Which World Cup has been the best so far?

[MenInG]

Cricket's main event, the World Cup, is one that we all look forward to every four years or so.



We all have our favourites for different reasons.

The more patriotic ones would like to remember the ones where their teams won the tournament but the connoisseurs of the game would probably appreciate some of the tournaments for other reasons!

So which is your favourite?


Mine? 1992.....

 

[zacattakk]

Personally I really enjoyed the 1999 one - we had a great team, Shoaib on fire, Yousaf in the initial games was playing great, still had our greatest limited overs opener (to balance out the supreme dullness of Wasti), lower order fireworks, etc. Plus Lance Klusener was fantastic to watch for any neutral. The crazy Aus-SA semifinal was so entertaining. Wish we (and Shepherd) hadn't botched the final. My friends and family were all super invested in this tournament too. I had made a bet with a friend that we would make the final. Things went downhill after that in subsequent tournaments.

1996 having the tournament at home was entertaining, Jazba Junoon! The whole thing was fun for a while until.....

And of course 1992 for obvious reasons.

 

[Bhaijaan]

1996 - Its not even close.

But as an overall package, 2011 was the best.

2019 was a great world cup to be honest and it is right up there fighting for 3rd spot with 2003, 1992 world cups.

1999 WC is overrated.

 

[HappyWarsFan]

I have only seen 3. 2011,2015 and 2019.

2015 was by far the worst.

2011 and 2019 very good and close, but I'd say 2011 was a little.more interesting.

 

[ElRaja]

1999 was first i saw, and deffo the best. the format was good, lots of teams were competitive.

2003 and 2007 were aussie walkovers. 2011 was decent, but i thought paks team and games in 99 were more entertaining.

everything after that has been significantly diluted due to how common global tournaments are now. 2015 was just awkward timings for me, which meant i dont even rem most of it apart from rahats drop.

2019 was ok with some exciting games.

i just think the importance and prestige of the world cup has suffered, also itll only get worse as a general fan as the gap between the have and have not teams gets bigger. i will not be surprised at all if eng, ind and aus make it to the semis of the next three or four world cups.

 

[SangasCoverDrive]

WCs in recent times have been predictable af

 

[Ab Fan]

2019 was the best ever.

Second one is a close between 2011 World Cup and 1999 WC but since my memory serves well with 2011 WC, I will go with that one.

2007 was the worst though.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

2019 was a really fun World Cup. I enjoyed it a great deal despite rain playing spoilsport on certain occasions and having to endure matches like: Pakistan v West Indies, Pakistan v Australia, Pakistan v India and India v England.

I can think of no other World Cup with as many exciting matches as 2019.

2007 followed by 2003 are probably the worst World Cups. All the teams barring Australia were essentially playing for second place.

 

[Varun]

2011 was a cracker - even before the knockout stages.

 

[Hasan123]

2019 ,2011, and 1999 were brilliant tournaments.

 

[sam_ahm]

More than the competition it's the memories of those days that I have based on which I can try to rate, for me I'd say probably 1999 - Very closely fought, lots of good teams, and I have some beautiful memories from those very young days.

Apart from 1999, I thoroughly enjoyed 2003, 1996 and 2011 editions, all of them very joy to watch. 1992 was very good but I was too young to say I enjoyed watching it, Infact I started understanding cricket from that 92 edition.

2007, 2015, 2019 were the ones i didn't enjoy as much.

 

[UzmanBeast]

I enjoyed the 2011 World Cup, the games were quite entertaining and spin-bowling was pretty much alive back then.

 

[PakLFC]

How many here were around or remember the WC's 1992 onwards?

 

[BaankeJi]

1983 and 1999.

 

[TheNightWatchman]

1999 easy. Every team was well and capable of beating the other. Australia almost lost a place to Zimbabwe in the semis!!
The final was a huge let down though. But the tournament had some very legendary players. The greatest ODI of all time- SA vs Aus SF

2011 was very very good.

