44 years. 114 players. 83 World Cup games including four finals. A tie. A first-ever Super Over in an ODI. A tie in the Super Over. It took all these for the creators of the game to finally lift the coveted World Cup trophy. The last time England were competitive in World Cups, ODIs did not have an identity of their own and existed as a condensed form of Test cricket. They failed to make it to the semifinals across six consecutive editions, a period which saw Sri Lanka, who never made it to a World Cup semifinal till then, lifting a World title and Kenya playing a semifinal.
ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP 2019
England broke long-standing records en route first WC win
After a turnaround post the infamous exit in Australia four years ago, England altered their outlook to ODI cricket, revamped their entire system and prioritized ODIs. © Getty
After a turnaround post the infamous exit in Australia four years ago, England altered their outlook to ODI cricket, revamped their entire system and prioritized ODIs, even if it meant putting Test cricket on the backburner. The results are there to see and it culminated with their first major 50-over title win at the Home of Cricket. For England to win their first World title, they had to break almost all of their long-standing records in the tournament. Here are a few of them:
Most runs in a World Cup:
New record holder: Joe Root - 556 runs
Previous record holder: Graham Gooch - 471 runs in 1987
Honorable mentions:Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes, who finished the tournament with 532 and 465 runs respectively
Root became the first English player to score 500 runs in a World Cup ©Cricbuzz
Most wickets in a World Cup
New record holder: Jofra Archer - 20 wickets
Previous record holder: Ian Botham - 16 wickets in 1992
Honorable mention: Mark Wood and Chris Woakes, who finished with 18 and 16 wickets respectively
Mark Wood and Chris Woakes finished with 18 and 16 wickets respectively ©Cricbuzz
Most individual hundreds scored in a World Cup:
Hundreds scored by England in 2019 World Cup: Seven
Previous most in a World Cup: Two each in 1975, 1983, 2007 and 2015
In the eight editions of the tournament between 1987 and 2015, England cumulatively scored as many centuries as they did in 2019 alone - seven.
In the eight editions of the tournament between 1987 and 2015, England cumulatively scored as many centuries as they did in 2019 alone ©Cricbuzz
Most sixes in a World Cup:
New record: 76 sixes in 2019 - most by any team in an edition of the World Cup
Previous record: 22 sixes in 2007
For the record, Eoin finished the tournament with most sixes - 22 - incidentally, the most by England in a World Cup in the first 11 editions.
England hit 25 sixes in their match against Afghanistan which is the most by any team in an ODI.
(For more on England's six-hitting in the Manchester game against Afghanistan, click here)
Eoin finished the tournament with most sixes ©Cricbuzz
Most century partnerships in a World Cup:
Most 100-plus partnerships in a World Cup: 11 by England in 2019 - most by a team in an edition of a World Cup
Previous-most for England: Four in 2011
Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow became the first pair to put together four 100-plus partnerships in a single tournament and they did so in four consecutive innings. 576 runs put together by the duo is the most by an England pair in a World Cup.
The 189-run stand between Joe Root and Eoin Morgan for the third wicket against Afghanistan in Manchester was England's highest-ever partnership in a World Cup game for any wicket surpassing 176 between Denis Amiss and Keith Fletcher in the first-ever game of the World Cup, in 1975.
Most 300-plus totals in a World Cup:
New record: England - six instances in 2019
Previous record: Five by Australia in 2007
In 11 previous editions of the World Cup, England managed just eight 300-plus totals of which three came in 60-overs-a-side contests and two of the remaining five were scored against Associates (of which one they ended up losing).
The previous most number of 300-plus totals for England in a single edition previously was two each in 1983, 2011 and 2015.
England also racked up two of their highest World Cup totals in this year - 397 for six against Afghanistan and 386 for six against Bangladesh eclipsing the previous record of 338 for eight against India in Bengaluru in 2011.
An English wrist spinner in a World Cup:
Adil Rashid became the first wristspinner to play for England in a World Cup game. He finished with 11 wickets and 18 wickets by England spinners is the joint second-most in a single edition of the World Cup after 19 in the 1987 one in the subcontinent.
Most catches in a World Cup:
New record holder: Joe Root - 13 catches
Previous record holder: Ricky Ponting - 11 catches in 2003
Last but not the least, England won seven matches en route their maiden World title - the most for them in a single edition of the tournament. The previous most they had won was six in 1992 which incidentally was the last instance of them making it to the semifinals before 2019. Their three losses in the tournament is only the second instance of a World Cup winning team losing three matches in that tournament after Pakistan did so in 1992.
[Graphics by Sandipan Chowdhury]
© Cricbuzz
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