They will do well in Eng and SA too. The pacers will be more.lethal and the spinners a bit less. Batting wise, this Indian team already performed well abroad and can beat anyone except for the 2007 Aussies.

 

[kron]

I suppose the question is - does it matter? The point of the group stage is just so you can qualify for the semi final. And the only purpose of the semi final is to ultimately qualify for the final and win the trophy. If someone dominates the group stage but then loses to a team in the final that doesn’t dominate the group stage, I would still argue that the winner of the trophy had a much much better tournament than the team that simply dominated in the group stage.

Argentina lost to Saudi Arabia in the recent FIFA WC, but still pulled off winning the tournament. I don’t think that makes Argentina’s World Cup win worth any less.

Football is different. You do play round robin style like a league. It's 3 teams max in groups. Also unlike champions league they don't play double legs in kos

Its much harder to dominate in a league based format but I see where you are coming from. But KO games in a one off always have a bit of luck component. Toss can play a role too. Better team doesn't always win.

I wouldn't say this aussie side was the best even if they win. Second or 3rd is what I would rate them.

But to be a great team you have to win the title. If india don't win the title then obviously they wouldn't be considered as one of the great sides in the ATG rankings.

 

[rhony]

Goat Aussie side of 2003 and 2007
Goat w.indies side of 1979
Would say SA of 99 was a very good side. Could challenge this india team.
But they are mentally weak midgets.
Also india of 2011 would be up there too.
Sri Lanka of 96 were undefeated too. Don't they get a shout out?

So this team maybe number 5 or 6. If they win the WC and champions trophy then perhaps top 3.

Top order crashed in a bunch of games in that 99 SA team. Klusener had to save them. That's not an ATG team by any measure. India 2011 doesn't have as good a bowling attack as this one. SL 1996 team.was tailored for Asian pitches. Didn't watch 1979 Windies much so not sure. 2007 Aussie team would be my number 1 team ever.

 

[jnaveen1980]

Aus 2007

Yea. But India and Pakistan missing out from the round robin made their life a lot easier. So they didn't bully every team

 

[kron]

Yea. But India and Pakistan missing out from the round robin made their life a lot easier. So they didn't bully every team

As if india or pakistan of that year can beat Aussies of 07 lmao
Current india yes it would be a close game.

 

[kron]

Top order crashed in a bunch of games in that 99 SA team. Klusener had to save them. That's not an ATG team by any measure. India 2011 doesn't have as good a bowling attack as this one. SL 1996 team.was tailored for Asian pitches. Didn't watch 1979 Windies much so not sure. 2007 Aussie team would be my number 1 team ever.

Would have loved to see 1996 Lanka team vs this indian team in Asia. Would be a good contest.
Superior Indian bowling would get the job done you would think.

 

[Sachin136]

Indian team in 2011 was much better and more balanced than the current 2023 team. In 2011 Tendulkar, Sehwag and Yuvraj were decent with the ball. While Tendulkar and Sehwag didn't have much of a role with the ball but Yuvraj contributed with the ball taking 15 wickets. In the current team no one in the top 6 can bowl regularly. Also in 2011 Harbhajan was decent with the bat while his batting wasn't much needed but in current team no one from 8-11 can bat and this 2023 team is more of specialists oriented team with 6 batsmen and 5 bowlers. 2011 team was better and more balanced and had ARs and part-time bowlers

Your specialist bowlers matter far more than part timers. A bowling attack consisting of Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Sreesanth, Harbhajan, Nehra, and Yuvraj is about 50% as good as India's current one.

 

[jnaveen1980]

As if india or pakistan of that year can beat Aussies of 07 lmao
Current india yes it would be a close game.

That was still a good Indian side.

 

[rhony]

Would have loved to see 1996 Lanka team vs this indian team in Asia. Would be a good contest.
Superior Indian bowling would get the job done you would think.

This Indian team will beat that Lankan team.

 

[Unbiased-Fan]

They will be labeled as one of the greatest ever only if they manage to win this world cup.
Bilaterals doesn't matter at least in ODI cricket.

 

[jnaveen1980]

At the end of the day form determines the quality of the team. On paper England is good enough to make the semis. Due to collective bad form they almost disqualified themselves from CT 2025. Before Asia cup Indian team was not exactly in form.

 

[160KPH]

This is why I said that it’s best to wait until they win to declare them the greatest.

They will go down as a team who managed to consistently bully other teams in the group stage but failed massively when it mattered most and did not managed to win a single ICC trophy in the span of 10 year. Never compare them to the great Australia and West Indies side ever again. They are not even as good as the 1996 Sri Lankan WC winning team or the 1992 Pakistan WC winning team. You know? Because those teams actually won.

 

[big_gamer007]

Choked when it mattered the most. Bilateral bullies.

 

[big_gamer007]

This Indian team will beat that Lankan team.

You can’t compare a team of 96 with team of 23. The game has changed too much from that time.
Even England, Australia, New Zealand of today will beat Sri Lanka of 96.

But for the time Sri Lanka played in they are better than India of today because they actually won what matters the most.

 

[kingusama92]

Like I said, it would be awkward if they lost to the Australians today.

Still a very good team but they got found out when it was time to face adversity.

 

[Kashmirilion]

Now this thread aged well

 

[VForVendetta]

Yea. But India and Pakistan missing out from the round robin made their life a lot easier. So they didn't bully every team

Aussies would have bulldozed those past prime exhausted over the hills subcontinent "giants". The biggest threat at the period were SA/Nz & they had no trouble disposing them both.

 

[Sycamore]

One of the best teams ever? What a joke, they got hammered by this bang average (by Australian standards) ODI team.

What happened to Bumrah, Shami, Siraj, Kuldeep, Jadeja ? Looked soo toothless.

Batting bar Rohit, was timid and scared. From kohli, to KL to SKY.

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Not the best when u can't handle the pressure of big matches.