Top 10 Greatest Cricket Matches of All Time

Top 10 Greatest Cricket Matches of All Time

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CricketMens Cricket

Cricket is a simple game of bat and ball. But some clashes in its rich history will never be forgotten. These games have attained legendary status in the minds of all cricket lovers.

This article will examine the top 10 Greatest Cricket Test matches in cricket.

India vs. Australia, 2001 Test Series, 2nd Test – Kolkata

This match redefined the refreshing change in Test Cricket for India

Steve Waugh called the Indian series “Final Frontier” and had come into the test with a record 15 consecutive wins in Test Matches.

vvs laxman and rahul dravid

In the second innings made to follow on, VVS Laxman (281) and Rahul Dravid (180) stood between an Indian win or an embarrassing innings defeat.

Match Details

Australia 1ST Innings – 445

India 1st Innings – 171

Follow on activated

India 2nd Innings – 657/7 (decl.)

Australia 2nd Innings – 212

India won the match by 171 runs after being forced to follow on.

Harbhajan was unplayable in the 4th innings

Australia vs. South Africa, 1999 World Cup Semi-Final

A heart-breaking moment for all South African fans but a great match for cricket lovers when the two best teams met in the 1999 World Cup Semi Finals.

Chasing a modest total of 213, the South African lost regular wickets. The Innings was rescued by Jonty Rhodes and Jacques Kallis in the middle overs.

Lance Kluesner alomst took South Africa home

Some heroic late-order hitting by Lance Kluesner kept the proteas in touching distance with just 1 run needed for a win. But a runout saw the match getting tied.

Adding insult to injury, South Africans were knocked out of the tournament due to a lower net run rate.

This tie was as bad as a loss for the Proteas.

Australia won the finals beating Pakistan in the finals.

The unfortunate run out that saw south africa out of the world cup

England vs New Zealand – Final, ICC Cricket World Cup at Lord’s -2019

Arguably, the best ODI match played in a World Cup has to be the finals of the 2019 Cricket  World Cup.

Having stumbled during the chase, England was rescued by Ben Stoke’s heroics who single-handedly took England to level the scores at 241 before the final wicket fell.

ben stokes apologising for the crucial overthrow

In the final, the scores were tied at 241 after 50 overs and the match went to a super over, after which the scores were again tied at 15.

The World Cup was won by England on a superior boundary count.

It was the first time, a One Day International final match required a Super Over, and subsequently, the first time it had been decided by a boundary count (this rule has been discontinued ever since).

england lifting the world cup

India vs. Pakistan, 2007 T20 World Cup Final Johannesburg

The Inaugural T20 Cricket World Cup finals were nothing short of a thriller.

gautam gambir was the top scorer-75

India and Pakistan league match ended up in a tie which was later decided on a bowl out which India won.

In the finals, Pakistan had to chase 157 runs. With the last pair in, a well-set Misbah Ul Haq looked to take the Pakistan team to a World Cup win.

With 5 Runs to win in the last 4 balls, the Pakistan captain was dismissed when he went for an unconventional shot and India won the Inaugural T20 World Cup.

india lifted the inaugral T20 world cup 2007

Australia vs England – The Ashes – 3rd Test  Headingly – 2019

After dominating day 2, day 3, and major portion of day 4, Australia was on course for an Ashes win.

Australia bundled England for 67 in the first innings. They set a target of 359 which was never achieved in a fourth innings in the history of the game.

During the chase after Joe Root and Joe Denley’s wicket, England was looking at a loss. Even a draw was not an option.

The England team needed 73 runs with the last pair standing.

Ben Stokes was s man possessed and took england home single handedly

Ben Stokes played one of the innings of Test match history and went berserk with the last pair in the crease.

Ben Stokes hit seven sixes and won the game while his partner scored only one run in the last wicket partnership.

The 4th innings chase will rank among the most remarkable chases in history. Ben Stokes individually kept England alive in the Ashes.

Match Details

Australia 1st Innings – 179

England 1st Innings – 67

Australia 2nd Innings – 246

England to win 359

England 2nd Innings – 362/9

England won the match by 1 wicket.

England vs. West Indies

ICC T20 World Cup, Final – 2016

The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 Final was played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on 3 April 2016 to determine the winners of the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 between England and the West Indies.

