Deserving Players Who Did Not Win World Cup Title In Their Career

The Cricket World Cup holds a special place in players’ career. The cricketers dream to win the World Cup right throughout their career. Some achieve the illustrious feat but some don’t get to live their dream. However, judging a player’s career on the basis of World Cup wins is not fair. Some players have achieved greatness in their career but could not lift the World Cup in their career.

We take a look at 14 deserving players who could win the World Cup (50 overs) in their career.

Mahela Jayawardene

The former Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene could not win a single World Cup title in his career. In fact, Jayawardene had led Sri Lanka to World Cup final in the 2007 World Cup but the team lost against Australia in the final. Thus, Jayawardene could not cross the last hurdle. The talisman right-hander batted at the top of his game in the 2007 World Cup as he scored 548 runs in the edition. The stylish right-hander scored 12650 runs in the 448 One Day Internationals.

Kumar Sangakkara

Kumar Sangakkara had led Sri Lanka to the final of the 2011 World Cup but just like Mahela Jayawardene, Sangakkara could not cross the last hurdle. The southpaw batsman scored 1532 runs in the 37 World Cup matches at an average of 56.74. The left-hander is the third highest run-getter of the tournament. In fact, Sangakkara scored four consecutive centuries in the 2015 World Cup. The flamboyant batsman scored 14234 runs in the illustrious career of 404 ODI matches.

Sourav Ganguly

The former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly led India to the final of the 2003 World Cup. However, potent Australia was too good for the Men in Blue. Ganguly scored 1006 runs in the 21 World Cup matches at an average of 55.88. Sourav Ganguly had led India with aplomb during his captaincy tenure and the Indian team was able to do well in foreign conditions under the tutelage of Ganguly. However, Ganguly could not add a World Cup title to his illustrious career. The stylish southpaw batsman scored 11363 runs in the 311 ODI matches for the Indian team.

Anil Kumble

The leg-spinner always played the game in the right spirit. The lanky spinner had a great career for India but could not lift the World Cup trophy in his career. Kumble was always right on the money with his line and length and got most of his dismissals through leg-before-wicket and bowled. The talisman leg-spinner scalped 337 wickets in the 271 One Day Internationals in his career. Kumble was impressive in the World Cup as he snared 31 wickets in the 18 matches at an average of 22.83 and economy rate of 4.08.

Rahul Dravid

Rahul Dravid was able to improve his ODI game after he was dropped from the side. Dravid could not lift the World Cup trophy in his fine career. However, the Wall was part of the 2003 World Cup but India could not go all the way. In fact, Dravid had kept wickets in the 2003 World Cup as India wanted to play with an extra batsman. Meanwhile, Rahul Dravid was the leading run-scorer of the 1999 World Cup as he scored 461 runs in the tournament. The right-hander scored 861 runs in the 22 World Cup matches at an average of 61.42. Dravid scored 10889 runs in the 334 ODI matches he played.

Brian Lara

The legendary West Indies batsman could not savour World Cup glory in his career. The stylish batsman scored 1225 runs in the 34 World Cup matches at an average of 42.24. The left-hander is the fourth highest run-getter in World Cup history. However, West Indies could not come up with a complete performance when Lara used to play for them. In fact, the Windies relied heavily on their talisman batsman to deliver the goods. Lara went on to amass 10405 in the 299 ODI matches for West Indies.

AB de Villiers

South Africa’s talisman batsman AB de Villiers had a good record in the World Cup matches. The talisman right-hander was able to lead the Proteas to the World Cup semifinal in the 2015 edition. However, the Rainbow Nation suffered a crunching defeat at the hands of New Zealand. AB de Villiers scored 1207 runs in the 23 World Cup matches at an average of 63.52. In fact, the right-hander is the fifth highest run-getter of the ODI showpiece. AB accumulated 9577 runs in the 228 ODI matches.

Jacques Kallis

Jacques Kallis was one of the best all-rounders to have embraced the game. Kallis had scored a fine fifty in the 1999 semifinal against Australia. The right-hander scored 1148 runs in the 36 World Cup matches for the Proteas. Kallis had a fine batting technique and he was able to deliver the goods for the South African side with both bat as well as the ball. Kallis scored 11579 runs in the 328 ODI matches. Furthermore, Kallis scalped 273 wickets in his ODI career.

Chris Gayle

Chris Gayle has had a fine career for the West Indies. The southpaw batsman was a consistent performer for the Windies right throughout his career. The left-hander scored 1186 runs in the 35 matches of the World Cup. The attacking batsman scored his runs at an average of 35.93 in the World Cup. Gayle scored 10393 runs in the 297 ODI matches and played his last World Cup in the 2019 edition. In fact, Gayle also scored 215 runs against Zimbabwe in the World Cup edition of 2015.

Lasith Malinga

Sri Lanka’s gun fast bowler Lasith Malinga could not go all the way in the World Cup. Malinga had impressed one and all when he scalped four wickets in four balls in the 2007 World Cup against South Africa. The talisman fast bowler was right on the money with his yorkers and bowled with accurate line and length. Malinga is the third highest wicket-taker in the World Cup history as he snared 56 wickets in the 29 matches at an average of 22.87. The Sri Lankan legend played his swansong tournament in the 2019 edition and took 335 wickets in the 225 ODI matches.

Lance Klusener

Lance Kluesner had to suffer the heartbreak when Allan Donald was run out in the dramatic semifinal against Australia in the 1999 World Cup. Klusener was brilliant with both bat and ball in the same edition of the World Cup and thus he was awarded the Player of the tournament. The talisman all-rounder scored 281 runs in the 1999 World Cup at a stunning average of 140.50 and strike rate of 122.17. Furthermore, Klusener took 17 wickets in the nine matches of the 1999 edition.

Allan Donald

Allan Donald was well known for his brisk pace and accurate line and length. The White lightning had a great bowling action and thus he was able to extract extra bounce from the surface. Allan Donald took 16 wickets in the nine matches of the 1999 World Cup but he is famously remembered for the run-out in the semifinal. Donald scalped 38 wickets in overall 25 World Cup matches for the Proteas.

Graeme Smith

Graeme Smith led South Africa with confidence during his captaincy tenure. However, South Africa could not deliver the goods at the big stage under the leadership of Smith. In fact, Smith is one of the greatest captains for the South African team. The southpaw batsman scored 747 runs in the 20 World Cup matches at an average of 39.31 but could not lead his team to glory.

Kane Williamson

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has already played in two World Cup final but he has failed to cross the last hurdle. Williamson led the Kiwis to the final of the World Cup in the 2019 World Cup. However, New Zealand didn’t have the rub of the green on their side as they lost by boundary count. Meanwhile, Williamson was awarded the Player of the tournament as he scored 578 runs in the tourney. Thus, the stylish batsman became the leading run-scorer as the captain of the side in the World Cup history.