All the Men’s T20 World Cup winners from 2007 to 2016
The introduction of the T20I format in 2005 started a new revolution in international cricket. This format soon became the most entertaining and interesting one catching the viewers’ attention. It also helped in improving the reach of the game given a shorter duration of match time. Later in 2007, the International Cricket Council (ICC) conducted the first-ever World Cup in 20-over cricket.
In this article, we will be listing out details of the winners of all the editions of the T20 World Cup:
T20 WC 2007: India
This was the first-ever World Cup in the shortest format after the introduction of T20Is. At that time, the players and teams were still learning to accommodate in the new format. The Indian team went with many new faces, and captaincy was given to young wicketkeeper MS Dhoni. In the initial group stages, India performed well to confirm their berth in the semi-final where they defeated Australia.
In the final encounter, India posted a total of 157/5 with the help of a brilliant knock of 75 runs from Gautam Gambhir. In response, Pakistan could manage only 152 runs in the tense chase losing the game by 5 runs. Irfan Pathan was adjudged player of the final, while Shahid Afridi won the player of the tournament award.
T20 WC 2009: Pakistan
After missing out on a chance to win the trophy in the inaugural edition, Pakistan came back strongly in 2009 to win the title. They defeated South Africa by 7 runs in the first semi-final, while on the other hand, Sri Lanka won the second semi-final against West Indies.
In the final match, Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara won the toss and elected to bat first. The team could score only 138/6 in 20 overs with skipper Sangakkara hitting 64 runs off 52 balls. In the chase, Shahid Afridi played a fine knock of 54 runs to help Pakistan win the trophy with 8 balls to spare.
T20 WC 2010: England
The 2010 edition of the T20 World Cup was the first-ever ICC trophy win for England’s men’s team. In the semi-final 1, England won against Sri Lanka by 7 wickets with 24 balls remaining. They met Australia in the final who cruised over the defending champions Pakistan by 3 wickets in the second semi-final.
Batting first, Australia managed to score 147/6 with some late blows from David Hussey and Cameron White. England lost their first wicket early in the chase but Craig Kieswetter played a wonderful knock of 63 runs to ensure a win for his side. England won the game by 7 wickets in 17 overs to lift the title.
T20 WC 2012: West Indies
The 2012 edition of the T20 World Cup brought back some glory for the West Indies team after a long time. In the first semi-final of this tournament, Sri Lanka demolished Pakistan to register a victory by 16 runs. While in the second semi-final, West Indies won by a big margin of 74 runs against Australia.
While batting first in the final, West Indies were in serious trouble but Marlon Samuels held one end to power them to a respectable total of 137/6. He smashed 78 runs off 56 balls with the help of 3 fours and 6 sixes. The Sri Lankan team could not pose a challenge in the final and got dismissed for 101 runs losing the match by 36 runs.
T20 WC 2014: Sri Lanka
After losing multiple finals of ICC tournaments, the Sri Lankan team finally got the taste of victory in the 2014 T20 World Cup. They were up against India, who had earlier defeated South Africa in the semi-final, in the final. On the other side, Sri Lanka reached the finals after defeating West Indies by 27 runs.
Batting first, India made a below-par score of 130/4 in 20 overs. Virat Kohli was the top scorer for the team with 77 runs off 58 balls. Sri Lanka chased the target quite comfortably with Kumar Sangakkara hitting a fifty. They won the game by 6 wickets with 13 balls to spare.
T20 WC 2016: West Indies
West Indies became the first team to win the T20 World Cup twice with their victory in the 2016 edition. They defeated India in the second semi-final while England won against New Zealand by 7 wickets in the first semi-final.
In the final, the English side posted a total of 155/9 with the help of a 54-run knock from Joe Root. For the most part of the chase, England were ahead and needed to defend 19 runs in the last over. However, Carlos Brathwaite created history by hitting four consecutive sixes in the last over to win the trophy for his country.
