The 1975 ICC Cricket World Cup final was just what the doctor had ordered for limited-overs cricket: West Indies V Australia. Clive Lloyd's century saw the Windies put up a challenging total of 291. Australia were doing well with captain Ian Chappell leading the charge. But too much haste while chasing resulted in five run-outs and they fell 17 runs short of victory.

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali was in Karachi on the eve of West Indies’ 1987 ICC Cricket World Cup match against Sri Lanka. Ali mixed with the boys and pretended to exchange a few punches with Vivian Richards, known for his resemblance to Smokin’ Joe Frazier, Ali’s arch rival in the ring.

Ali’s visit was lucky as the Windies piled up a record total of 360 and Richards scored 181 with 21 fours and eight sixes.

Unlike soccer, the country hosting the ICC Cricket World Cup has never managed to win it. It is only once that the hosts have even made the final, which was England in 1979.

Australia have entered the final four times and won three times. West Indies entered three successive finals, winning the first two ICC CWCs, but losing to India in 1983. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka made their first entry into the final a winning one.

Chasing a target of 289 set by the Windies during the 1979 finals, English openers Mike Brearley and Geoffrey Boycott batted sedately without regard to the overs. It had later been said that skipper Clive Lloyd had deliberately dropped a sitter of a catch from Boycott so the two could continue batting slowly! "That indeed would have been a clever move at that stage," Lloyd had said later denying the rumour

A manual score-board is common in even the most modern stadiums. This has its genesis in a problem at the Eden Gardens during the New Zealand-Zimbabwe match in the 1987 tournament when the electronic scoreboard failed.

Now, whether it is needed or not, manual score-boards are always in place at some corner of the ground at most venues.