Top order batsman and former Australian captainRicky Ponting holds several World Cup records. Playing in five tournaments between 1996 and 2011, he has played in more World Cup matches than any player with 46.[7] He also holds the record for the most consecutive matches played.[8] As a slip fielder, Ponting has also taken the most catches at the World Cup with 28.[9] Captaining his side from 2003 to 2011, Ponting holds the World Cup record for the most matches played as captain with 29.[10]India batsman Sachin Tendulkar has scored 2,278 runs making him the only player to score more than 2,000 runs at the World Cup.[11] He has also scored the most World Cup half-centuries with 15[12] and shares the record with Pakistan's Javed Miandad for the most number of World Cup tournaments played with 6.[13]
Australian fast bowlerGlenn McGrath holds the record for the most World Cup wickets taken with 71,[14] the record for the best figures taken in an World Cup with 7/15[15] and has the best bowling average at the Cricket World Cup with 18.19.[a][16]Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara is the record holder for the most number dismissals and stumpings taken as a wicket-keeper at the World Cup with 54 and 13, respectively.[17][18] The World Cup record for most catches as a wicket-keeper is held by Australian gloveman Adam Gilchrist with 45.[19] Gilchrist and New Zealand's Tom Latham holds the record for the most dismissals in a single tournament by a designated wicket-keeper with 21.[20]
Key
The top five records are listed for each category, except for the team wins, losses, ties and no results and the partnership records. Tied records for fifth place are also included. Explanations of the general symbols and cricketing terms used in the list are given below. Specific details are provided in each category where appropriate. All records are correct as of the 2023 Cricket World Cup.
Key
Symbol
Meaning
*
Player remained not out or partnership remained unbroken
A total of 20 of the 29 ODI teams have played in at least one edition of the Cricket World Cup. The teams that have not played are the Africa XI, the ACC Asia XI, Hong Kong, the ICC World XI, Jersey, Nepal, Oman, Papua New Guinea and the United States.[21] Six teams have played in all thirteen editions of the Cricket World Cup—Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The West Indies, who had played in every World Cup since the inaugural tournament in 1975, failed to qualify for the 2023 edition.[22] Australia has played and won the most matches at the Cricket World Cup and has the highest winning percentage.[23]
The highest innings total scored at the Cricket World Cup came in the group stage match between South Africa and Sri Lanka at the most recent edition in 2023. Playing at the Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium in Delhi, South Africa posted a total of 428/5.[24] This broke the record of 417/6 set by Australia at WACA Ground in Perth against Afghanistan at the 2015 tournament.[25] The third match of Group B in the 2007 World Cup saw India becoming the first team to break the 400-run barrier in a single innings at the World Cup. Playing against Bermuda at the Queen's Park Oval in the Port of Spain, India posted a score of 413/5.[26] The 400-run mark has been passed on four other occasions in the World Cup.[27]
The highest match aggregate in a World Cup match came in the 2023 Cricket World Cup group stage match at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala where Australia and New Zealand combined to score 771 runs in the match.[36] This broke the record of 754 runs set 21 days earlier in the same World Cup, between South Arica and Sri Lanka.[37]
An ODI match is won when one side has scored more runs than the total runs scored by the opposing side during their innings. If both sides have completed their allocated innings and the side that fielded last has the higher number of runs, it is known as a win by runs. This indicates the number of runs that they had scored more than the opposing side. If the side batting last wins the match, it is known as a win by wickets, indicating the number of wickets that were still to fall.[39]
Greatest win margins (by runs)
Pat Cummins (pictured) was the captain of the Australian team that defeated the Netherlands at the 2023 tournament by 309 runs, the largest margin of victory by runs at the Cricket World Cup.[40]
The greatest winning margin by runs at the World Cup was Australia's victory over the Netherlands at the Arun Jaitley Cricket Stadium in Delhi at the most recently edition in 2023 where Australia won by a margin of 309 runs.[41] This is followed by India's 302-run victory over Sri Lanka at the same tournament eight days later.[42] Both of these eclipsed the previous record of Australia's defeat of Afghanistan during the 2015 World Cup by 275 runs.[25][40]
Cricket World Cup matches have been won by a margin of 10 wickets on 12 occasions, the most recent being New Zealand's defeat of Sri Lanka in 2019.[40][43]