Would have put 2019 there if it wasn't for the rain delays. Other wise the matches were very good and the tournament definitely picked up towards the end.

 

[TheNightWatchman]

More than the competition it's the memories of those days that I have based on which I can try to rate, for me I'd say probably 1999 - Very closely fought, lots of good teams, and I have some beautiful memories from those very young days.

Apart from 1999, I thoroughly enjoyed 2003, 1996 and 2011 editions, all of them very joy to watch. 1992 was very good but I was too young to say I enjoyed watching it, Infact I started understanding cricket from that 92 edition.

2007, 2015, 2019 were the ones i didn't enjoy as much.

2015 had to be the worst. Tons of one sided matches. Unnecessarily Slow paced games.
2007 was just dull-not just referring to the final. But with no India and Pakistan in the major stages of the tournament, the crowd pretty much didn't care, especially when the hosts got knocked out too.
2019 was marred by rain delays.

 

[Third_Umpire]

I enjoyed 1999 the most. Great teams, good kits, great time in my life as a kid, matches would start afternoon and continue late into the evening (Pakistan time). Also helped that we did really well and had an exciting team.

1992 was awesome too because it brought color to cricket. And Pakistan won.

2019 was great as well. World cup cricket in England is probably the best.

I haven't enjoyed the subcontinent ones, whether it is 1996 or 2011. Low production value. 2007 was probably the worst one, barely remember any games.

 

[Mamoon]

1999 for nostalgic reasons.

Otherwise it is between 2011 and 2019, but I might learn towards 2011 because Pakistan were genuine contenders and you knew that only India stood between Pakistan and the World Cup.

The 2019 World Cup was fantastic but by then, Pakistan had firmly established itself as an absolute joke of a team with no talent, no skill and no game-plan and were simply relying on flukes.

The 2011 World Cup was also an end of an era. A lot of 90s and 2000s players bowed out and the complexion/nature of the game evolved.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

I'd go

1999
2003
2011
1996
2015
2019
2007

in that order

 

[sam_ahm]

2015 had to be the worst. Tons of one sided matches. Unnecessarily Slow paced games.
2007 was just dull-not just referring to the final. But with no India and Pakistan in the major stages of the tournament, the crowd pretty much didn't care, especially when the hosts got knocked out too.
2019 was marred by rain delays.

Yup. For me 2007 was the worst, followed by 2015 and then 2019. I had high hopes on 2015 but it turned out to be a very boring one.

Quality wise I'd say 1999 was still the best followed by 2011. In both those competitions the teams were closely matched and both those competitions were throughly enjoyable.

 

[Saurav]

1999 and 2003 WC

Having 12 teams and then super six round was fantastic

 

[subshakerz]

2011 was the best, objectively speaking. Many tight games and a fairly competitive final.

 

[Ozymandiasza]

My heart breaks in each one, but 2011 was quite good. We even beat India. Lots of legends in that game. Tendulkar, Kallis, AB, Kohli, Steyn, etc.

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...rica-29th-match-group-b-433586/full-scorecard

Steyn got a 5-fer. Tendulkar a century. Amla, Kallis, and AB got 50s. Great game of cricket.

 

[liam26]

My heart breaks in each one, but 2011 was quite good. We even beat India. Lots of legends in that game. Tendulkar, Kallis, AB, Kohli, Steyn, etc.

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...rica-29th-match-group-b-433586/full-scorecard

Steyn got a 5-fer. Tendulkar a century. Amla, Kallis, and AB got 50s. Great game of cricket.

Last over hurray for Robin Peterson against Nehra.

 

[mastimasti]

LOL how is the majority vote 2011?? 2019 had context right up until the last day with no clear favourites. Heck, it went down to the wire even in the group stage, how often does that happen in cricket world cups? The answer is never.

Then it was capped off with the best game of ODI cricket ever played.

