Past World Cup tournaments at a glance [1975] The 1975 Cricket World Cup officially called the Prudential Cup was the first edition of the International Cricket Councils (ICC) cricket world cup. It was held from June 7 to 21 in 1975 in England. The tournament was sponsored by Prudential Assurance Company and had 8 participating countries. They were the 6 Test playing teams of that time namely Australia, England, India, New Zealand Pakistan, and the West Indies. Sri Lanka and East Africa were the non Test playing teams that participated in this inaugural tournament. The preliminary matches were played in 2 groups of 4 each. Sri Lanka of course lost all three preliminary round matches and finished at the bottom of the points table in group 'B'. In the final, the West Indies beat Australia by 17 runs, after an accomplished innings from captain Clive Lloyd (102 from 85 balls, 12 fours, 2 sixes).   [1979] The 1979 Cricket World Cup as the Prudential World Cup, 1979 was the second edition of the tournament and was won by the West Indies. It was held from June 9 to June 23, 1979 in. The format had remained unchanged from 1975. Eight countries participated in the event. The preliminary matches were played in 2 groups of 4 each. The top two teams in each group played the semifinals, whose winners played the final. The matches played consisted of 60 overs per team and were played in traditional white clothing and with red balls. They were all played during the day and hence started early. [1983] The 1983 Cricket World Cup was the third edition of the tournament. It was held from June 9 to 25 1983 in England and was won by India. Eight countries participated in the event. The preliminary matches were played in two groups of four teams each, and each country played the others in its group twice. The top two teams in each group qualified for the semifinals. The matches consisted of 60 overs per team and were played in traditional white clothing and with red balls. They were all played during the day.   [1987] The 1987 Cricket World Cup was the fourth edition of the tournament. It was held from October 8 to November 8, 1987 in India and Pakistan - the first held outside England. The format was unchanged from 1983 except for a reduction in the number of overs a team played from 60 to 50, the current standard. Eight countries participated in the event. The preliminary matches were played in 2 groups of 4 each in which each country played its group mates twice. The top two teams in each group qualified for the semifinals, whose winners played the final. The matches were played with traditional white clothing and with red balls. They were all played during the day. There was no 'Man of the Series' awarded in 1987. The countries participating were: Test teams: Australia (Group A), England (Group B), India (Group A), New Zealand (Group A), Pakistan (Group B), Sri Lanka (Group B), West Indies (Group B). The non Test playing nation was Zimbabwe (Group A).   [1992] The 1992 Cricket World Cup was the fifth edition of the tournament and was held from February 22 to March 25 1992 in Australia and New Zealand. Sponsored by Benson and Hedges it was won by Pakistan who defeated England in the final. The 1992 World Cup was the first to feature coloured player clothing, white cricket balls and black sightscreens with a number of matches being played under floodlights. These innovations had been increasingly used in one day internationals since World Series Cricket introduced them in the late 1970s, but they were not a feature of the first four World Cups. The rule for calculating the target score for the team batting second in rain-affected matches was also changed. The previous rule simply multiplied the run rate of the team batting first by the number of overs available to the team batting second. The 1992 World Cup featured the seven Test teams of the day, South Africa, who would play their first Test in 22 years in the West Indies a month after the World Cup, and Zimbabwe, who would play their first Test match later in 1992. Teams who entered were: Australia (winners of the 1987 World Cup)), England, India, (winners of the 1983 Cricket World Cup), New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies (winners of the 1975 and 1979 Cricket World Cups), Zimbabwe. Co-hosts New Zealand proved the surprise packet of the tournament, winning their first seven games to finish on top of the table after the round robin. The other hosts, Australia, were one of the pre-tournament favourites but lost their first two matches. They recovered somewhat to win four of the remaining six, but narrowly missed out on the semifinals. The West Indies also finished with a 4-4 record, but were just behind Australia on run-rate. South Africa made a triumphant return to international cricket with a win over Australia at the SCG in their first match. They and England had solid campaigns and easily qualified for the semis, despite upset losses to Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe respectively. India had a disappointing tournament and never looked likely to progress beyond the round robin. Sri Lanka were still establishing themselves at the highest level and beat only Zimbabwe (who did not yet have Test status) and South Africa. New Zealand were defeated only twice in the tournament, both times by Pakistan, in their final group match and in the semifinal. Pakistan had been lucky to be in the semifinals at all: following only one victory in their