As the days to the start of the 13th World Cup to be held in India are inching closer, we are back with another round of stats-based articles related to the quadrennial event. This time on the teams with the most number of wins in an ICC Cricket World Cup game.
So far, there have been 12 World Cup editions held, and 19 different teams have played at least one game in the ODI format’s pinnacle event.
Just like in every other team sport, such as football or hockey, the sides participating have to go through a hard grind to reach the knockout stages and ultimately win the whole thing to be called the champions in the world of cricket. Winning the traditional limited-overs format is something else, and only 6 teams thus far have experienced it.
To go this far in the tournament, a side has to be consistent and play a good brand of cricket in the group games or league stages. They need to win almost every game in their way, which makes the World Cup so competitive and unpredictable.
Here we list the top sides with the most number of wins in the ODI World Cup history.
Teams with Most Wins in ODI World Cup
| Team | No. of Matches | Wins | Losses | Win % | No. of Appearances in WC | Titles Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 105 | 78 | 25 | 74.28 | 13 | 6 |
| India | 95 | 63 | 30 | 66.31 | 13 | 2 |
| New Zealand | 99 | 59 | 38 | 59.59 | 13 | 0 |
| England | 92 | 51 | 38 | 55.43 | 13 | 1 |
| Pakistan | 88 | 49 | 37 | 55.68 | 13 | 1 |
| South Africa | 74 | 45 | 26 | 60.81 | 9 | 0 |
| West Indies | 80 | 43 | 35 | 53.75 | 12 | 2 |
| Sri Lanka | 89 | 40 | 45 | 44.94 | 13 | 1 |
| Bangladesh | 49 | 16 | 31 | 32.65 | 7 | 0 |
| Zimbabwe | 57 | 11 | 42 | 19.29 | 9 | 0 |
Key insights from the above stats
4: Among the top 5 teams listed here, except New Zealand, all the other 4 sides have won the ODI World Cup at least once in the tournament’s history. The Blackcaps are the only side listed here that has yet to win the mega event.
The other sides in ODI history who have won the World Cup at least once are Sri Lanka and the West Indies, who come down in the pecking order regarding the number of matches won in World Cups.
3: As things stand, only 3 nations have secured 50+ wins in World Cup cricket among the 9 countries that have played over 50 ODI World Cup games and the 19 teams that have featured in a World Cup game at least once.
94: Australia, as expected, has featured in the most number of ODI World Cup games, having played 94 times in ODI cricket’s showpiece event. This includes 18 matches in the World Cup knockouts, which is also the most by any cricket nation.
69: The Aussies are at it again when it comes to the most number of wins in ODI World Cups. They have won a record 69 World Cup games, which they may extend in the upcoming World Cup thanks to their penchant for wins at the event.
Like the group stage, Australia has dominated the knockouts as well, winning 13 out of the 18 games they have featured in. The next closest to this mark is India, which has won 8 games out of 13 World Cup knockout fixtures.
Also Read: Top 5: Captains with Most Wins in ODI World Cup
5: The number of times Australia has gone on to win the World Cup event, the most by any team in the event’s 48-year history. The fact that Australia has won 5 out of the 12 ODI World Cups speaks volumes about the team as a whole in the quadrennial event.
The next best are the West Indies and India, who have won 2 World Cups each. Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and England (current defending champions) each won one of the other 3 World Cups.
89: New Zealand comes in 2nd in the number of games played in the World Cups, as the Kiwis have been part of 89 games since making their debut in the inaugural edition of the World Cup. They have also won the second-most number of games when it comes to the ODI World Cups, with 54 wins and 33 losses, but as mentioned earlier, they are yet to win the whole thing.
But we need to credit New Zealand for being one of the most consistent sides in the ODI mega event despite not winning even once, as they have reached the finals in the last 2 editions (losing both) and previously entered the Semi-final stages on 6 other occasions. These performances make them among the top 2 on this list. At the same time, New Zealand also has the most number of losses on this list, as they have lost 32 times.
84: The number of games played by India in the history of the ODI World Cup, including the 13 knockout games, which is the second most behind Australia. India is the joint second-most successful team in the ICC Cricket World Cup, having won the title twice (1983 and 2011).
53: India is the 3rd most successful team in the World Cup with an incredible 53 wins since their debut in the 1975 edition. They won only a solitary game in the first 2 editions of the World Cup before making a comeback in the third, surprising everyone with their incredible triumph.
Their good run extended to most of the subsequent World Cups, and that includes their successful World Cup win in 2011 at home. Incidentally, India will host the upcoming World Cup.
Also Read: Predicting the Indian Squad for 2023 World Cup
45: Number of wins by the Pakistani cricket team in World Cups since making their debut in 1975. The men in green won the title once in 1992 under the leadership of Imran Khan and are one of the successful sides in this tournament.
At the same time, they have also faced 32 defeats from the 78 games they featured in, meaning their consistency is not as good as that of other sides like India and Australia. Their win percentage is 56.96, which might have to improve if they are to win the World Cup for the second time.
48: The number of games won by the England cricket team in the ICC Cricket World Cup. They have played 83 games in this marquee ODI cricket tournament and are the current World Champions, having won for the first time in the year 2019.
The side led by Jos Buttler will look to better their winning percentage, which currently stands at 57.83, by becoming the third side to successfully defend their World Cup title after the West Indies (1979) and Australia (2003 & 2007).
73.40: The winning percentage of Australia in the ODI World Cup, and this was on the expected lines as the Kangaroos have been the most consistent ODI team in the 5 decades of ODI cricket.
They hold the record for almost everything considered great in ODIs, and their epic World Cup achievements are not surprising. In fact, they have lost the least number of games, along with South Africa, of the teams that have played a minimum of 50 World Cup games.
