Cricket, the Gentleman’s Game, is a sports bettor’s paradise, In this blog, we discuss some of the world’s best cricket tournaments.
Top 5 Best Cricket Tournament In The World.
The sport has evolved with the times, and today, we have three primary formats between which all the top cricket tournaments in the world and in India are played.
The first format to be ever introduced, Test cricket involves two teams battling it out session-by-session over five long days and four innings. It is the real battle of resilience, grit, and determination.
And in ODI format, two teams lock horns, each with 50 overs (300 legal deliveries) to bat. An ODI typically lasts up to nine hours, given that it’s an uninterrupted game.
Twenty20 is the newest format of the sport, introduced by the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) back in 2003.
The two teams play 20 overs a side (120 legal deliveries), with each game typically lasting up to three hours (including the official 10-minute gap between innings).
Here are some of the best cricket tournaments in the world:
1. ICC Men’s 50-Over Cricket World Cup
This is the real deal, the pinnacle of ODI cricket. Officially called the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, this flagship quadrennial showpiece is the ultimate honour in limited-overs cricket.
| Administrator | International Cricket Council (ICC) |
|---|---|
| Format | One Day International |
| First edition | 1975 England |
| Latest edition | 2019 England & Wales |
| Next edition | 2023 India |
Organised by the ICC every four years, the 50-over World Cup regularly features as one of the world’s most viewed broadcasts.
England is the current World Cup champion after winning the 2019 edition. The next chapter of this top international cricket tournament will be hosted in India in 2023, followed by the subsequent edition in 2027, which will be jointly held by South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.
2. ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
The first-ever ICC Men’s T20 World Cup was held in 2007 in South Africa, with a young and largely inexperienced Indian side emerging as the champion under the stewardship of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
| Administrator | International Cricket Council (ICC) |
|---|---|
| Format | Twenty20 International |
| First edition | 2007 |
| Latest edition | 2021 |
| Next edition | 2022 |
Currently, 16 teams participate in the T20 World Cup, but that number will become 20 starting from 2024.
Australia, the current T20 world champion, will host the next edition of the tournament in 2022, scheduled from October 16 – November 13.
3. Asia Cup
First held in 1984, the Asia Cup is one of its kind. That’s because it keeps alternating between ODI and T20 formats every two years, with the winning team crowned the champions in Asia.
| Administrator | Asian Cricket Council |
|---|---|
| Format | ODI & T20I |
| First edition | 1984 ( UAE) |
| Latest edition | 2018 ( UAE) |
| Next edition | 2022 ( UAE ) |
The 2016 Asia Cup was the first edition to be played as T20I, serving as a preparatory tournament for the T20 World Cup the same year.
India has been the most successful team in the Asia Cup, winning the championship a record seven times (one T20 and six ODI). With five titles, Sri Lanka is the second most successful.
The next edition of what is undoubtedly one of the most popular cricket tournaments in India (and the Indian sub-continent) will be held in 2022, scheduled from August 27 – September 11.
4. The Ashes
Inarguably one of the top cricket tournaments in the world, The Ashes is in a league of its own.
Each Ashes is typically a 5-Test series, hosted by Australia and England in turn, at least once every couple of years.
| Countries | Australia England |
|---|---|
| Administrator | International Cricket Council |
| Format | Test cricket |
| First edition | 1882–83 (Australia) |
| Latest edition | 2021–22 (Australia) |
| Next edition | 2023 (England) |
The team that wins the series is regarded to have earned the Ashes. In the case of a drawn series, the team that won the Ashes the previous time retains the trophy.
The latest Ashes was held in 2021-22, where Australia decimated England 4-0.
5. ICC Champion’s Trophy
The ICC Champions Trophy was an ODI tournament, second in significance only to the 50-over World Cup.
| Administrator | International Cricket Council |
|---|---|
| Format | One-Day International |
| First edition | 1998 Bangladesh |
| Latest edition | 2017 England & Wales |
| Next edition | 2025 Pakistan |
Inaugurated in 1998 as the ICC Knockout Tournament, it has been played every four years since. In 2002, the name was changed to Champions Trophy.
Interestingly, the 2013 Champions Trophy was supposed to be the last edition of this top cricket tournament. However, due to its massive popularity, the ICC extended it till 2017.
It was in 2018 when the ICC decided to replace it with the T20 World Cup, which was to be held every two years.
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