first five matches. [1996] The 1996 Cricket World Cup, also called the Wills World Cup after its official sponsors, was the sixth edition of the tournament organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was the second World Cup to be hosted by India and Pakistan and for the first time by Sri Lanka. The tournament was won by Sri Lanka who defeated Australia in the final. Fifteen-over fielding restrictions had made their debut in 1992, but 1996 was the year the pinch-hitters seized their opportunity. Sri Lanka, Australia and India exploited the open spaces with aggressive early batting; England didn't. The third umpire also made his first appearance. No one had dominated a final to the extent that Aravinda de Silva did in 1996. He took two catches and three wickets, including Australia's top scorers Taylor and Ricky Ponting, then strolled to an elegant 107 not out. Handicapped by a slippery, dew-covered ball, Australia dropped several chances, and never looked like defending 241. Earlier Australia and West Indies forfeited their group matches against Sri Lanka in Colombo, citing security concerns after a bomb went off there before the start of the tournament. Sri Lanka, in addition to offering maximum security to the teams, questioned the validity of citing security concerns when the International Cricket Council had determined it was safe. After extensive negotiations, the ICC ruled that Sri Lanka would be awarded both games on forfeit. As a result of this decision, Sri Lanka automatically qualified for the quarterfinals before playing a game. India hosted 17 matches at 17 different venues, while Pakistan hosted 14 matches at 6 venues and Sri Lanka hosted 6 matches at 3 venues. [1999] The 1999 Cricket World Cup, the seventh edition of the tournament, was hosted primarily by England but Ireland, Wales, Scotland and the Netherlands also hosted some of the games. The World Cup was won by Australia who beat Pakistan by eight wickets at the Lord's Cricket Ground in London in London. New Zealand and South Africa were the other semifinalists. The format of the world cup was the 12 contestants were divided into 2 groups, in each of which teams played each other in the league stage. The top three from each group advanced in to the Super Sixes, a new concept brought about in this World Cup, where each qualifier from group A played with each qualifier from group B. The teams also carried forward their points from games against each qualifier from their group. The top four in the Super Sixes contested the semifinals. Points Carried Forward only applied to the six teams which progressed from the Group Stage of the tournament, those points were the number of points scored against their fellow qualifiers from their respective groups. Points carried forward did not change once in the Super Sixes. [2003] The 2003 Cricket World Cup was the eighth edition of the tournament and was played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya from February 9 to March 24 2003. This was the first time that the Cricket World Cup was held in Africa. The tournament featured 14 teams and 54 matches, the most in the tournament history up to that time. The tournament followed the format introduced in the 1999 Cricket World Cup with the teams divided into 2 groups, and the top three in each group qualifying for the "Super-6" stage. The tournament saw upsets in the first round with South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, and England failing to make it to the Super 6 stage while Zimbabwe and Kenya made it to the Super-6 stage and Kenya, a non-Test playing nation, made the semi-finals of the tournament. The tournament was won by Ricky Ponting's 's Australia who defeated Sourav Ganguly's 's India in the final. Fourteen teams played in the 2003 Cricket World Cup. In the first round, they were divided into two groups of 7 teams. The top three from each group qualified for the "Super Six", carrying forward the results they had achieved against other qualifiers from their group into the Super Six round. The top four teams in the Super Six round qualified for the semi-finals, and the winners of those matches played the final. [2007] The 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the tournament and took place in the West Indies from March 13 to April 28 using the sport's one day international format. There were a total of 51 matches played, three fewer than at the 2003 World Cup despite a field larger by two teams. The 16 competing teams were initially divided into four groups, with the two best-performing teams from each group moving on to a "Super 8" format. From this Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa won through to the semifinals, with Australia defeating Sri Lanka in the final to win their third consecutive World Cup. Australia's unbeaten record in the tournament increased their total to 29 consecutive World Cup matches without loss, a streak dating back to May 23 1999, during the group stage of the 1999 World Cup. The 2007 tournament recorded the highest ticketing revenue for a Cricket World Cup, selling more than 672,000 although, attendance leading into the semifinals for the 2007 World Cup was 403,000; an average of 8,500 supporters per match. The Cricket World Cup 2007 Opening Ceremony was held on Sunday, 11 March 2007, at Trelawny Stadium in Jamaica. It featured over 2000 dancers and performers representing all strands of West Indian music. In the event of bad weather, the Duckworth