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Cricket has evolved to a completely different level since its inception back in the 19th century. From the Don Bradman era to the rise of the powerhouse of West Indies to the battle of all-rounders between Richard Hadlee, Kapil Dev, Imran Khan and Ian Botham to the modern-day coloured clothed, technology powered T20 era, there has always been a comparison or a debate on how the performances have changed and whether any legend of one era can replicate his performance in another era. In order to form an opinion about the level of performances over the years, let’s concentrate on the performances in the biggest tournament of all – The World Cups.
Now performances cannot be measured until we see a dash of figures so here are some key figures during the World Cups.
Highest Scorers in Individual World Cup:
| Glenn Turner – 333 (1975) |
| Gordon Greenidge – 253 (1979) |
| David Gower – 384 (1983) |
| Graham Gooch – 471 (1987) |
| Martin Crowe – 456 (1992) |
| Sachin Tendulkar – 527 (1996) |
| Rahul Dravid – 461 (1999) |
| Sachin Tendulkar – 673 (2003) |
| Mathhew Hayden – 659 (2007) |
| Tilakaratne Dilshan – 500 (2011) |
There is not much to compare between the scores other than the fact that towards the later World Cups, the number of runs scored goes on increasing compared to the first half. This is mainly because the game has gone on to become more batsman friendly along with new rules such as field restrictions, powerplays, limited use of bouncers among others.
Highest Wicket Takers in Individual World Cup:
| Gary Gilmour – 11 @2.58 per over (1975) |
| Mike Hendrick – 10 @2.66 per over (1979) |
| Roger Binny – 18 @3.81 per over (1983) |
| Craig McDermott – 18 @4.67 per over (1987) |
| Wasim Akram – 18 @3.76 per over (1992) |
| Anil Kumble – 15 @4.03 per over (1996) |
| Geoff Allot & Shane Warne – 20 @3.7 & 3.82 per over respectively (1999) |
| C Vaas – 23 @3.76 per over (2003) |
| Glenn McGrath – 26 @4.41 per over (2007) |
| Zaheer Khan & Shahid Afridi – 21 @4.4 and 3.6 per over respectively (2011) |
The last four World Cups had highest wicket takers with 20 or more wickets. The economy rate seems to be stable between a specific range. The increase in the wicket taking ability can be contributed to the fact that batsmen started to take more risk to score freely as the balance tilted in their favour while in the old days, One Day cricket was still played a bit more conservatively by the batsmen.
Upsets by Minnows
- Ireland beating England, 2011
- Zimbabwe beating India, 1999
- Kenya beating West Indies, 1996
- Ireland beating Pakistan, 2007
- Kenya beating Sri Lanka, 2003
- Bangladesh beating India, 2007
- Ireland beating West Indies, 2015
If there is anything, we can safely say that the performances of minnows in the World Cups have certainly improved. I think Ireland is the most improved non-Test playing nation looking at their performances in the World Cups.
Now let’s take a look at the average of all match aggregates in a single World Cup:
| World Cup | Avg. no. of runs scored in a match | Avg. no. of wickets taken in a match | Average run rate in a match |
| 1975 | 410 | 14 | 3.8 |
| 1979 | 369 | 14 | 3.4 |
| 1983 | 446 | 15 | 4.06 |
| 1987 | 463 | 14 | 4.88 |
| 1992 | 397 | 13 | 4.45 |
| 1996 | 433 | 13 | 4.6 |
| 1999 | 403 | 14 | 4.4 |
| 2003 | 405 | 14 | 4.7 |
| 2007 | 423 | 14 | 4.9 |
| 2011 | 435 | 15 | 4.9 |
| 2015 (so far) | 492 | 15 | 5.5 |
This data shows the average of match aggregates of some key areas. In all World Cups, the average number of runs scored by both teams in a match remains within a constant range. The wickets taken by both teams in a match, quite astonishingly, remain around 14. While the run rate of these runs scored goes on increasing slightly. Take a look at the figures for 2015 World Cup (updated till end of group stages). It clearly shows the direct impact of having just 4 fielders outside the circle in the non-powerplay overs. By looking at these figures as a whole, I am not able to fully say that the performances of players over the years have improved or become worse because once you do that you indirectly compare the abilities of players in different eras, which I think is not fair.
