On This Day In 1979: West Indies Crowned Cricket World Cup Champions At Lord's

On this day in 1979, West Indies won their 2nd Cricket World Cup, beating England by 92 runs. Viv Richards hit 138*, and Joel Garner took 5 wickets at Lord's to seal victory.
On This Day In 1979: The mighty West Indies playing under their inspirational skipper Clive Lloyd were crowned World Cup champions on this day. The Calypso Kings flexed their dominance in world cricket by lifting the prestigious trophy for the second consecutive time. Lloyd's men hammered England in the 1979 Prudential World Cup final played at Lord's after a comprehensive display.
Unleashing their battery of renowned quicks and flamboyant set of batters, West Indies pulverised the Englishmen, who were left regretting the decision to bowl first on a good batting surface on this day in 1979.
The legendary Sir Vivian Richards bossed the England attack in one of the most memorable knocks played in World Cup history. The charismatic right-hander was at his freeflowing best as he smashed138 not out off 157 deliveries, including 11 fours and 3 maximums.
Richards sent the Mike Brearley-led England side on a leather hunt and recorded a strike rate of 87.89, which was unheard of in the early years of One-Day Internationals. It was the most glorious innings that helped West Indies overcome multiple hiccups at the other end.
Reduced to 4 down for 99 at one stage, West Indies had Richards combining with the aggressive Collis King in the most brutal counterattacking stand of 139 runs for the fifth wicket. Notably, King dominated the partnership with the maestro and ended with an amazing 86 off 66 deliveries.
Even as King fell after his breathtaking knock, Richards stood in no mood to relent and kept attacking the English attack that needed to create inroads into the lower order to restrict the West Indies to an imposing 286/9 after 60 overs in the second World Cup final played. Sir Ian Botham took 2 for 44 for England in his 12 overs.
During the run-chase, the stark difference between the two teams' powerhitting game stood exposed.
Captain Brearley and Geoffrey Boycott batted painstakingly slow at the top of the innings. In a 129-run opening partnership that would've fit perfectly in a Test match against the new, moving ball, Brearley took 130 deliveries to make 64 while Boycott ended with 57 off his 105-ball stay.
That pushed the asking rate through the roof against a Caribbean attack that offered no respite. Both Brearley and Boycott were removed by the great Michael Holding before the tall Joel Garner got into the act and scripted a fifer in a World Cup final for the West Indies.
The fiery spell ran through the English middle-order as Graham Gooch's 32 ended up being the third-highest score on a disappointing scorecard. England could only muster 194 all out in their response in 51 overs, not even managing to bat the full quota of overs.
About the Author
First Published:
June 23, 2025, 07:20 IST

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

India Today

38 minutes ago

• India Today

KL Rahul is India's best Test batter, but needs to convert starts: Cheteshwar Pujara

India opener KL Rahul needs to convert his starts into a big score, said Cheteshwar Pujara at the end of Day 3 on Sunday, June 22. Rahul remained steady in India's second innings of the 1st Test match of the series against England. The batter remained unbeaten at 47 when rain brought curtains to the day's play earlier than Pujara's comments come in the background of KL Rahul's first innings exploits. The batter had played well on Day 1 of the Test match. He had negotiated the new ball extremely well but had failed to capitalise on his patience. A lapse of concentration late in the morning session of Day 1 resulted in the batter edging the ball to Joe Root standing at in his analysis of KL Rahul, called him the most technically sound batter in India. He further added that Rahul looked like a complete Test batter, one who could play through any situation. "Technically, he's one of the most correct batsmen in the Indian Test team, and the way he times the ball, the way his footwork is, the way he judges the length, he looks like he's a complete Test player. But at the same time, he has to score big runs, and he's capable enough, but there are times where he gets off to a good start and then he gets out," Cheteshwar Pujara said about KL Rahul on the vs ENG, 1st Test, Day 3: Report"We saw in the first innings. It was a perfect time for him to capitalise. He batted really well. He gave us a good start, but after that, it was a bit disappointing to see him get out because it was a perfect opportunity for him to get that 100. But now this innings, it looks like he has started off really well once again. He's batting on 47. If he gets to that 50 mark, because that's a nervous time for KL Rahul. Once he crosses his 50, then most of the time he converts it into a big one. So tomorrow, let's hope that he carries on from here and then gets a big one," he fortunes will be directly linked to KL Rahul's exploits in the final two days of the Test match. If Rahul bats well, India will be able to get to a massive total, essentially securing them the first Test match of the match is currently in balance in Leeds, with India leading by 96 runs at the end of Day 3. The visitors still have 8 wickets in hand and would hope to put in a big total for the English team to chase in the final Watch

