India reinforced their position at the top of ODI pinnacle with a convincing win at the World Championships in Australia. The Championship was unique in that it had all the test-playing nations participate. The favorites were once again the Windies but the Indians were confident despite few wins under the belt after the 1983 win.
Sunil Gavaskar was the captain of the team which was very similar to the one that won the 1983 Cup except for few notable additions. Ravi Shastri was very visible in this tournament as an able opener (Gavaskar played lower in the order, when required) and a capable spinner. Laxman Sivaramakrishnan was at his prime form - one whom even the likes of Javed Miandad and Imran Khan found difficult to handle. Sadanand Vishwanath donned the mantle of wicket-keeper, replacing his state-mate Syed Kirmani. The rest of the nucleus still remained.
Between two matches against Pakistan, the Indian team defeated England, Australia and New Zealand in the tournament convincingly. In fact, the final was the only time the Indian team had not bowled out the competition (Pakistan lost 9 wickets in the final). On the larger grounds, the Indian spinners (Shastri and Siva) had the extra bite to tease out the rival batsmen. Fielding was also above-par with the likes of Mohammed Azharuddin prowling the outfield.
Pakistan defeated West Indies in the semifinals to remove the possibility of a rematch of 1983 World Cup final. India managed to defeat New Zealand thanks to some big hitting by Kapil Dev against the Kiwi bowlers (Hadlee, Chatfield, Cairns, Snedden). The final was again a team show where the bowlers skittled out the Pakistan team for a total that Srikkanth and Shastri could easily scale down. It was such a powerful performance that Sunil Gavaskar was hardly required to bat in the tournament..
Ravi Shastri was adjudged Man of Series and scenes of him driving his prize Audi car with his team-mates sitting on the car are still fresh in memory of those who were fortunate to watch the match. Champion of Champions was the title given to Ravi Shastri for his consistent performance throughout the tournament (Shastri would be known by this title for a long time after the tournament). Equal contribution came from his opening partner, Krish Srikkanth, who was the original version of Sanath Jayasuriyas and Virender Sehwags.
Sunil Gavaskar was the captain of the team which was very similar to the one that won the 1983 Cup except for few notable additions. Ravi Shastri was very visible in this tournament as an able opener (Gavaskar played lower in the order, when required) and a capable spinner. Laxman Sivaramakrishnan was at his prime form - one whom even the likes of Javed Miandad and Imran Khan found difficult to handle. Sadanand Vishwanath donned the mantle of wicket-keeper, replacing his state-mate Syed Kirmani. The rest of the nucleus still remained.
Between two matches against Pakistan, the Indian team defeated England, Australia and New Zealand in the tournament convincingly. In fact, the final was the only time the Indian team had not bowled out the competition (Pakistan lost 9 wickets in the final). On the larger grounds, the Indian spinners (Shastri and Siva) had the extra bite to tease out the rival batsmen. Fielding was also above-par with the likes of Mohammed Azharuddin prowling the outfield.
Pakistan defeated West Indies in the semifinals to remove the possibility of a rematch of 1983 World Cup final. India managed to defeat New Zealand thanks to some big hitting by Kapil Dev against the Kiwi bowlers (Hadlee, Chatfield, Cairns, Snedden). The final was again a team show where the bowlers skittled out the Pakistan team for a total that Srikkanth and Shastri could easily scale down. It was such a powerful performance that Sunil Gavaskar was hardly required to bat in the tournament..
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