The 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup is currently underway, with the 20-team tournament the largest one yet, as the competition grows in stature with each tournament. The tournament has come a long way since the first tournament in 2007 when T20 cricket was still considered a bit of a novelty in the cricket world. Check out some classic matches from the T20 World Cup:
Zimbabwe shocks Australia
Zimbabwe was not expected to beat Australia when the two teams met in 2007, as the Zimbabwe cricket team was still reeling from the mass exodus of players in 2003 for political reasons. Further, the team had not won a single game in the ODI World Cup the same year and had been on a recent hiatus from test cricket, meaning the odds-makers had Australia as 50:1 favourites.
Australia posted a modest 138 on a sluggish pitch, with Andrew Symonds and Brad Hodge scoring quick 30s as Zimbabwe captain, Prosper Utseya, juggled his medium-pacers and spinners effectively Brendan Taylor was integral to the chase, scoring 60 not out off 45 balls, as Zimbabwe reached the target of the penultimate ball of the final over.
India wins first final in a thriller
With their group stage match having ended in a tie and bowl-out, India and Pakistan met again in the 2007 final at the Wanderers, Johannesburg. And the game turned out to be another thriller, as India won by 5 runs. India reached a total of 157 thanks to 75 from opener Gautam Gambhir and a rapid 30 from 20-year-old Rohit Sharma. Pakistan’s Imran Nazir then replied with a breathtaking 33 off 14 balls before he was run out from a direct hit from Robin Uthappa.
This dismissal helped turn the match as India's seamers took regular wickets. However, Misbah-ul-Haq kept Pakistan in the game, and a 6 off the second ball of Joginder Sharma's final over meant that six runs were required from four balls with one wicket in hand. Misbah decided to go for the scoop, but couldn’t get it over the head of short fine leg, resulting in India becoming the first T20 world champions.
Pakistan gets “Husseyed” in the 2010semi-final
“Mr Cricket”, Mike Hussey, was the hero for Australia in the 2010 semifinal against Pakistan as the Aussies came back from a losing position to win by 3 wickets with 1 ball remaining. Pakistan had posted an imposing total of 191 thanks to fifties from Kamran and Umar Akmal. In reply, Australia floundered and needed 87 off 45 balls when Hussey joined Cameron White in the middle. While White gave the innings impetus by hammering five sixes in his 43, 53 runs were still needed off 21 balls when he was dismissed. Hussey then took the reins, helping Australia to score 16 runs in the 19th over, with two boundaries and four twos.
When the final over from Saeed Ajmal began, there were still 18 runs required. After Mitchell Johnson took a single off the first ball, Hussey scored 6, 6, 4, 6 to win it with a ball to spare. Hussey’s 60 not-out off 24 balls is still considered one of the greatest T20I innings.
Bangladesh blow it against India
India pulled off one of the great escapes in modern cricket history when they beat Bangladesh by 1 run in the 2016 T20 World Cup. The match seemed over when Bangladesh batsman Mushfiqur Rahim hit consecutive fours off Hardik Pandya in the 20th over, which left Bangladesh only needing 2 runs from 3 balls to win. Instead of calmly accumulating the 2 singles required for the win, Rahim and his batting partner Mahmudullah tried to win it with big shots and ended up getting caught in the deep, which meant that new batsman Shuvagata Hom had to score two off the final ball. Hom missed the ball, and as the batsmen tried to steal a bye to tie the game, keeper MS Dhoni sprinted to the stumps to effect the run-out and steal the win.
Braithwaite writes his name across T20 World Cup history
Carlos Braithwaite was the hero as he scored 4 consecutive sixes in the 20th over off a dejected Ben Stokes to help the West Indies beat England in the 2016 T20 World Cup Final and give the Caribbean team their second World T20 trophy. The final had high drama from the start, with England slipping early to 23 for 3 before Joe Root (54 off 36) and Jos Buttler (36 off 22) resurrected the innings and helped England score a respectable 155.
Root then got in the act again when the West Indies were batting, taking 2 wickets in the second over, including the massive wicket of Chris Gayle. Marlon Samuels stepped up to the plate to steer the Windies back on course, scoring 85 not out off 66 as wickets fell around him. However, the West Indies still required 19 from the final over, a task that seemed mightily difficult until Brathwaite stepped up to provide one of cricket’s iconic moments.
Get Your Game On at the T20 World Cup
With 55 matches being played, there is so much cricket to enjoy at the 2024 T20 World Cup. Don’t miss out on the action and head on over to www.gbets.co.za to place your bets. No matter which team wins the tournament, make sure that you’re a big winner!