The group stage of the 1979 World Cup saw England run down the target of 46 runs to defeat Canada by a margin of 8 wickets with 277 balls remaining in the 60-over innings, the largest victory by balls remaining in ODI cricket history.[44][45] The next largest victory at the Cricket World Cup was Sri Lanka's win against Canada at the 2003 tournament at Boland Park in Paarl, where Sri Lanka reached the target of 37 runs with 272 balls to spare.[46][40]
Thirty-five ODI matches have been won by a margin of one run with two of them occurring at the Cricket World Cup.[48] Both of these matches resulted in Australia defeating India. The first took place in the opening match of Pool A of the 1987 World Cup. The match was played at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, the same venue where the same two teams played out second tied Test a year earlier. The victory to Australia came on the second last ball of the match where Steve Waugh bowled Maninder Singh.[49][50] The second match was four and a half years later at the 1992 World Cup where Australia was the hosting tournament. Played at the Gabba in Brisbane, this was the third match for both teams in group stage. The final ball of the rain-affected second innings saw Steve Waugh run out Venkatapathy Raju to secure the win for the hosts.[51][52][53]
Seventy ODI matches have been won by a margin of one wicket with seven of them occurring at the Cricket World Cup.[54] The most recent occurred in 2023 at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Pakistan were bowled all out for 270 inside of 47 overs. In reply, South Africa made 206/4 before losing 46/5. However, tailenderKeshav Maharaj struck the winning runs for the Proteas off the bowling of Mohammad Nawaz with 16 balls remaining.[55][56][53]
Imran Khan (pictured in 2019) was the captain of the Pakistani team that secured victory in the group stage clash against the West Indies at the 1987 Cricket World Cup on the final ball of the match, the only World Cup match where this has occurred.[53]
Forty ODI matches have been won on the final ball of the match with one of them occurring at the Cricket World Cup.[57] The fifth match of Group B in the 1987 edition saw co-hosts Pakistan play the two-time champions the West Indies at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The West Indies posted a total of 216 in the first innings, getting bowled out in the final over. In reply, Pakistan required 14 runs from the final 6 balls with 1 wicket in hand. At the crease were Abdul Qadir and Saleem Jaffar. They each score a single, followed by a two, a six and a two scored by Qadir leaving two runs left for the win. On the final delivery of the match, the bowler Courtney Walsh saw Jaffar well out of his crease and could have dismissed him by run out but graciously decided to bowl the delivery again. Qadir scored winning runs and secured the victory.[58][53]
A tie can occur when the scores of both teams are equal at the conclusion of play, provided that the side batting last has completed their innings.[39] As of January 2024[update], there have been 43 matches that have ended in a tie in ODI cricket history, with five occurring at the Cricket World Cup.[59] The first came in the second semi-final of 1999 World Cup at Edgbaston where South Africa's Allan Donald got run out on the third last ball of the match. Due to Australia finishing ahead of South Africa at the end of the Super Six stage with the superior net run rate, Australia advanced to the final.[60][61] There they defeated Pakistan by eight wickets.[62] The next three which took place in 2003, 2007 and 2011 respectively all occurred in the group stage with the teams sharing the points.[63][64][65] The most recent tied match came in the 2019 Cricket World Cup final where both England and New Zealand finished their innings on 241 runs. For the first time in ODI cricket history a Super Over was used as a tie-breaker. The teams were still unable to be split after the Super Oval as both teams scored 15 runs so a boundary countback was invoked. With England having scored more boundaries in both the main game and the Super Over, 26 to 17, they were declared the winner and the World Cup champions.[66][53]
India's Sachin Tendulkar (pictured) has scored the most runs with 2,278[11] and most half-centuries with 15[12] across six World Cup tournaments from 1992 to 2011, a feat that he shares with Javed Miandad of Pakistan.[13]
Batting records
Most runs
A run is the basic means of scoring in cricket. A run is scored when the batsman hits the ball with his bat and with his partner runs the length of 22 yards (20 m) of the pitch.[67]
A batsman's batting average is the total number of runs they have scored divided by the number of times they have been dismissed.[73]
South Africa all-rounderLance Klusener holds the record for the highest average at the Cricket World Cup with 124.00.[d][74] He is followed by Australia's Andrew Symonds with 103.00. The next two are Virat Kohli of India Shreyas Iyer who have so far only played in the 2023 tournament with averages of 95.62 and 66.25, respectively.[75]
Qualification: 10 innings Last updated: 19 November 2023[75]
Highest strike rate
Glenn Maxwell of Australia (pictured) has the highest strike rate at the World Cup with 160.32.[e][76]
