MS Dhoni equalled Clive Lloyd’s record of nine consecutive wins in World Cups after India thumped Ireland by eight wickets in a Group B match on Tuesday.
Lloyd had led the West Indies to title triumphs in the first two World Cups without losing a match though a game had been washed out in the 1979 event. That streak, incidentally, had been broken by India when Kapil Dev’s men tamed the Caribbeans in their first match of the 1983 meet. India eventually went on to win the Cup in that edition.
Dhoni’s run of nine straight wins stretches from their defeat of the West Indies in the 2011 World Cup in Chennai. The win propelled them into the quarters against Australia and from then onwards they have remained unbeaten in the quadrennial bash.
“The most important thing is winning the game for your country,” Dhoni said when asked about the streak. “It doesn't really matter what the milestone is. Definitely it's something that every player will be proud of. Thanks to the players from the last World Cup and the current team, because it's a team effort. At the end of the day, we play a team sport, and everybody needs to enjoy it.”