Team India's best XI from 50-over World Cup history

Cricketers sweat it out in every match. Each and every game is important for a cricketer. However, if there is one thing that matters the most to them then it has to be the World Cup (WC). The WC is traditionally considered the most important trophy. Every team dedicates years to assemble a squad worthy enough to play and win the cup. India has been fortunate enough to have won the WC twice. Over the years, there have been a lot of Indian players who have been absolutely magnificent in WC matches. Many Indian stalwarts have been at their best in the biggest stages of their career i.e. during a WC. In the article, we shall be taking a look at India’s all-time 50-over World Cup XI: 1) Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Tendulkar. (Photo credit should read MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP via Getty Images) Is any all-time playing XI even complete without Sachin Tendulkar? We think not. It would be safe to say that Tendulkar has been at his best whenever he has represented India in a WC. Tendulkar has scored the most number of runs in the history of ODI WC’s. The Master Blaster has scored 2278 runs in 45 WC games. His average and strike rate in WC games have been 56.95 and 88.98 respectively. He has represented India in 6 WC editions. He scored the most number of runs for his India in the 1996 WC, 2003 WC, and the 2011 WC. Out of these three, he was the leading run-scorer in the 1996 and 2003 editions. He also won the player of the tournament award in the 2003 World Cup. 2) Rohit Sharma SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND – JUNE 05: Rohit Sharma of India. (Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images) Among all the legendary openers to have played for India, Rohit Sharma has been one of their best. After having missed out on the 2011 WC squad, he ensured that his performances at the biggest stage get remembered for a really long time. Rohit Sharma might have just played two WC editions but he ensured that he was absolutely sensational in both of them. Rohit Sharma has played 17 WC games so far and has scored 978 runs. He has an average and strike rate of 65.20 and 95.97 in WC games respectively. Very seldom would you find a player with an average of more than 60 in tournaments that matter the most. Rohit was India’s second-best batsman in the 2015 WC and also scored a superb century in a knockout match against Bangladesh. He bettered his game in the next edition as he went on to score the most number of runs in the 2019 WC. His monumental effort included 648 runs and 5 centuries, which happen to be the most number of centuries any batsman has hit in a single edition. 3) Sourav Ganguly Sourav Ganguly. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images) Sourav Ganguly was like a tiger on the field. The Prince of Kolkata was arguably one of the best Indian batsmen in the WC history. Before the likes of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, it was Ganguly who provided good starts for India at the top of the order. Ganguly is third on the list of the most number of runs scored in WC history among Indian players. He has scored 1006 runs in the 21 WC games he has played. His average and strike rate in WC games are 55.88 and 77.50 respectively. His highest score of 183 came in a World Cup match. It came against Sri Lanka in the 1999 WC. He has also scored 4 WC centuries. Only Sachin Tendulkar and Rohit Sharma have more WC centuries than him. 4) Rahul Dravid Rahul Dravid 2007. (Photo Source: DESHAKALYAN CHOWDHURY/AFP via Getty Images) It is safe to say that Rahul Dravid was one of the most underrated ODI players of all time. His records in WC matches are sensational, to say the least. He has scored 860 runs in 21 WC games. He has a whopping average of 61.42. Only Rohit Sharma has a better average than him in WC matches. An important point to be noted is that he wasn’t an opener and still managed to score so many runs. As a matter of fact, he was the best batsman of the 1999 WC and scored the most number of runs in that edition. He scored 461 runs in 8 innings and was averaging 65 in that edition. He has been India’s silent guardian in almost every edition he has played. 