ICC Champions Trophy-History year by year (From 1998 – 2013)
Initially known as the ‘Mini World Cup’ put in place to raise funds for the game’s development, the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy will mark its eighth edition when England lock horns against Bangladesh in the first game at the Oval, London.
The June 1-18 tournament will be held in England for the third time.
In what can be termed as the lowest point in their cricketing history, West Indies won’t feature in the tournament as they weren’t among the top eight teams in ICC rankings on September 30, 2015 – the cut-off date for qualification. Bangladesh will return to the tournament for the first time since 2006.
Here’s a look at the previous seven editions of the ICC Champions Trophy:
Year: 1998
Host: Bangladesh
winner:South Africa
The 50-over tournament was launched with the first two editions called the ‘ICC Knockout’. The inaugural edition was officially named the Wills International Cup.
The tournament, held from October 24 to November 1, saw South Africa winning their first and till date their only ICC event. Hansie Cronje’s side downed Sri Lanka by 92 runs (D/L) in the semi-final, and riding on Jacques Kallis’ all-round show, got the better of West Indies in the final. With 164 runs and eight wickets in three games, Kallis won the Man-of-the-Match and Man-of-the-Tournament awards.
Special Mention:
Innings of the tournament – Sachin Tendulkar’s 141 against Australia.
The way he played Michael Kasprowicz and Co was breathtaking. His innings was studded with 13 fours and three sixes.
Year: 2000
Host: Kenya
winner:New Zealand
For the second consecutive time, India’s first game was against the mighty Australia, captained by Steve Waugh. A 80-ball 84 from debutant Yuvraj Singh guided India to a 20-run upset win and knocked out the world champions.
In the semi-final, new skipper Sourav Ganguly’s 141 (against South Africa) left India one step from glory while Shayne O’Connor and Roger Twose’s brilliance sealed the deal for New Zealand against Pakistan.
In the final, Chris Cairns’ unbeaten 102 with a dodgy knee upstaged Ganguly’s 117 as the Kiwis, for the only time, won an ICC event. The victory was made sweeter as they had major injury issues during the tournament. Cairns, Daniel Vettori and Dion Nash missed the semi-final but the others stepped up to the plate as they went on to be crowned champions.
Year: 2002
Host: Sri Lanka
winner: india-sri lanka
Sri Lanka were in magnificent form in the group stage, and after crushing Australia in the semifinal, a second ICC tournament win was on the cards.
Sourav Ganguly-led India, after defeating Zimbabwe and England, pulled off a win over South Africa to reach their second ICC Champions Trophy final. Virender Sehwag’s three-wicket haul and Yuvraj Singh’s acrobatics helped India to a 10-run win after Shaun Pollock’s men were 194/1 in the 38th over chasing 262. With Sri Lanka proving a tough nut to crack, an enthralling final was on its way.
But rain played spoilsport in the final, including the reserve day after the game was started afresh, and India and Sri Lanka were declared joint winners. Sehwag finished as the leading run-getter (271) while Muttiah Muralitharan was the highest wicket-taker (10).
Year: 2004
Host: England
winner: West Indies
Twelve teams competed in 15 matches played within 15 days and the final was played between the hosts and West Indies.
Marcus Trescothick’s well-compiled 104 and Ashley Giles’ 31 propelled England to 217. In reply, the Windies lost wickets at regular intervals and were reeling at 147/8. Courtney Browne and Ian Bradshaw came to the rescue and their unbeaten 71-run partnership left Michael Vaughan’s side gutted as West Indies lifted their first Champions Trophy title with seven balls to spare.
The triumph was just what Caribbean cricket needed, something they had never expected with the kind of form they were in coming into the tournament.
Year: 2006
Host: India
winner:australia
The Aussies won the only prize missing from their impressive trophy cabinet. After performing brilliantly in the group stage, Ricky Ponting’s men dismantled New Zealand in the semis and upstaged defending champions West Indies by eight wickets in the final. Shane Watson was the Man-of-the-Match, scoring 57 and taking two wickets.
The tournament had its fair share of controversies. Before it started, Pakistan fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif were banned for using performance-enhancing drugs. At the presentation ceremony after the final, the Australian team was accused of ‘misbehaving’ for pushing aside BCCI President Sharad Pawar on the victory podium. Some wanted action to be taken against the champions but the matter was put to rest after Ponting apologised to Pawar.
Year: 2009
Host: South Africa
winner:Australia
It was another chance for ‘Nice Guys’ New Zealand to finish first but Australia, led by Shane Watson’s century, successfully defended the title after going through a lean patch in limited-overs for almost a year.
With Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin and Nathan Bracken missing, the job wasn’t as easy. But Ricky Ponting’s inspired leadership and stellar shows from Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle and Tim Paine enabled Australia to emerge fitting champions.
The Australia skipper ended as the highest run-getter (288 runs in five matches) while South Africa pacer Wayne Parnell took the most scalps (11).
West Indies sent a second string due to a stand-off between the players and the cricket Board.
Year: 2013
Host: England
winner:india
Flawless performances from Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led India powered them to their second Champions Trophy title.
The conditions in England were more batsmen friendly. While Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ravindra Jadeja made life difficult for batsmen, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma combined well to make it five wins in five for the Men in Blue.
The biggest moment of the tournament came when Dhoni decided to give the 18th over to Ishant Sharma in the rain-curtailed, 20-over final at Birmingham. With Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara at the crease, it was a gamble as the lanky seamer had been expensive, but his double strike turned the game in India’s favour. Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin did the rest as India stole the crown in the 20-20 sprint.