India Today

42 minutes ago

• India Today

Little bit of Rishabh Pant in Harry Brook: Cheteshwar Pujara makes bold comparison

Veteran India batter Cheteshwar Pujara made a bold comparison after reflecting on Harry Brook's impressive batting display against India on Day 3 of the opening Test in Headingley. The veteran reckons there are shades of Rishabh Pant in the English batter after witnessing his fearless took charge with the bat on Day 3 to steer England closer to a lead. Despite going all the way to 99 runs, he eventually fell short of a well-deserved hundred when Prasidh Krishna got the big to the Sony Sports network after the end of the day's play, Pujara looked back on his time with Brook in the English domestic setup, as the two played for Yorkshire together in the 2015 season. Since then, Brook has come a long way, having now been promoted as England's white-ball captain, and Pujara reckons that he has matured and is on track to becoming a fine player for the side."I've seen his journey when I was playing for Yorkshire, he made his first-class debut. So since then he has matured and he's playing and he's leading in the white circuit for the England team, so he knows, understands his responsibility and the kind of shots he played today—I mean, not many players can do that," Pujara Indian cricketer believes that both Brook and Pant have a rather similar approach when it comes to batting. He suggested that both men have the tendency to go after the bowlers to rattle the opposition and can produce a game-changing knock that lifts their respective can see a little bit of Rishabh Pant in him because he's stepping down, although both have different approach, but both of them are fearless. Both of them are trying to disrupt bowler's length, and they are trying to put pressure on back on the bowlers and that's why that's the key, because whenever the team is in trouble," he also noted how Brook piles up his runs fairly quickly and reckons that the bowling team could see it as a nuisance as well."Those are the guys who put pressure back on the bowlers and take the game away from you very quickly. Harry Brook is one of them who bats very quickly. His strike rate is always on the higher side, which is always difficult for the opposition team," he Brook's knock, England remain in the contest for a possible victory, and now the hosts will look to ensure they can restrict the Indian batters to a score that is chaseable with two days of play left to Watch

Business Standard

an hour ago

• Business Standard

ENG vs IND 1st Test: Hourly weather report of Headingley, Leeds on June 23

India had a mixed outing on Day 3 of the first Test vs England at Headingley, Leeds, as despite having big runs in the bank and Bumrah's historic five-wicket haul, they could only manage a 6-run lead in the first innings due to England's Bazball approach in the latter stages. However, the Indian batters came out with the same intent in the second innings and added 90 runs for the loss of two wickets by the end of the day to take their overall lead to 96. Now, with just two days to go and almost two full innings still to be played, the match is likely heading towards a draw, unless the cloudy weather in Leeds triggers another batting collapse on Monday. IND vs ENG 1st Test: Leeds weather report for June 23 According to the latest weather reports from for Leeds, United Kingdom, the day will begin with a partly sunny morning and a 20 percent chance of rain. However, the chances of rain drop to zero starting at 8 AM, just before the start of the match. While there is no prediction of rain post 9 AM, intermittent clouds can still pose the risk of impromptu showers any time during the day, given the unpredictable nature of England's weather. Rain is expected to resume from 7 PM, but with the match scheduled to end by 6:30 PM, even with extra time added, weather is not expected to be a concern for Day 4. Batters' day out on Day 4? Despite having the reputation of being a batter's graveyard, Headingley usually offers better batting conditions on the last two days of play, as many memorable run chases at this venue suggest, including Ben Stokes' historic 135* to help England beat Australia in the 2019 Ashes. If India need to save this match, they must put at least a 350-plus lead on the board; otherwise, the English side will fancy their chances of chasing it down in typical Bazball style.