A batsman's strike rate is the average number of runs scored per 100 balls faced.[77]
Glenn Maxwell of Australia has the highest strike rate at the Cricket World Cup with 160.32.[e] Former New Zealand wicket-keeper-batsman Brendon McCullum follows with 120.84 and Jos Buttler of England with a rate of 118.20 is third. A further eight players have an batting strike rate of above 100.[76]
Qualification: 500 balls faced Last updated: 19 November 2023[76]
Most half-centuries
A half-century is a score of between 50 and 99 runs. Statistically, once a batsman's score reaches 100, it is no longer considered a half-century but a century.[78]
Sachin Tendulkar of India has scored the most half-centuries at the Cricket World Cup with 15. He is followed by India's Virat Kohli on 12 and Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan with 11 fifties to his name.[12]
A century is a score of 100 or more runs in a single innings.[79]
India's Rohit Sharma has scored the most centuries in the Cricket World Cup with seven. He overtook the previous record of six held by his compatriot Sachin Tendulkar during the group stage match against Afghanistan at the 2023 edition.[80] In the same tournament, Australia's David Warner drew equal with Tendulkar scoring his sixth World Cup century against the Netherlands.[81][82]
A duck refers to a batsman being dismissed without scoring a run.[87]
Ijaz Ahmed of Pakistan has scored the most number of ducks in the World Cup with five.[88] New Zealand's Nathan Astle matched this number scoring five ducks across the three tournaments he played in.[89][90] A further nine players have failed to score a run in a World Cup innings on four occasions each.[91]
Australia's Glenn McGrath (pictured) has taken the most wickets with 71,[14] has returned the best bowling figures with 7/15[15] and has the best average at the Cricket World Cup with 18.19.[a][16]
A bowler's bowling average is the total number of runs they have conceded divided by the number of wickets they have taken.
Indian fast bowler Mohammad Shami holds the record for the best average at the Cricket World Cup with 13.53 [a] He is followed by Australian Fast bowlerGlenn McGrath on 18.19 and by Pakistani Imran Khan with a bowling average of 19.26 runs per wicket.[16]
Qualification: 1,000 balls Last updated: 19 November 2023[16][97]
Best economy rate
A bowler's economy rate is the total number of runs they have conceded divided by the number of overs they have bowled.[87]
West Indian bowler Andy Roberts holds the record for the best economy rate at the Cricket World Cup with 3.24.[a] England's Ian Botham, with a rate of 3.43 runs per over is second on the list.[98]
Qualification: 1,000 balls Last updated: 19 November 2023[98][99]
Best strike rate
A bowler's strike rate is the total number of balls they have bowled divided by the number of wickets they have taken.[87]
The Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc holds the record for the best strike rate at the Cricket World Cup with 22.4.[a] He sits ahead of Sri Lanka's Lasith Malinga with a rate of 24.8. Indian Zaheer Khan with rate of 27.1 deliveries per wicket is third.[100]
Qualification: 1,000 balls Last updated: 19 November 2023[100][101]
Most five-wicket hauls in an innings
Indian Mohammed Shami (pictured) holds the World Cup records for the most career five-wicket hauls and the most five-wicket hauls taken in a single tournament with four and three, respectively.[102][103]
At the conclusion of 2019 tournament, Australia's Mitchell Starc had taken the most five-wicket hauls at the Cricket World Cup with three.[105][106] In the first semi-final of the 2023 World Cup, Indian pace bowler Mohammed Shami took his fourth career World Cup five-wicket haul to overtake Starc. This was also his third of the tournament, breaking the record of two five-wicket hauls in a single edition of the World Cup.[107][103] They are both followed by seven players who have taken five wickets in a World Cup innings on two occasions each.[102]
Australian pace bowler Mitchell Starc (pictured) holds the World Cup record for the best strike rate with 22.4[a][100] and for the most wickets in a single tournament with 27 taken at the 2019 World Cup.[110]
The second semi-final of the 2019 tournament between England and Australia at Edgbaston saw Australia's Mitchell Starc take his 27th wicket surpassing the record of the most wickets taken in a single edition of the Cricket World Cup held by fellow countryman Glenn McGrath where he secured 26 dismissals twelve years previously at the 2007 event.[111] India's Mohammed Shami, who missed the first four matches and was the leading wicket taker of the most recent World Cup in 2023, sits in third with 24.[112][110]
The wicket-keeper is a specialist fielder who stands behind the stumps being guarded by the batsman on strike and is the only member of the fielding side allowed to wear gloves and leg pads.[113]
Most career dismissals
A wicket-keeper can be credited with the dismissal of a batsman in two ways, caught or stumped. A fair catch is taken when the ball is caught fully within the field of play without it bouncing after the ball has touched the striker's bat or glove holding the bat,[114][115] while a stumping occurs when the wicket-keeper puts down the wicket while the batsman is out of his ground and not attempting a run.[116]
Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara has taken the most dismissals in ODI cricket as a designated wicket-keeper with 482. He narrowly sits ahead of the Australia gloveman Adam Gilchrist with 472 ODI career dismissals.[117][118] Sri Lanka's final group stage match against Scotland at the 2015 tournament at Bellerive Oval in Hobart saw Sangakkara surpass Gilchrist as the wicket-keeper with the most dismissals at the Cricket World Cup, 54 to 52.[119][120][17]
Kumar Sangakkara (pictured) who represented Sri Lanka on 37 occasions from 2003 to 2015 holds the record for the most dismissals and the most stumpings by a designated wicket-keeper at the Cricket World Cup.[17][18]
Adam Gilchrist has taken the most number of catches as a designated wicket-keeper at the Cricket World Cup with 45. He sits ahead of Sangakkara and South Africa's Quinton de Kock on 41 and 37, respectively.[19]
Sangakkara with 13 holds the record for the most stumpings at the Cricket World Cup. He is followed by India's MS Dhoni and Bangladesh's Mushfiqur Rahim with 8 each to their name.[18]
Adam Gilchrist became the first wicket-keeper to take six dismissals in an ODI innings, setting this record against South Africa at Newlands Cricket Ground in April 2000.[121][122] Gilchrist was also the first glovemen to accomplish this feat in the Cricket World Cup where again it was against Namibia at the 2003 tournament.[94] Since then Pakistan's Sarfaraz Ahmed and Quinton de Kock of South Africa also achieved the milestone at the 2015 and 2023 World Cups respectively.[123][124] A further nine wicket-keepers have taken five dismissals in a World Cup innings.[125]
Australian gloveman Adam Gilchrist (pictured) holds the record for the most catches,[19] was first to take six dismissals in a World Cup innings[125] and jointly with New Zealand's Tom Latham holds the record for the most dismissals in a single tournament by a designated wicket-keeper with 21.[20]
Caught is one of the nine methods a batsman can be dismissed in cricket.[f] A fair catch is defined as a fielder catching the ball, from a legal delivery, fully within the field of play without it bouncing when the ball has touched the striker's bat or glove holding the bat.[114][115] The majority of catches are caught in the slips, located behind the batsman, next to the wicket-keeper, on the off side of the field. Most slip fielders are top order batsmen.[128][129]
Former Australian captainRicky Ponting holds the record for the most catches at the Cricket World Cup by a non-wicket-keeper with 28. He is followed England's Joe Root and India's Virat Kohli who, at the completion of the 2023 World Cup, had secured 25 and 20 catches respectively.[130][9]
England's Joe Root (pictured) sits second behind Ricky Ponting for the most number catches at the World Cup,[9] was the most recent player to secure four catches in a World Cup innings[131] and holds the record for the most catches by non wicket-keeper in a single tournament with 13, set at 2019 World Cup.[132]
England's Joe Root set the record for the most catches by non wicket-keeper in a single World Cup with 13 at the 2019 tournament. He broke Ricky Ponting of Australia's long standing record of 11 set at the 2003 World Cup in the second semi final against Australia[136] and secured his 13th of the tournament in the final against New Zealand.[137] The latest edition of the World Cup in 2023 saw New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell also take 11 catches to draw even with Ponting.[138][132]
Ricky Ponting of Australia holds the record for the most matches played at the Cricket World Cup with 46. India's Sachin Tendulkar despite playing in one more tournament than Ponting is in second on 45.[139][7]
Javed Miandad of Pakistan (pictured) was the first cricketer to play in six World Cup tournaments. The feat was equalled by India's Sachin Tendulkar when he appeared at the 2011 World Cup.[13]
Pakistan's Javed Miandad made an appearance in every Cricket World Cup from the inaugural edition in 1975 through to 1996, playing total of 33 matches across 6 tournaments. The feat was matched by India's Sachin Tendulkar who played 45 matches from 1992 to 2011. A further 18 players have appeared in five World Cups with the Bangladeshi pairing of Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim the latest to do so in 2023.[13]
The most capped World Cup player, Australia's Ricky Ponting, also holds the record for the most consecutive matches played. Missing only the opening pool match against Sri Lanka at the 1996 World Cup due to the forfeit over security concerns in Colombo,[160] Ponting went on to play in all of Australia's next 46 matches. He is followed his compatriot Glenn McGrath with 39 straight matches from 1996 to 2007.[8] India's Sachin Tendulkar only missed one World Cup match in his career, the group stage match against Zimbabwe in 1999. His father died and he flew home to India for the funeral. He returned to England in time to play India's next match against Kenya.[161][162]