and Lewis scoring method was applied to determine the result or target. If no result was declared on the scheduled day, the teams returned the next day to complete the game, with the same situation as when the game was abandoned. The refereeing panel comprises seven members from the Elite Panel of ICC Referees, with Clive Lloyd not being included due to his role as West Indies' team manager. Aleem Dar went on to stand as an umpire in his first World Cup final, alongside Steve Bucknor who was appearing in his fifth final in a row - extending his record of four from the 2003 World Cup. The tournament began with a league stage consisting of four groups of four. Each team played each of the other teams in its group once. Australia, India, England and West Indies were placed in separate pools for logistical reasons, as they were expected to have the most supporters in attendance, and transport and accommodation capacity in the West Indies is limited. This was the first World Cup final to be a repeat - the sides previously met in the 1996 World Cup final, which Sri Lanka won. Australia has won every World Cup match against Sri Lanka apart from that loss. The match was Sri Lanka's second World Cup final appearance and Australia's sixth, their fourth in a row. Ricky Ponting won the toss and elected to bat. However, the start of play was delayed due to rain, and the match was reduced to 38 overs per side. Adam Gilchirst played an incredible innings of 149 - the highest for any batsman in a World Cup final - to give Australia an imposing total going in at to break. While Sri Lankan batsmen Kumar Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya were adding 116 for the second wicket, the contest was alive, but after the pair got out, Sri Lanka's chances slowly washed way. Further rain forced the reduction of Sri Lanka's innings to just 36 overs, with the target revised to 269. At the culmination of the 33rd over, with Sri Lanka still trailing the adjusted Duckworth Lewis target by 37 runs, the umpires suspended the game due to bad light. While Australia's players began to celebrate their victory (since the minimum 20 overs had been reached), the umpires incorrectly announced that because the match was suspended due to light and not rain, the final three overs would have to be bowled the following day. With Sri Lanka needing 61 runs from 18 deliveries, Mahela Jayawardene agreed there was no need to return the following day, and instructed his team to resume batting, with Ricky Ponting agreeing to play only spinners. Umpires later apologized for their error, and that the match should have ended then with Australia winning by 37 runs. The last three overs were played in almost complete darkness, during which Sri Lanka added nine runs, giving Australia a 53-run victory via the DL method, as Sri Lanka had batted 2 overs fewer than Australia. Australia won the tournament undefeated, concluding a streak of 29 World Cup games without a loss. Australian bowler Glenn McGrath was named 'Player of the Series'. Meanwhile Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer was found dead on 18 March 2007, one day after his team's defeat to Ireland put them out of the running for the World Cup. Jamaican police performed an autopsy which was deemed inconclusive. The following day police announced that the death was suspicious and ordered a full investigation. Further investigation revealed the cause of death was "manual strangulation", and that the investigation would be handled as a murder. After a lengthy investigation the Jamaican police rescinded the comments that he was murdered, and confirmed that he died from natural causes. The 2007 World Cup organizers were criticized early on for being over-commercialized and, in particular, the generally smaller crowds have been blamed on the ICC's security restrictions on things such as outside food, signs, replica kits and musical instruments. The ICC were also condemned for high prices for tickets and concessions, which were considered unaffordable for the local population in many of the locations. The World Cup was also criticized for its format, with India and Pakistan failing to move on from the group stage after losing two matches. This led to Ireland and Bangladesh entering the long Super Eights stage and consistently being defeated bar another upset by Bangladesh over South Africa. The elimination of India and Pakistan also caused a large exodus of sub continental fans from the Caribbean, and removed the prospect of an India vs Pakistan Super Eights match, generally considered one of the most revenue generating and electric matches in the tournament. The tournament was also criticized as being too long. At 6 weeks, it was the same length as the 2003 World Cup, but longer than the 5 week 1999 World Cup and the 4 week 1996 World Cup. Further criticism was generated by the confusion at the end of the final match, during which the umpires suspended play due to bad light and while official announcements and the scoreboard declared Australia the winners and the Australian team celebrated, while the umpires incorrectly insisted that the game was only suspended not completed, and that 3 overs remained to be played. And so in farcical light conditions, Sri Lanka batted out the 3 overs following a gentleman's agreement between the two captains. The umpires and ICC apologized for the unnecessary situation and cited it as an unnecessary fundamental error due to the pressure of the situation.