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The 2022 T20 World Cup is heading to Australia for the eighth edition which will start on October 16 with the hosts hoping to become the first country to retain the title in the T20I format. However, there is one record that they will only equalise if they win their final, and that is for the team to win two T20 World Cup titles! This record still stays with West Indies, who achieved this feat when they won the 2016 World Cup in India in a dramatic fashion.
This, coupled with their win in the competition in 2012, makes West Indies the most successful team in the history of the competition.
2012 T20 World Cup: Scraped through the group but roared to the trophy
In the 2012 edition of the World Cup hosted by Sri Lanka, West Indies managed to make it out of their Group by the skin of their teeth. They lost the opening match to Australia before their must-win clash with Ireland was called off due to rain and the Windies qualified on net run rate with just one point to their name.
In the Super 8 stage of the competition, the Windies were again put under pressure despite their win over England in the first match. They lost their next game to Sri Lanka and then were victorious over New Zealand in a Super Over to keep their tournament hopes alive. After Sri Lanka beat England, the Darren Sammy-led side made it to the knockout stage by finishing second in Group 1 of the Super 8.
In the semi-finals, the West Indies batters took revenge for their early tournament loss to Australia with a stellar batting display. With the bat, they posted a mammoth total of 205/6 and then bundled the Australians for just 131 runs.
But the final was a low-scoring affair where the West Indies had to defend 137 for the win. An inspired bowling effort led by Sunil Narine’s 3/9 dismantled the Sri Lankans for just 101 as the Windies got their hands on the T20 World Cup trophy for the first time.
2016 T20 World Cup: Domination to the very end
In 2016, West Indies had a near-perfect start to their Super 10 with victories over England, South Africa and Sri Lanka. However, having made it to the next round, they suffered the ignominy of losing to Afghanistan in their final game.
But their real challenge came in the semi-finals when they took on the hosts India in a fiercely-contested clash which the eventual champions went on to win by seven wickets to secure their ticket to the final in Kolkata, where they met England.
In the final at the Eden Gardens, West Indies were made to chase down a target of 156 to create history. But the Englishmen did really well to keep the dangerous Windies batters with 19 needed in the last over for the win. It was then that Carlos Brathwaite produced one of the greatest moments in T20I history by smashing four consecutive sixes off Ben Stokes to etch his name in history as West Indies were crowned champions for a second time.
