Winning a Cricket World Cup is of immense importance for a cricketer. The Cricket World Cup is the most prestigious tournament in the sport of cricket. It elevates a cricketer's status and brings them immense recognition and respect, both within the cricketing fraternity and among fans worldwide. It establishes them as part of an elite group of players who have achieved the pinnacle of success in the sport.
Winning a World Cup can be a defining moment in a cricketer's career. It can serve as a highlight and a crowning achievement that validates their skills, talent, and dedication to the sport. The top bookmakers have quality cricket odds with them.
However, there are few legendary players who achieved every milestone in their career except the ODI World Cup. In this article, we have compiled a list of some of the biggest names in cricket who failed to lift the trophy in their career.
1) Sourav Ganguly
One man who changed Indian cricket forever, Sourav Ganguly, has every collection of trophies on his shelf except the ODI World Cup. Ganguly's contributions to Indian cricket, his leadership skills, and his impact on the team's performance cannot be undermined. He played a significant role in transforming Indian cricket and laying the foundation for future successes. In 311 ODIs, Sourav Ganguly scored 11363 runs at an average of 41 and a strike rate of 73.7. He was one of the biggest reasons why Team India reached the final game of the 2003 World Cup.
2) Shahid Afridi
Shahid Afridi had a long and successful career, but he was unable to win a Cricket World Cup during his time as a player. He was known for his powerful innings in the limited-over format and his allrounder skills but the legendary Pakistani player failed to win the ODI World Cup in his career because of multiple reasons. Making his debut in 1996 and announcing his retirement in 2015, Afridi was part of 398 ODIs in which he scored 8064 runs at an average of 23.6 and picked up 395 wickets at an economy of 4.62.
3) AB de Villiers
South African cricket is known to produce some of the most legendary players in the world. However, there is no one ever like AB de Villiers. De Villiers is renowned for his extraordinary batting skills. He possessed a wide range of shots, combined with impeccable timing, power, and innovation. In 228 ODIs, he scored 9577 runs at an average of 53.5 and a strike rate of 101.1. De Villiers helped South Africa to win some crucial matches but he was unable to help his team win the ODI World Cup Trophy.
4) Kumar Sangakkara
Sri Lanka is struggling right now to make an impact in international cricket but there was a time when Kumar Sangakkara was the most feared batsman in the team. He helped Sri Lanka to reach the final game of the memorable 2007 and 2011 World Cup. However, the player failed to lift the trophy for his team. Sangakkara was part of 404 ODIs and he scored 14234 runs at an average of 42 and a strike rate of 78.5. He has given some of the most memorable moments in Sri Lankan cricket.
5) Jacques Kallis
In the next 100 years, nobody can reach even closer to what Jacques Kallis achieved as an all-rounder in international cricket. It can be officially said that Jacques Kallis is the best all-rounder international cricket has ever witnessed. However, Kallis was unable to lift the ODI World Cup. His achievements are countless in the ODI format. Kallis was part of 328 ODIs and he amassed 11579 runs at an average of 44.4 and picked up 273 wickets at an economy of 4.84.