1999 and 1992 are probably close seconds but 2011? hhahahaaha

 

[Rana]

2011 simply because the biggest match in the History of ODI cricket was played in this tournament.

 

[Markhor]

On what basis are folks ranking 2019 along with dull tournaments like 2007 and 2015 ? How many matches went down to the wire in 2007 and 2015 compared to 2019 ?

The 2019 final produced truly heartstopping drama. Despite the somewhat sour note of it ending in a technicality, the twists and turns meant you couldn't call the outcome until the very last ball.

There were other outstanding games too - NZL vs WI, ENG vs PAK, AUS vs WI, NZL vs BAN, SAF vs NZL, SRL vs AFG, IND vs AFG, PAK vs AFG, SRL vs ENG and SAF vs AUS.

1992 and 1996 are up there too. Personally I didn't like any of the World Cups with Super Sixes and Super Eights, and I never saw the tournaments of the 70s and 80s although 1987 seemed like a cracker.

 

[Manzy2599]

I’m 21 so I’ve only seen 3 world cups properly (2011/2015/2019) don’t remember much from 2007 WC unless it was misbahs scoop later that year in the t20 WC final.
2011 1st. 2019 2nd. 2015 3rd.

2011 for me cause there was actually an even contest between bat and ball then. There were so many close games with 260-280 being winning scores. Any team could’ve won it and it was good to see Australia being knocked out before the semis after three consecutive world cups. Pakistan also ended their impressive WC match streak and were the last team to beat them in 1999. Pakistan really should’ve won that WC had Misbah played sensibly in Mohali. That game broke my heart and I can still feel it today.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

On what basis are folks ranking 2019 along with dull tournaments like 2007 and 2015 ? How many matches went down to the wire in 2007 and 2015 compared to 2019 ?

The 2019 final produced truly heartstopping drama. Despite the somewhat sour note of it ending in a technicality, the twists and turns meant you couldn't call the outcome until the very last ball.

There were other outstanding games too - NZL vs WI, ENG vs PAK, AUS vs WI, NZL vs BAN, SAF vs NZL, SRL vs AFG, IND vs AFG, PAK vs AFG, SRL vs ENG and SAF vs AUS.

1992 and 1996 are up there too. Personally I didn't like any of the World Cups with Super Sixes and Super Eights, and I never saw the tournaments of the 70s and 80s although 1987 seemed like a cracker.

4 matches with no result in the group stage compared to 1 each in 2011 and 2015. World Cups in England should gave reserve days for every match.

For all the criticism 2015 tournament gets, the pitches were much better than the ones in England and were fairly consistent for both sides unlike the extremes in England .

 

[Manzy2599]

LOL how is the majority vote 2011?? 2019 had context right up until the last day with no clear favourites. Heck, it went down to the wire even in the group stage, how often does that happen in cricket world cups? The answer is never.

Then it was capped off with the best game of ODI cricket ever played.

1999 and 1992 are probably close seconds but 2011? hhahahaaha

Cause if you take a holistic view 2011 actually had the most competitive games between all the teams and anyone could’ve won it. There was an even contest between bat and ball with 260-280 being winning scores and spinners also being in the game. The quality of players was also higher in 2011.

2019 was also entertaining but in the end we all saw that the top 4 were easily predicted by most people even before the tournament and all ended up making it. (England, India, New Zealand and Australia) who were clear favorites. People also said since big 3 are running cricket and the last few world cups were won by host countries, England were favorites. Had Pakistan made the semis it could’ve been more interesting but they have themselves to blame. Some credit should also be given to Sri Lanka cause had they not beaten England half a dozen of those last 10-12 games would’ve been dead rubbers and we saw some thrilling games at the end especially the final which NZ should’ve won but bad luck and dharmasena got in the way.

 

[Maliq_Mudasir]

2011 and 2019 were the best Word Cups as per me.

2007 and 2015 should be the worst ones.

 

[Robert]

1983 - plenty of upsets. Zim putting Australia, and nearly putting India out before Kapil went berserk. Then the mother of all upsets in the final.