Stephen Fleming (pictured) captained New Zealand in 27 World Cup matches at the 1999, 2003 and 2007 tournaments. He is second only to Australia's Ricky Ponting for most number of matches played as captain at the Cricket World Cup.[10]
Ricky Ponting, who led the Australian cricket team at the 2003, 2007 and 2011 tournaments, holds the record for the most matches played as captain at the Cricket World Cup with 29. Stephen Fleming, who skippered New Zealand from 1999 to 2007 is second with 27 matches. India's captain from 1992 to 1999, Mohammad Azharuddin, is third on the list with 23.[139][10]
The youngest player to play in an ODI match is claimed to be Hasan Raza at the age of 14 years and 233 days. Making his debut for Pakistan against Zimbabwe on 30 October 1996, there is some doubt as to the validity of Raza's age at the time.[163][164] The youngest to appear at the Cricket World Cup was Nitish Kumar who, at the age of 16 years and 283 days, played in Canada's second group stage match at the 2011 tournament against Zimbabwe eclipsing the record that Bangladesh's Talha Jubair had set at the 2003 World Cup playing against the West Indies at 17 years and 70 days old.[165][166][167][168]
The Netherlands' fifth and final match in the 1996 Cricket World Cup saw Nolan Clarke set the record for the oldest player to appear in an ODI match at 47 years and 257 days.[169][170] This broke the World Cup record set at the previous tournament where John Traicos representing Zimbabwe played in their final group stage match against England at the age of 44 years and 306 days.[171][172][173]
Marlon Samuels (left) and Chris Gayle (right) of West Indies hold the ODI record for the highest partnership by runs with 372.[174]
In cricket, two batsmen are always present at the crease batting together in a partnership. This partnership will continue until one of them is dismissed, retires or the innings comes to a close.
Highest partnerships by wicket
A wicket partnership describes the number of runs scored before each wicket falls. The first wicket partnership is between the opening batsmen and continues until the first wicket falls. The second wicket partnership then commences between the not out batsman and the number three batsman. This partnership continues until the second wicket falls. The third wicket partnership then commences between the not out batsman and the new batsman. This continues down to the tenth wicket partnership. When the tenth wicket has fallen, there is no batsman left to partner so the innings is closed.
Three ODI cricket partnership records have been set at the World Cup. West Indians Marlon Samuels and Chris Gayle for the second wicket,[70] the South African pairing of David Miller and JP Duminy for the fifth wicket[175] and most recently Glenn Maxwell and Pat Cummins set the eighth wicket ODI partnership record against Afghanistan at the 2023 tournament.[71][176] The oldest World Cup partnership records are for the ninth and tenth wicket where both were set at the 1983 tournament.[177]
The highest ODI partnership by runs for any wicket is held by the West Indian pairing of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels who put together a second wicket partnership of 372 runs during the 2015 Cricket World Cup against Zimbabwe.[70][174] This broke the previous highest partnership set at the World Cup where Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid came together to score 318 in India's defeat of Sri Lanka at the 1999 tournament. This was also an ODI record at the time of posting.[178] These are the only two partnership totals greater than 300 runs to be achieved at the World Cup.[179][180]
An umpire in cricket is a person who officiates the match according to the Laws of Cricket. Two umpires adjudicate the match on the field, whilst a third umpire has access to video replays, and a fourth umpire looks after the match balls and other duties. The records below are only for on-field umpires.
David Shepherd of England holds the record for the most Cricket World Cup matches umpired with 46. He sits narrowly ahead of the West Indies' Steve Bucknor on 45 and Pakistan's Aleem Dar who has officiated in 34 matches from 2003 to 2019.[182][181]
^Smyth, Rob (18 March 2019). "The unimprovable game". The Cricket Monthly. ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
^ ab"Law 33 – Caught". Marylebone Cricket Club. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
^ ab"Law 5 – The Bat". Marylebone Cricket Club. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2024. Laws 5.6.2.2 and 5.6.2.3 state that the hand or the glove holding the bat shall be regarded as the ball striking or touching the bat.
^"Law 39 – Stumped". Marylebone Cricket Club. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
^Kumar, Manish (19 November 2023). "ODI World Cup 2023: Best Playing XI". The Times of India. The Times Group. Archived from the original on 1 December 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
^Williamson, Martin; McGlashan, Andrew (3 July 2008). "Help the aged". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
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