LORDS held the first final of the international one-day cricket competion
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket and among its responsibilities organises international cricket tournaments.
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the ICC’s flagship one-day cricket event and was first held in England in 1975 when the great West Indies one day side of the day beat Australia in the final at Lords. The event is held every four years and the first three Cricket World Cups were held in England before being taken around the world when jointly hosted by India and Pakistan in 1987. Due to the shorter daylight hours in the Indian subcontinent, matches were reduced from 60 overs to 50 overs contests and has remained the case since.
One day cricket has a big worldwide following and the ICC World Cup is broadcast to over 180 countries and is followed by millions of people on TV, the internet and other media. The exciting one day format lends itself well to betting enthusiasts and online bookmakers see a surge in cricket betting throughout the tournament, especially from Asia where cricket is one the most popular spectator sports.
Free Cricket Bets for the ICC World Cup
All major online bookmakers offer betting odds on the ICC Cricket World Cup and will happily accept free bets on any of the betting markets on the event. Many online bettors will open accounts specifically to bet on their favourite teams and players and will qualify for the free bets offered by online bookmakers to welcome new customers.
Bestfreebets provides up to date information about the best free bet offers from the best online bookmakers including free bet promotions aimed specifically at cricket fans. Gamblers looking to add to the excitement of watching ICC Cricket World Cup matches will find they can bet on the match winner, top bowler, top batsman among other special betting markets and could find themselves qualifying for some of the best free cricket bets thanks to bookmaker’s promotions.
Betting tips for the ICC Cricket World Cup
It makes sense for internet gamblers to open accounts with a number of different online bookmakers. The introductory free bet offers alone will provide a big boost to the winning chances of cricket fans betting on the World Cup matches and by comparing the best odds available will find added value in holding multiple betting accounts.
International one day cricket has been dominated by Australia since the 1990s and by 2007 had won the ICC Cricket World Cup four times and finished runner-up twice. West Indies have won it twice with England, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka winning once each, leaving just South Africa and New Zealand among the Test playing nations, yet to win the event.
Emerging cricket nations are encouraged to participate as the ICC look to develop cricket around the world by encouraging interest in the one day format. The betting odds often suggest the bigger nations will be certainties when playing the lesser nations who have little experience of competing at the high level of the Cricket World Cup.
However caution is advised as there have been some shocks that have proved expensive to gamblers willing to risk high stakes for a small win at the short odds offered by the bookmakers. In the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, Ireland had the bookmakers celebrating when beating Pakistan by 3 wickets at Sabina Park in Jamaica and on the same day Bangladesh created chaos when beating India by 5 wickets in Port of Spain, Trinidad.
When it is necessary for the bigger sides to win against the underdog nations in order to qualify for the next stage of the tournament, you can bet with more confidence as the players are sure to have their minds on the task in hand.
PREVIOUS WINNERS OF THE ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP
| Date |
Winner |
Venue |
| 1975 |
West Indies |
England |
| 1979 |
West Indies |
England |
| 1983 |
India |
England |
| 1987 |
Australia |
India, Pakistan |
| 1992 |
Pakistan |
Australia, New Zealand |
| 1996 |
Sri Lanka |
India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka |
| 1999 |
Australia |
England, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland |
| 2003 |
Australia |
Kenya, South Africa, Zimbabwe |
| 2007 |
Australia |
West Indies |
ICC Cricket World Cup Betting News