 

[Markhor]

4 matches with no result in the group stage compared to 1 each in 2011 and 2015. World Cups in England should gave reserve days for every match.

For all the criticism 2015 tournament gets, the pitches were much better than the ones in England and were fairly consistent for both sides unlike the extremes in England .

2015 pitches were roads with no contest between bat and ball, whereas there was a decent mix of low, medium and high scoring matches in 2019 (the rain ironically spicing the surfaces up). There were flat, bouncy, seam and spin friendly conditions too making for a good variety.

It's just my opinion but 2015 didn't have enough competitive, close and dramatic matches (struggling to recall any except NZL-AUS in a group game) and Australia winning was almost a foregone conclusion. Whereas you couldn't have called 2019 until the very final act.

 

[SangasCoverDrive]

2015 pitches were roads with no contest between bat and ball, whereas there was a decent mix of low, medium and high scoring matches in 2019 (the rain ironically spicing the surfaces up). There were flat, bouncy, seam and spin friendly conditions too making for a good variety.

It's just my opinion but 2015 didn't have enough competitive, close and dramatic matches (struggling to recall any except NZL-AUS in a group game) and Australia winning was almost a foregone conclusion. Whereas you couldn't have called 2019 until the very final act.

Not really. England were pre-tournament favorites and like heavy favourites. Even the top 4 were almost decided after the first few games.

 

[happydavy]

1996 for several reasons including the fact that team that won it wasn't even in top 6 favorites before the start of the cup. Jayasurya and Kalu gave shock treatment to most teams, and most couldn't figure out what to do with ultra agressive approach of Lankans. Aravinda D'Silva batted like a man possessed in semis and finals. There was abandonment of 2 matches in Lanka, there was a score of 398 in one match, which was unheard of in those days.

At quarter final stage, 6/7 of the 8 teams had similar chances to win the tournament and 3 of the 4 quarter final matches were absolute delight. There was Shane Warne special in semis, South African choke in quarters, India Pak legendary game in quarters, pinch hitter changing the game in another quarter final game between Aus and NZ, Lara's special (century with 120 strike rate and no six) against SA after losing the game against Kenya, SA choke, Tendulkar's form through out the tournament. I thought it was a fabulous world cup.

 

[Markhor]

Not really. England were pre-tournament favorites and like heavy favourites. Even the top 4 were almost decided after the first few games.

I'm talking about during the tournament where England having lost to Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Australia very nearly messed it up.

In the final, New Zealand were in the contest until the very last ball and only lost on a technicality. They could have easily pulled it off.

In 2015 it seemed fairly obvious early on there was no stopping Australia.

 

[happydavy]

I think there can be unanimity that the worst world cup ever was 2007 WC

 

[SangasCoverDrive]

I think there can be unanimity that the worst world cup ever was 2007 WC

More because of the bias of the Pakistan and Indian fans. The format was still the best for a WC

 

[Nikhil_cric]

I'm talking about during the tournament where England having lost to Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Australia very nearly messed it up.

In the final, New Zealand were in the contest until the very last ball and only lost on a technicality. They could have easily pulled it off.

In 2015 it seemed fairly obvious early on there was no stopping Australia.

That has little to do with the world cup being in Australia though. It's just that the 2019 format allows top teams to play each other whereas the quality of the matches in the previous format would decline when minnows played minnows etc.

Pitches weren't all roads either. Even when they were, they were equally flat for both teams whereas in 2019 even the fresh pitches slowed down considerably after 20 overs or so.

Also NZ were the only unbeaten side in the tournament till the final. Not sure how it was obvious that Australia wouldn't be stopped.

 

[RexRex]

2003 and 2007 World Cups were not enjoyable at all, mostly because the Aussies were so dominant and other teams were of poor quality.

 

[Markhor]

That has little to do with the world cup being in Australia though. It's just that the 2019 format allows top teams to play each other whereas the quality of the matches in the previous format would decline when minnows played minnows etc.

