Three in a row
The 2007 World Cup was the first to be held in the West Indies. It was a departure of sorts from previous editions. The ten Test nations together with ODI status holder Kenya were joined by qualifiers from the 2005 ICC trophy: Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland, making it the biggest tournament.
Champions: Australia
The format may have been different, but the outcome was the same as 2003. Australia occupied a plane above that of any other team. They progressed unchallenged throughout the tournament, extending their World Cup undefeated streak to an eye-popping 29 matches, dating back to the group stage of the 1999 World Cup.
Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden showed their value in the final when they piled on 172 runs for the first wicket against Sri Lanka. Hayden was the highest scorer with 659 runs, and Gilchrist was the man-of-the-final, scoring an explosive 104-ball 149.
The vaunted trio of Darren Lehmann, Michael Bevan and Damien Martyn made way for Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey, excellent players of spin, and Shane Watson. Allrounders Watson and Andrew Symonds looked after the pyrotechnics while also making valuable contributions with their bowling.
With the exception of Sri Lanka’s victory in 1996, an exceptional bowling attack has been one of the more important attributes of a cup-winning side, and it was no different with Australia. With Brett Lee out injured, Australia still had the legendary Glenn McGrath leading the charge. He created a new record by snaring 26 victims, and a mark of his consistency was that the highest number of wickets he took in a match was only three, meaning he was a regular wicket-taker throughout the tournament. In Lee’s stead, another lightning fast bowler — Shaun Tait — took the world by storm. His slingy action and fiery pace took 23 wickets and he finished in third place in the wickets chart. Backing them up was Nathan Bracken, the one-day specialist who was especially effective with his changes of pace and cutters at the death, and the chinaman Brad Hogg, who finished fourth on the wickets list with 21 wickets. It is a testimony to their bowling strength that of the six top bowlers in the tournament, four were Australian.
They marched unobstructed through the competition, and decimated Sri Lanka in the final in Bridgetown to complete an unprecedented World Cup hattrick, and add a fourth Cup to their bursting trophy cabinet.
