List of all Previous T20 World Cup Winners

October 19, 2021

Over the last decade and a half, we have seen quite a few interesting campaigns in the T20 World Cup. But in hindsight, only the most determined among the lot emerged with their hands held high after the dust has settled. In the past six editions of the WT20, we have seen 5 winners. Today we’re going to be looking at their journey to winning the most decorated T20 Championship in the world. That being said, here is a list of all the previous T20 World Cup winners.

2007 – India

The inaugural champions of T20I cricket were crowned after India beat Pakistan in a nail-biting encounter in the grand finale. The Dhoni-led side was full of youth and vigour and they were determined to prove themselves against all odds. Despite lacking big names like Sachin, Dravid and Ganguly, India was able to outplay cricketing giants like Australia and England. Gautam Gambhir (227) was the star with the bat, consistently scoring runs irrespective of the opposition. Left arm seamers RP Singh and Irfan Pathan led India’s wicket-taker’s list with 12 and 10 wickets respectively. The tournament will also be remembered fondly by fans for Yuvraj Singh’s Blitzkrieg against England (58* off 16) and Australia (70 off 30).

Did you know that Glenn Maxwell has an all-time highest T20I strike rate of 158? Check out the full list here: List Of Players With All Time Highest Strike Rate In T20 International

2009 – Pakistan

Fuelled by the batting brilliance of Kamran Akmal, Shahid Afridi and Younis Khan, Pakistan dominated their competition throughout. Umar Gul (13) emerged as the highest wicket taker in the tournament. On the other hand, Saeed Ajmal (12) and Shahid Afridi (11) were clinical with the ball too. The runners up of the previous edition finally fulfilled their prophecy when they beat Sri Lanka in the finals of the 2009 T20 World Cup. Younis Khan enjoyed his moment of glory as skipper as Pakistan were crowned the second ever World T20 Champions.

2010 – England

England were fortunate to have actually win the 2010 WT20 title under Paul Collingwood despite not winning a single game in the group stage. England advanced to the super 8 only because of having a better Net Run Rate than Ireland. It was at that moment that they turned their campaign upside-down on the back of some splendid performances by Kevin Pietersen, Ryan Sidebottom, Graeme Swann and Craig Keiswetter. The T20 World Cup in 2010 ended England’s decades-long ICC World Title draught as captain Paul Collingwood led England to beat Australia in the final at Bridgetown. In the process, the Englishmen became the third team to lift the coveted trophy after India and Pakistan.

2012 – West Indies

The West Indies’ triumphant campaign saw them win just 4 games throughout the tournament as fortune favoured the star-studded line-up headed by Darren Sammy. This marked the beginning of the T20 World Cup domination by the West Indies. Built around T20 mega-stars like Bravo, Gayle, Pollard, Narine and others who had made quite a name for themselves in franchise cricket, it was only a matter of time before the West Indies reached the epitome of T20 greatness. Ending their 33-year long ICC Championship draught, West Indies finally won a World Title after they beat Sri Lanka in their home soil.

2014 – Sri Lanka

After suffering 2 heart-wrenching defeats in the finals of two T20 World Cups, Sri Lanka finally got a chance to capture the crown. The Malinga-led side vastly dominated throughout the tournament as Sri Lanka won its first ICC Title in 18 years. Brushing aside heavyweights like South Africa and New Zealand, the Lankan Lions marched confidently into the finals. Avenging the infamous 2011 WC finals defeat, Sri Lanka beat India by 6 wickets in the finals on its way to become world champions. The tournament also marked the last T20 games of Sri Lankan icons Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene as the two stalwarts retired from the shortest format of the game.

2016 – West Indies

The West Indies scripted history in the 6^th edition of the T20 World Cup by becoming the only side to win the coveted prize twice. Darren Sammy became the first-ever captain to win the T20 World Cup twice in the process as well. Dominating the defending champs Sri Lanka and former champs England and India in the tournament, the Windies had made their intentions quite clear. They were here to reclaim their mantle. They stood face-to-face with familiar foes in England in the finals as the Eden Gardens witnessed the battle of the Goliaths. Needing 19 from the last over bowled by Ben Stokes, all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite produced one of the biggest moments of his career. He went on to hit 4 sixes on the trot and seal the trophy for West Indies, breaking millions of English hearts in the process.