Ben Gardner picks out an all-time XI based on performances in the men’s ODI World Cup.

A player’s true worth in limited overs internationals isn’t found in the many, largely forgettable bilateral series, but in the global tournaments that everything leads up to and stems from.

It’s interesting, therefore, to look at what a combined all-time XI might look like based only on performances in World Cup events. We’ve put our heads together and come up with the following, pretty handy team.

Stats in bold refer to World Cup matches only

Wisden’s all-time men’s Cricket World Cup XI – the selections

Sachin Tendulkar

2278 runs @ 56.95, SR: 88.98, 6 100s, HS: 152

There are very few run-scoring lists Sachin Tendulkar isn’t near the top of, and the chart of overall World Cup run-scorers is no exception. Only two other players have even 1,500 World Cup runs. The Little Master’s numbers are boosted by heavy returns against the Associates, with half of his World Cup hundreds coming against Kenya and Namibia, but he saved his best for last, making centuries against South Africa and England and an ice-cool 85 in the semi-final against Pakistan as India won their second title in the 2011 edition.

Rohit Sharma

978 runs @ 65.20, SR: 95.97, 6 100s, HS: 140

Rohit Sharma had a good maiden World Cup campaign in 2015, averaging just under 50 and making a quarter-final ton to keep a spirited Bangladesh side at arm’s length. But in 2019 he was something else altogether, comfortable in his status as one of the greatest openers in ODI history, racking up hundred after hundred in the group stage – five of them in all, meaning no batsman in World Cup history has made more centuries.

Ricky Ponting (c)

1743 runs @ 45.86, SR: 79.95, 5 100s, HS: 140*

The bedrock of the batting order that won three consecutive World Cups between 1999 and 2007, Ricky Ponting’s crowning moment was his unbeaten 140 against India in the middle of those finals. He signed off with a century against the same opponents in 2011, though a rousing return to form wasn’t enough to disrupt the hosts.

Kumar Sangakkara (wk)

1532 runs @ 56.74, SR: 86.55, 5 100s, HS: 124

Kumar Sangakkara’s World Cup career can be split into two halves. In his first two campaigns, in 2003 and 2007, he was a capable contributor, making four half-centuries and averaging around 30. In his last two, he was Bradman reincarnate, averaging in excess of 100, making five hundreds, and falling for less than 30 just once. In 2015, he made four consecutive hundreds, a feat matched only by New Zealand’s Amy Satterthwaite in ODI cricket. Even when it all came to an end there was valiance, with his scratchy 45 the highest score of a disastrous quarter-final against South Africa, with Sangakkara the ninth wicket to fall.

Viv Richards

1013 runs @ 63.31, SR: 85.05, 3 100s, HS: 181

The original, and still arguably the greatest, Viv Richards marked his first final with a trio of pinpoint run outs before sealing the 1979 trophy with an imperious century. It was only his dismissal, to one of the great catches, that had India starting to believe in the 1983 showpiece.

AB de Villiers

1207 runs @ 63.53, SR: 117.29, 4 100s, HS: 162*

More than anyone else on this list, AB de Villiers’ World Cup tale is a poignant ‘what if?’ rather than an out-and-out triumph. In 2015, he was in the form of his life, having recently broken the records for the fastest ODI fifty, century, and 150, and seemed ready to launch having made his way to 60 off 38 with 12 overs to bowl when the rain fell in South Africa’s semi-final against New Zealand. When play resumed with eight overs lost, de Villiers’ rhythm was broken and he managed just five runs off his last seven balls. The Black Caps eventually won one of the great World Cup matches. Still, AB’s otherworldly stats earn him a place on this list.

Lance Klusener

372 runs @ 124, SR: 121.17, HS: 57; 22 wickets @ 22.13, ER: 4.82, 2 4WIs, BBI: 5-21

Lance Klusener’s 1999 World Cup might be the single greatest campaign any player has ever had. His explosive, consistent cameos carried South Africa to the brink of the final only for an Allan Donald dropped bat to see them deprived at the last.

Wasim Akram

55 wickets @ 22.87, ER: 4.04, 3 4WIs, BBI: 5-28; 426 runs @ 19.36, SR: 101.18, HS: 43

Pakistan’s Cornered Tigers scripted one of the most remarkable World Cup triumphs in 1992, and Wasim Akram was right at the heart of it, taking nine wickets in three clutch games, including a spell-binding two-in-two burst to turn the final decisively towards his side. In 1999 he was back at it, claiming 15 wickets as Pakistan fell at the last hurdle.

Mitchell Starc

49 wickets @ 14.81, ER: 4.64, 6 4WIs, BBI: 6-28; 

Only five bowlers in history have managed more wickets in a single World Cup campaign than Mitchell Starc’s 22 in 2015, and one of those is Starc himself, who claimed a world record 27 scalps in 2019. His three World Cup five-fors is also a record. If you’re looking for individual performances, two against New Zealand stand out. In their 2015 group stage encounter, his 6-28 took the Black Caps from 78-1 to 146-9 in pursuit of 152, only for Kane Williamson to seal the game. In the final, his dismissal of Brendon McCullum in the first over was a devastating symbolic blow, and New Zealand never recovered.

Glenn McGrath

71 wickets @ 18.19, ER: 3.96, 2 4WIs, BBI: 7-15

If Ricky Ponting was the batsman at the heart of Australia’s World Cup dominance, Glenn McGrath was the bowler underpinning his efforts. No one has taken more World Cup wickets, and his 7-15, admittedly against Namibia, means the metronomic seamer holds the record for the best figures in the tournament too.

Muttiah Muralitharan

68 wickets @ 19.63, ER: 3.88, 4 4WIs, BBI: 4-19

Murali is a World Cup winner, though he wasn’t yet the devastating match-winner he would become in 1996, taking just seven wickets, though he did keep the runs down. It was in 2003 and 2007 that he was at his best, claiming 40 wickets across both editions, with Sri Lanka downed by Australia in the semi-final and final of those tournaments respectively.

Wisden’s all-time men’s Cricket World Cup XI – the line-up

1. Sachin Tendulkar
2. Rohit Sharma
3. Ricky Ponting (c)
4. Kumar Sangakkara (wk)
5. Viv Richards
6. AB de Villiers
7. Lance Klusener
8. Wasim Akram
9. Mitchell Starc
10. Glenn McGrath
11. Muttiah Muralitharan

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