West Indies at World cup cricket: Two-time champions haven’t made semi-finals since 1996

1987 World Cup; failed to proceed beyond group stage

The Windies were led by Sir Richards in this edition and it was the first time that they failed to make the semi-finals. The Windies lost their opening game against England by 2 wickets but then clobbered Sri Lanka by 191 runs in the next match. Sir Richards belted 181 off 125 balls in this match. The third match that the West Indies played remains notable for the spirit that was shown by Courtney Walsh for not running out Saleem Jaffer who had gone out of the crease.

Pakistan won that game by 1 wicket and it was a crucial loss for the Caribbeans. The Windies then defeated Sri Lanka by 25 runs but lost to England by 34 runs in the next. The Windies then beat Pakistan by 28 runs in their final match but it was not enough to guarantee them a place in the last four.

1992 World Cup; failed to qualify for the semi-final

Richie Richardson was the West Indian skipper in this WC and they started off with a bang, crushing Pakistan by 10 wickets in the first match in Melbourne. The Windies then lost to England by 6 wickets but were back to the winning ways by defeating Zimbabwe by 75 runs. West Indies’ roller-coaster ride continued as they went down to debutants South Africa by 64 runs in the next game while chasing just 201 to win.

The Caribbeans then lost to the season’s favourites New Zealand by 5 wickets but beat India by 5 wickets in the next game to keep their hopes of making the semis alive. Phil Simmons’ 110 against Sri Lanka saw the West Indies winning by 91 runs and the West Indies needed to win their final game against an out-of-form Australia to make the semis, overtaking Pakistan. But a magnificent 70 off 97 balls from Brian Lara proved to be inadequate as the West Indies failed to overhaul a modest target of 217 in the game to crash out of the fray.