Pitches weren't all roads either. Even when they were, they were equally flat for both teams whereas in 2019 even the fresh pitches slowed down considerably after 20 overs or so.

Also NZ were the only unbeaten side in the tournament till the final. Not sure how it was obvious that Australia wouldn't be stopped.

I cannot remember a single bowler friendly pitch in 2015 - there was a low scoring NZL v AUS match in Auckland (?) but unsure how much that was down to the surface.

 

[MesonK]

2019 Best Cricket played, Pakistan humiliated both finalists.
1999
2015
1992
1996
2003
2007

 

[Nikhil_cric]

I cannot remember a single bowler friendly pitch in 2015 - there was a low scoring NZL v AUS match in Auckland (?) but unsure how much that was down to the surface.

There were quite a few. Australia vs NZ, England vs NZ, NZ vs Scotland, PAK vs SA, India vs West Indies, PAK vs ZIM SL vs Afghanistan, Pakistan vs Ireland. There was more swing in that World Cup than in the 2019 one.

 

[ChTab]

The first WC I watched was the 2003 WC which I remember vividly. The best I've seen is the 2019 WC & the worst was the 2007 WC.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Best I have seen was 1996 followed by 1992 and 2011. I didn't watch the 1987 edition but most people I know that watched it told me it was one of the most interesting World Cups.

I'm not particularly a fan of the most recent two world cups, which I found dreary and tedious.

My rankings out of the ones I have seen:

1. 1996
2. 1992
3. 2011
4. 1999
5. 2003
6. 2007
7. 2015
8. 2019

 

[Saj]

1992 but I'm not biased

The main reason I enjoyed it was the format where everyone played each other once and the top 4 moved to the semi-finals.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OnThisDay?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OnThisDay</a> in 1992 - the greatest day in the history of Pakistan cricket <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Cricket</a> <a href="https://t.co/3djPAqBlkV">pic.twitter.com/3djPAqBlkV</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) <a href="https://twitter.com/SajSadiqCricket/status/1507248671343136811?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 25, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

1) 1999 - Semi Oz vs Saf all time great match, oz vs pak group match - Razzler time - Wasim classic, windies vs oz was some hostile bowling by Ambrose, McGrath best figures.

2) 1996 - underdog winning the world cup, windies vs oz Semis Warne classic, India vs Srilanka Semis, pak vs India - Prasad 100 kph was too fast for Amir Sohail, Amir was sledging him like no tomorrow, Prasad got fired up and bowled that 101 kph and goes the off stump flying. Final.

3) 2019 - HANDS DOWN the best final cricket WC final of all time for a neutral. Stokes you beauty, needs to be knighted by the Queen.

4) 2007 - Bangladesh started performing decently but my dad lost money in the India BD game thanks to me me and my friends got together and were talking about how India will score 400 runs with Yuvraj and Dhoni then match began and we were shocked. One of the biggest upset in WC. Also, beat South Africa another upset then lost to Ireland

 

[James]

1999 and 2019… English conditions for the win

 

[Dulex9]

Which world cup was the most interesting, intriguing?

Which world cup to you was the most interesting, intriguing?

1987? West indies knocked out, a Pakistan, india final could've been on the cards, tight semi final and group games such as Pakistan vs wi, ind vs aus, Zimbabwe

1992? Floodlit cricket, coloured clothing, South Africa readmitted, the group stage was open

1996? Fantastic quarter final and semi final games, Sri Lanka surprised the world

1999? Fantastic range of kits, Zimbabwe almost made it into the semis, the last group of games aus vs wi, eng vs ind, an interesting super six invention, both aus vs sa games were thrilling

2003? First game, sa needed to win their last game against Sri l, india were on a hot run, pak and eng almost qualified for super six

2007? India and Pakistan knocked out, super 8 stage some interesting battles, such as eng and Sri l last ball

I'd say most intriguing to watch, 2003 and 2007 world cup

What's yours and why

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

Personal favorite will always be 2003 WC. The build up to that WC was amazing.

