The Great Gamble
There was a time, not too long ago, when the mere mention of money was anathema in sports ~ professionals were allowed in Wimbledon for the first time in 1968, and in the Olympics only from 1988.
The first match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 was played on Thursday, May 30, 2019 at the Oval. South Africa, having won the toss, elected to bowl first in this World Cup opening game. South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis gave the first over to Imran Tahir and Tahir thus became the first spinner in the World Cup History to bowl the first over of a World Cup.
Prior to this, 11 fast bowlers had bowled the first over of the 11 editions of the World Cups.
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India’s Madan Lal holds the unique distinction of bowling the first over of the first Men’s World Cup ever played (1975).
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| World Cup | Bowler | Team |
| 2019 | Imran Tahir | South Africa (Spinner) |
| 2015 | Nuwan Kulasekara | Sri Lanka (Pacer) |
| 2011 | Shafiul Islam | Bangladesh (Pacer) |
| 2007 | Umar Gul | Pakistan (Pacer) |
| 2003 | Shaun Pollock | South Africa (Pacer) |
| 1999 | Darren Gough | England (Pacer) |
| 1996 | Dominic Cork | England (Pacer) |
| 1992 | Craig McDermott | Australia (Pacer) |
| 1987 | Vinothen John | Sri Lanka (Pacer) |
| 1983 | Richard Hadlee | New Zealand (Pacer) |
| 1979 | Andy Roberts | West Indies (Pacer) |
| 1975 | Madan Lal | India (Pacer) |
Asian Teams have struggled to make their mark in World Cup 2019 so far. However, India have not yet started their World Cup Campaign. India will hope to start their campaign on a winning note against South Africa on Wednesday, June 5, 2019.
Where to view: Exclusive broadcast in India on Star Sports Network and Hotstar, in the UK on Sky Sports.
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