Cricket · 1975 · London, England
West Indies Win the First World Cup
Clive Lloyd's West Indies win the first Cricket World Cup final, and then win more or less everything for the next two decades.
West Indies beat Australia by 17 runs
1975 final result
102 (85 balls)
Lloyd's final score
2 of first 2
World Cups won, 1975-79
The inaugural Cricket World Cup, held in England in 1975, was the first time the sport's best one-day teams had been gathered into a single global tournament. West Indies, captained by Clive Lloyd, reached the final against Australia at Lord's and posted 291 for 8, Lloyd himself hitting a rapid 102 from 85 balls.
Australia fought hard in reply and were bowled out for 274, 17 runs short. It was the opening statement of close to two decades of West Indian dominance across Test and one-day cricket, built on a four-man fast-bowling attack that never let up and a batting line-up that attacked from the first over. They won the 1979 World Cup as well, and reached the 1983 final.
The documentary 'Fire in Babylon' later chronicled what those teams meant. They were the greatest side the sport has produced, and in the Caribbean through the decolonisation years they carried a good deal more than that, which is not a weight many cricket teams have had to take on.
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