1987 World Cup: India’s win in the 1983 World Cup changed the world order. Pakistan had slowly started establishing itself as one of the tougher cricketing nations. Sri Lanka in the 80s had completely overcome the minnows tag. The Asian dominance in cricket had slowly started showing signs. It was reflected in the fact that the World Cup was moved out of England. This was a very big move considering all the World Cups so far was played in the nation.
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The coup that combined:
It was the brainchild of Jagmohan Dalmiya that the tournament was brought to the subcontinent. There were many big forces who were involved in bringing the World Cup to India and Pakistan. The shift in the World Cup venue also brought in a new sponsor for the tournament. Reliance agreed to sponsor the tournament and the 1987 World Cup was called the Reliance Cup. One of the semis was slotted to be played in Lahore and the other one in Mumbai (Bombay then). The final was to be played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The format was shortened to 50-overs:
Apart from one big change, all other facets remained as is in the 1987 World Cup. The format in itself was reduced to 50-overs per side. Teams were divided into two groups of four each. Both hosts were placed in different groups. India headlined Group A along with Australia, New Zealand, and Zimbabwe. Pakistan was the top seed in Group B. England, West Indies, and Sri Lanka completed Group B.
The World Cup once again had a new winner:
India and Pakistan were strong contenders to lift the trophy as the tournament was played in familiar conditions. Both the host nations though lost their respective semi-finals. West Indies, the former world champions failed to qualify even for the semis. Australia and England contested the final. The game was set to reward a new winner. Australia emerged champions as they defeated England by 7 runs in a closely fought final. There were many standout performers throughout the World Cup.
We look at the biggest game-changer of the 1987 World Cup: Steve Waugh
It was not until the 1999 World Cup that he would lead the side to glory. But Steve Waugh had provided glimpses of his greatness in his first World Cup tournament. He was known as the ice-man because he could absorb pressure no matter what the stakes of the game. The current generation might know Waugh as a solid middle-order batter but Steve Waugh in the 1987 World Cup was a bonafide allrounder. He played his part with both bat and the ball across all games.
The all-round brilliance to trump both the hosts:
In the first match against India, Waugh smashed crucial 19 runs in the last over. Australia scraped through by a run to defeat the home side. Waugh continued to flourish in tense situations. He did a similar job in the game against New Zealand defending just 7 runs.
Waugh once again pulled out the long handle to oust Pakistan from the World Cup in the semis at Lahore. He smashed an unbeaten 32 including 16 off the final over. The Aussies won the game with a margin of 18 runs to book a place in the final.
The final stretch of brilliance:
Just when it appeared that England might pull off a heist against the Aussies in the final, Waugh stepped up once again. He removed Allan Lamb and Phillip DeFreitas in the 47th and 49th over respectively. Waugh returned with figures of 2-37 in 9 overs. He had an incredible tournament scoring 167 runs at an average of 55.66 and picked up 11 wickets at 26.18!
