Cricket World Cup

England, 1975

This was the first ever Cricket World Cup, called the Prudential Cup, and was held from June 7 to June 21, 1975 in England (see more in History).
The tournament was held in England as it was considered the only nation at the time that had the resources to stage an event of such magnitude.
The matches played consisted of 60 overs per team.
Unlike today, all players wore a traditional white uniform and red balls were used. There were also no night games.
There were eight participating countries, which were:
- Australia
- England
- India
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- West Indies
- Sri Lanka
- East Africa (composed of players from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia)
A notable omission from the tournament was the South African cricket team who were not competing due to the international sports boycott.
The preliminary matches were played in 2 groups of 4 teams. The top two teams from each group played the semifinals, and the winners of these played the final.
The final was played at the Lords ground, between West Indies and Australia, with the favorites the West Indies winning by 17 runs. The West Indies scored 291 runs in 60 overs at a loss of 8 wickets. In reply Australia made 274 runs in 58.4 overs all out.
The West Indian captain was Clive Lloyd
New Zealand and England were the other semifinalists.