England posted a competitive score after a poor batting display and West Indies needed 156 Runs.

West Indies too struggled in the chase except for Marlon Samuels who kept the West indies in hunt.

carlos braihwaite 6.6.6.6

With 19 needed in the last over and when all hopes for a West Indies win was vanishing, Carlos Braithwaite hit 4 consecutive sixes of Ben Stokes in the final over. The West Indies won the match by 4 wickets, thus becoming the first team to win the ICC World Twenty20 twice.

west indies has won the T20 world cup twice

Australia vs England – The Ashes 2nd Test, Edgbaston – 2005

Australia won the first Test comfortably, but in the second Test at Edgbaston, considered to be one of the greatest of all time, England levelled the series with a two-run victory, the narrowest win in Ashes history.

Andrew Flintoff played the match of his career with contribution with both bat and ball

andrew flintoff was england’s ashes hero

Andrew Flintoff

First Innings

Runs Scored –– 68

Bowling – 3/52

Second Innings

Runs Scored –– 73

Bowling – 4/79

Australia simply could not handle the high-quality reverse swing bowling from Simon Jones and Andrew Flintoff.

Match Details

England 1st Innings – 407

Australia 1st Innings – 308

England 2nd Innings – 182

Australia needed 282 to win

Australia 2nd Innings – 279

England won the match by 2 runs.

England winning the ashes

India vs England – Final, NatWest Series at Lord’s – 2002

Chasing a target of above 300 is a difficult and to win a 50 over International Final was nothing short of a miracle.

the trophy which changed indian cricket in the modern era

In 2002, chasing a target of above 300 was unheard of so this match is special. Another reason for this match to be a special one was the transition of Indian cricket after this match i.e. to win in alien conditions.

England piled up a total of 325 for 5 in the Final of the triangular NatWest series at Lord’s.

The world of cricket saw one of the most dramatic turnarounds in one-day cricket history.

With the help of Marcus Trescothick and captain Naseer Hussain and with some late order hinting by Andre Flintoff, England gave a stiff target for the chase.

The opening pair in India’s run-chase gave a solid 109-run start only for the middle order to collapse with 5 quick wickets.

It was then in the hands of 2 youngsters, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif who went into an all-out attack. With a total of 15 fours and 3 sixes.

Kaif was unbeaten and took India to probably the biggest victory for Team India in a chase.

The sight of a Jubilant Saurav Ganguly ripping off his shirt and whirling it is etched in every Indian cricket fan’s memory.

Conquering the Storm: India vs Australia – Sharjah 1998

In a must-win match or have a better run rate to qualify for the finals, India had to chase a daunting task of 285 way back in 1998.

Chasing under lights was never easy those days and this made the target look even more than it actually was. All the teams used to prefer to bat first in a day-night match.

India had to score a minimum of 254 to reach the finals to have a better run rate. The score was later revised to a minimum of 236 in 46 overs to qualify.

sachin tendulkar played two of his best knocks in the sharjah series

While others were focused on getting the score of 236, there was one man who was playing to win the match, Sachin Tendulkar.

Sachin’s knock was considered his best even though India lost the match (but qualified for the finals). India went on to win the finals with yet another gem of an innings and his fastest hundred in the Finals.

India vs. Pakistan

Austral-Asia Cup, Final (1986)

Javed Miandad’s last-ball six, has to be one of the iconic moments in ODI cricket. It was one of the most extraordinary matches ending with a heartbreak for team India. Nevertheless, a last-ball six to seal the finals of a major tournament was never heard of till then.

Arch rivals India and Pakistan have faced off in several classics, but none more memorable as this one.

javed miandad was pakistan's best batsman in the 80s and 90s

All 100 overs led to the last delivery for the result with India needing one wicket and Pakistan needing a boundary

Ultimately, Javed Miandad became a national hero for Pakistan with his last ball six of Chetan Sharma.

Though India has been dominating cricket in the current decade whenever the two rival teams have met, this match that will always remain a thorn in the flesh of every Indian fan.

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Some games which didn’t make the list but needs a mention with the Top 10 greatest cricket match will be

  • Australia vs India 4th Test at Gabba 2021
  • India vs. West Indies, 1983 World Cup Final (Lord’s)

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