 

[sweep_shot]

I think 1999 WC was the best WC. It was also my first ever World Cup.

I also think 2019 WC was pretty good.

 

[sweep_shot]

Personal favorite will always be 2003 WC. The build up to that WC was amazing.

It was too long.

Also, New Zealand and England didn't tour Kenya and Zimbabwe respectively. That made things farcical.

 

[Nasty Naz]

2019 has to be the favourite for me. Liked that it was only limited to 10 teams and each every team got to play each other. A lot of tight matches in general and the finals is probably the most memorable finals in history.

 

[Technics 1210]

For me, the format takes priority.

Given we are talking about a Word Cup, each team should play every other team.

Keeping this in mind, 1992, and 2019, are the World Cups for me. No coincidence Pakistan and England won, respective World Cups.

 

[Sidilicious]

For me, the format takes priority.

Given we are talking about a Word Cup, each team should play every other team.

Keeping this in mind, 1992, and 2019, are the World Cups for me. No coincidence Pakistan and England won, respective World Cups.

So you don’t consider football World Cup a real World Cup?

 

[Savak]

ICC events and multi tournament events should follow the 1992 and 2019 ODI WC format

T-20 format is very volatile where any team can beat anyone at any given stage. I don't think its fair to make countries play a first round where they have to win games to qualify for the next round where other top teams are already guaranteed a spot.

Sri Lanka is a classic example. They had one bad day in the office against Namibia and before you know it, they are now at risk of not qualifying to the next round and mind you Sri Lanka won the Asia Cup T-20 tournament a month back

I say the ICC just follows the 1992 ODI WC and 1999 ODI WC format where all the teams face off against each other and every team has an equal chance of qualifying. The beauty of a world event is that all the teams face off against each other.

It is on record that the 2007 ODI WC in the West Indies was a colossal failure for the ICC because both India and Pakistan crashed out in round one.

 

[Jazx]

1999 was the best followed by 92, 03 and 2019. Didn't liked 1996 and 2011 due to that rubbish quarter final format. Too easy for bigger teams to qualify for super eight by winning against minnows and a fluke win against a competitive side.

 

[Rana]

The first T20i World Cup was pretty awesome

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

The selections of World Cups are showing posters ages Some have only seen 3. Oh the youth.

I started watching from 87 onwards (which was a pretty dull World Cup to be honest).

Personally, can't get over the 92 one. My favorite. The country was in a different place. Absolute vibing. Pakistan in those years were simultaneous World Champions in cricket, hockey, squash and amateur snooker.

Before that, the 83 world cup must have been great too - because West Indies had won the previous 2 and were overwhelming favorites. Yet India beat them twice. Pakistan I think had some close games too.

I don't like World Cups in India and Pakistan personally. Too intense for my liking. And the wickets are turgid for the most part.

'99 was amazing. England really do a great job. So was 2019.

The worst one by far was in the West Indies 2007. First they banned drums if I recall correctly - took away the crowd involvement. Then the whole saga of Bob Woolmer's death. Topped up with a farcical final in the dark.

2015 was a damp squib. I doubt anyone, even Aussies enjoyed it.

Here is m concluding thought. A rather sad one.

This should be the last ODI World Cup. Followed by the last champions trophy.

Let players breathe. Two formats are plenty.

 

[Suleiman]

92, 99, 2003.

2003 was the start of a new batting friendly era

99 and 92 had their own charm.

Also the 2007 t20 WC.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

I'll actually revise my ratings for this and downgrade the 1999 World Cup.

The 2 subcontinent World Cups had better matches throughout and the 03 World Cup also beats 1999.

2007 still is the worst though.

 

[Justcrazy]

1992 format was the best , that is what we want to see , all play all.

1987 also had outstanding semi finals and final.