Having earlier survived a scare in their pool match against Pakistan, West Indies faced another grim battle in the final of the 1975 ICC Cricket World Cup at Lord's. West Indies and Australia, the two leading sides in world cricket at that time had clashed several times before, but it was for the first time that they were playing against each other at a neutral venue. In a match where the fortunes changed hands repeatedly, West Indies eventually won by 17 runs to lift the first sponsored event in world cricket. The match reinforced the importance of fielding in limited overs cricket. While the rivals pitted their batting and bowling greats against each other, it was the brilliant fielding of one man, Vivian Richards, which eventually tilted the balance in favour of the West Indians. Australia slithered from a likely winning position to an unexpected defeat because five of their batsmen were run-out. The hesitation and errors of the batsmen apart, this was mainly due to some exceptional work in the field. Richards was magnificent on either side of the wicket. His throwing on the run was quick and accurate. He was responsible for the dismissal of opener Allan Turner, and middle order bats Ian Chappell and Greg Chappell. Vanburn Holder and Keith Boyce accounted for the other run-outs just when Australia, chasing a target of 292, were cruising along after early setbacks. Richards actually came into the West Indies World Cup squad as a last-minute replacement for Lawrence Rowe, who had to return home from the earlier Indian tour due to an eye ailment. Richards, who was on that tour as well, was told to accompany the team to England.

Lloyd to the rescue

Australian captain Ian Chappell surprised many by opting to bowl first after winning the toss and the decision initially proved right. The Windies struggled in the first 20 overs till skipper Clive Lloyd came to the rescue. He scored a brilliant century off just 85 balls, with 12 fours and two sixes. He got good support from veteran Rohan Kanhai and the duo put on 149 runs for the fourth wicket. West Indies reached 291 for 8 in their 60 overs, no mean achievement against one of the best attacks in the world, boasting the talents of Denis Lillee, Jeff Thomson and Gary Gilmour.

Brilliant fieldwork

The Windies also had a top pace attack which included the likes of Andy Roberts, Bernard Julien, Keith Boyce and Vanburn Holder. The attack, however, did not quite live up to its reputation. Thankfully for them, half the rival side was run-out. Ian Chappell, who played an otherwise fine knock of 62, was responsible for the run outs of Alan Turner and brother Greg and was finally himself run out when he violated the principle of not running on a mis-field. His push to cover-point was fumbled by Greenidge. Richards was quick at hand to pounce on the deflection and hit the stumps, all in one action. Later in the innings, Max Walker fell to a throw from Boyce, and Thomson, who had brought about a semblance of recovery through a last wicket stand of 44 with Lillee, was himself run out, trying to steal a run to keep the strike. Although Clive Lloyd was named Man of the Match, for many the real hero of the victory was Vivian Richards.