I will try to elaborate my point by providing a few examples:
- How will you measure performance standards between Clive Lloyd’s hundred in 1975 WC Final, Sir Viv Richards’ hundred in 1979 WC Final, Aravinda de Silva’s hundred in 1996 WC Final, Ricky Ponting’s hundred in 2003 WC Final, Adam Gilchrist’s hundred in 2007 WC Final and Mahela Jayawardene’s hundred in 2011 WC Final?
- How will you measure performance standards between Kapil Dev’s 175 against Zimbabwe in 1983, Andrew Symonds’ 143* against Pakistan in 2003, Kevin O’Brien’s 113 against England in 2011? All these innings completely changed the complexion of the game.
- How will you compare Joel Garner’s 5/38 in 1978 WC Final, Malinga’s 4 wickets in 4 balls against SA in 2007 WC, Andy Bichel’s 7/20 against NZ in 2003, Wasim Akram’s match-winning spell in 1992 WC Final?
There are many more innings and records and they cannot be compared with each other simply because they always will have a place of their own. You cannot compare World Cup performances of Vivian Richards with that of Sachin Tendulkar and say the performance standards have dropped or lifted.
Cricket has changed significantly through these World Cups in terms of rules and regulations, technology, equipment, popularity, money involved, etc. A lot has already been said about the size of modern-day bats! A modern-day batsman’s safety gear consists of helmet, chest guard, arm guard, thigh pad, front pads. With all the safety gear, batsmen have become more fearless in facing fastest of bowlers and scoring off runs. At the same time, because the risk taking ability of batsmen have increased, bowlers’ ability to take wickets has increased as well. Take a look at the overall figures of 2011 and 2015 World Cups in the table above and you will understand what I am talking about.
As cricket has become more technologically powered, the role of off-field support has gone on increasing. The Indian team’s support staff consists of 15 members in this World Cup! In the old days, there would be just a team coach and probably a manager. Imagine how the likes of Viv Richards or Sunil Gavaskar would have benefitted with all the modern-day equipment, a support staff to cater to every need of a cricketer off the field, technology enabled video analysis of your own batting/bowling as well as your opponents. Or imagine what would have happened if David Warner’s heavy bat had found its way to a Kapil Dev or an Ian Botham or an Imran Khan. Similarly, a modern-day cricketer goes through a lot of public scrutiny, unrealistic expectations from fans, media pressures, all of which definitely plays a part in his performance. In the old days, all these factors had a far less impact on a cricketer. Viv Richards certainly had to cope with a lot less pressure than Sachin Tendulkar.
Back in the old days, a target of 200 was considered a daunting one in ODIs but it was still chased by teams on some occasions. In today’s world even scoring 300 cannot guarantee you a win. But that does not mean the performances of players have improved. Modern day pitches are lot flatter compared to ones in early World Cups. Kapil Dev had criticized the Lord’s pitch as the worst for a WC Final. The red balls tend to swing more than the current white ones. The grounds have become smaller and smaller as we have progressed from one World Cup to another. All these and many other factors will have to be taken into consideration.
So instead of saying whether the performances have lifted or dropped, here is my conclusion: Through the 10 World Cups cricket has undergone a lot of change with commercial interests declaring that fours and sixes make it more entertaining for spectators to come to the grounds. The playing conditions, the number of changes in the rules, revolutionary changes in cricket gear and equipment, impact of support staff, and ever increasing commercialism have made the game completely different from the first World Cup in 1975 to the now ongoing 11th World Cup in 2015. All these factors have gradually enhanced batsmen’s ability to score runs, bowlers’ ability to take wickets and general fielding standards.
My Two Cents 