5) Yuvraj Singh Yuvraj Singh. (Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images) Yuvraj Singh is arguably one of India’s biggest match-winners of all time. Seldom would you find an all-rounder as impactful as Yuvraj Singh. If you’re a budding cricketer and dream of winning a WC for your country then Yuvi is an ideal role model for you. Yuvraj Singh has played in three WC editions, them being 2003, 2007, and 2011. He was one of the best performers for India in their rather dismal 2007 WC campaign. However, he saved his best for 2011. Yuvraj Singh was breathing fire in the 2011 World Cup as he went on to win many matches for India all by himself. He scored 362 runs with the bat and took 15 wickets with the ball. He went on to win the player of the tournament award in that edition as well. 6) MS Dhoni (C and WK) CARDIFF, WALES – MAY 28: India batsman MS Dhoni. (Photo by Stu Forster-IDI/IDI via Getty Images) “Dhoni finishes off in style. A magnificent strike into the crowd! India lift the World Cup after 28 years!” No Indian fan could ever forget these iconic lines by Ravi Shastri. Dhoni is known to be a man of occasions and rightly so. After having a disappointing 2007 WC, he was simply superb in the editions to follow. He led India to their second WC trophy in 2011. Despite not being at his best for most of the tournament, he saved his best for the last as he went on to score a match-winning 91* in the finals against Sri Lanka. India might have not won the WC in 2015 but Dhoni still tried his best as he led India to the semis in 2015. He scored knock of 65 in the semis as India went on to lose that match to Australia, who went on to win the cup. He was good in the 2019 WC as well and even scored a 50 in the semis against New Zealand, which India eventually lost. 7) Kapil Dev Kapil Dev. (Photo Source: Getty Images) Kapil Dev was the first captain to win a World Cup for India. His performances in the biggest cricket tournament are considered to be inspirational even today. He represented India in 4 WC editions and picked 28 wickets with the ball. Out of all of the editions he played, his performance in the 1983 WC is considered to be one of the greatest by an individual player. He was brilliant with the bat as well as with the ball. He scored 303 runs at an average of 60. This included an amazing 175 against Zimbabwe, which came when India were 17-5. He also took 12 wickets in that edition. Thus, Kapil Dev became India’s hero after winning the trophy in 1983. 8) Ravi Ashwin Ravichandran Ashwin of India. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images) Ravi Ashwin is one of India’s most underrated and underappreciated players. He has silently won many matches for India. However, he has also been one of India’s silent assassins in ODI WC’s as well. Despite playing just the 2 WC editions so far, he has managed to impress one and all. He took 4 wickets in the 2 games he played in the 2011 WC, and one of those games was against the defending champions Australia in the quarter-finals. He was then shockingly asked to warm the bench for the semis and the finals. It was the 2015 WC where Ashwin made a mark. In conditions that didn’t favour the spinners, he picked 13 wickets in 8 games. He was the most economical bowler in the semis where every bowler except him went for plenty as India went on to lose the semis to Australia. 9) Anil Kumble Anil Kumble. (Photo Source: Twitter) Arguably the greatest Indian bowler of all time, Anil Kumble was an absolute champion. Whenever he played a WC, he always ensured that he was at his best. He has taken the most number of wickets by an Indian spinner in WC history. Anil Kumble has taken 31 wickets in the 18 WC games he has played. He has an average and a strike rate of 22.83 and 33.5 with the ball respectively. He has a mizerly economical rate of 4.08 as well. He took the most number of wickets in the 1996 WC as well. He took 15 wickets in that edition. Thus, including him in the XI is no-brainier. 10) Zaheer Khan Zaheer Khan. (Photo Source: Twitter) Zaheer Khan is one of India’s best pacers ever. MS Dhoni once called him the Sachin Tendulkar of bowling for India and rightly so. He has been India’s best bowler in WC history. Zaheer Khan has taken 44 wickets in the 23 WC games he has played. He has a bowling average and a strike rate of 20.22 and 27.1 respectively. He took the most number of wickets for India in the 2003 WC as he went on to pick 18 wickets for India in that edition. However, he wasn’t at his best during the final match and India went on to lose the 2003 WC final. He then put that behind him as he went on to take the most number of wickets in the 2011 WC (alongside Shahid Afridi). He took 22 wickets in that edition as India went on to win the Cup in 2011. 11) Javagal Srinath Javagal Srinath. (Photo by Ross Setford/Getty Images) Javagal Srinath is one of the most underappreciated Indian bowlers of all time. He was India’s pillar during his peak. Thus, he finds himself a spot in India’s all-time 50-over WC XI. Srinath is tied with Zaheer Khan for the most number of wickets by an Indian in WC history. He has taken 44 wickets in 33 WC games. His bowling average and strike rate are 27.81 and 38.6 respectively. Srinath took the most number of wickets for India in the 1999 WC. He picked 12 wickets. Thus, it would be safe to say that he was one of India’s best bowlers during his time.

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Team India's best XI from 50-over World Cup history

In 1983 and 2011, India got to lift the cup under Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni's captaincy respectively.

10) Zaheer Khan

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