West Indies have produced some of the greatest names to ever play the game of cricket and were once considered undefeated in any format of the game. With players like Michael Holding, Sir Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd, Garfield Sobers, Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose in their ranks, West Indies have been the powerhouse of world cricket. The 21st century has brought about a downfall but with Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine around, they have seen a few glory days.
Cricket in the West Indies dates back to the early 1900s as a result of colonialism. They played their first Test match against England in Lord’s and failed to register a win in each of their first five games. Their first win came against England in Georgetown in 1930. West Indies for most of the 20th century then transitioned into a team that was simply unbeaten and the best in the world.
West Indies under the able leadership of Lloyd won the maiden ODI cricket World Cup in 1975 and then again in 1979. They were primed to make it three out of three in 1983 but were shocked by India in the final. West Indies continued to produce great players even in the early 1990s and 2000s, none greater than Brian Lara, who is considered one of the greatest batters the game has ever seen. But since then, regular fights with the board and gradual decrease in the quality of players has seen West Indies as a cricket nation go down.
West Indies are currently led by Kraigg Brathwaite in the Test circuit, Shai Hope in ODIs and Rovman Powell in T20Is.
Captains: Kraigg Brathwaite (Tests), Shai Hope (ODIs), Rovman Powell (T20Is)
Coaches: Andre Coley (Tests), Daren Sammy (ODIs and T20Is)
First Test match: 1928
First ODI match: 1973
First T20I: 2006
Cricket board: Cricket West Indies (CWI)
ICC titles: 5
West Indies in T20 International cricket
| Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R | Winning% |
| 202 | 88 | 101 | 3 | 10 | 43.5 |
England might have been the inventors of the T20 format, but it was West Indies who truly embraced it. With power packed performers and skilful bowlers in their setup, West Indies truly became a force in the shortest format of the game and a team that everyone feared. They do not have the best of records in bilaterals, but when it comes to the World Cup, they have always done well.
West Indies were the first team to win the T20 World Cup twice: in 2012 and again in 2016. They played their first match in the format in 2006 against New Zealand which remarkably ended in a tie. In T20Is, they have played 202 matches, which is again a lot. Of these, they have won 88 matches, lost 101 while 10 matches have been abandoned due to inclement weather. They have a winning percentage of 43.5 percent in the format. Three of these matches were tied, all against New Zealand. The match was later decided via a Super over.
West Indies have always been a strong side and have the T20 World Cup trophies to show for it. They have played the most number of T20Is against England and India respectively. Against England, they have won 17 and lost 13 games while against India, they have won ten games , lost 19 with one game ending in a no result. Out of the teams that they have played at least eight T20Is against, West Indies have the best result against Bangladesh who they have beaten nine times in 16 games and lost just five games. Their worst result in the format is against Pakistan against whom they have played 21 T20Is, won just three games and lost 15 matches.
West Indies record against other countries (minimum 8 T20Is)
| Opponent | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | N/R |
| England | 30 | 17 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| India | 30 | 10 | 19 | 0 | 1 |
| South Africa | 23 | 11 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| Australia | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| Pakistan | 21 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 3 |
| New Zealand | 20 | 5 | 10 | 3 | 2 |
| Bangladesh | 16 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Sri Lanka | 15 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Afghanistan | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Ireland | 8 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
West Indies in T20 World Cups
Most runs: Chris Gayle (965 runs)
Most wickets: Chris Jordan (31)
Highest score: Andre Russell (29)
Captains: Daren Sammy, Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Rovman Powell, Nicholas Pooran, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Dwayne Bravo, Denesh Ramdin
West Indies have been one of the stronger teams when it comes to T20 World Cups. Although their performance has dipped in recent times, there is no denying that West Indies are undoubtedly the powerhouse when it comes to the World Cup stage. They began the tournament whipping up a storm in the very first match of the tournament, with Chris Gayle smashing 117 against South Africa. They produced good performances in the 2007, 2009 and 2010 editions before going on to win the trophy in 2012 beating Sri Lanka in the final. Then came the 2016 World Cup where Carlos Brathwaite took West Indies to a trophy out of nowhere. That saw West Indies become the first team to lift the T20 World Cup title twice in their history with Daren Sammy the captain both times.
The following years haven’t been too great for West Indies with a bunch of their star players either retiring or shifting their focus to franchise cricket. They have played all nine editions of the T20 World Cup, qualified for at least the semi-finals four times and won the entire thing twice. West Indies are currently led by Rovman Powell in the format. The 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup was held in the West Indies and co-hosted by the USA.
West Indies’ record in T20 World Cups (2007 to 2024)
| T20 World Cup | Hosts | West Indies’ finish | Winners | Highest Scorer | Most Wickets |
| 2007 | South Africa | Group Stage exit | West Indies | Chris Gayle | Ravi Rampaul |
| 2009 | England | Semi-final exit | Pakistan | Chris Gayle | Dwayne Bravo |
| 2010 | West Indies | Group Stage exit | England | Chris Gayle | Daren Sammy |
| 2012 | Sri Lanka | Winners | West Indies | Marlon Samuels | Sunil Narine |
| 2014 | Bangladesh | Semi-final exit | Sri Lanka | Chris Gayle | Samuel Badree |
| 2016 | India | Winners | West Indies | Marlon Samuels | Samuel Badree |
| 2021 | UAE | Group Stage exit | Australia | Shimron Hetmyer | Akeal Hosein |
| 2022 | Australia | Group Stage exit | England | Brandon King | Alzarri Joseph |
| 2024 | USA and West Indies | Group Stage exit | India | Nicholas Pooran | Alzarri Joseph |
T20 World Cup 2007 – Group stage exit
West Indies entered the 2007 T20 World Cup with a bang against hosts South Africa. Batting first, Chris Gayle sounded a fair warning when he smashed 117 as West Indies posted a strong 205 for 6. But the hosts were not one to get bogged down. They came out all guns firing and overhauled the target. West Indies then lost to Bangladesh by six wickets to crash out of the tournament.
T20 World Cup 2009 – Semi final exit
West Indies put up a much better performance in the 2009 T20 World Cup held in England. They started the tournament with a powerful seven-wicket win against Australia, which saw some brutal hitting of the highest order from Gayle. They lost to Sri Lanka by 15 runs but then brushed aside India by seven wickets at Lord’s. Then came a loss against South Africa but victory over England by five wickets helped them qualify for the semi-final of the tournament for the very first time. But that was the end of the road for them as they crashed out losing to Sri Lanka by 57 runs in the final four at The Oval.
T20 World Cup 2010 – Group stage exit
Playing at home a lot was expected of West Indies, and while they put up a few impressive performances, failure to get into the semi-finals hurt them. West Indies started with a massive 70-run win over Ireland at Providence. They then beat England by eight wickets before going down to Sri Lanka. A win came against India but with a big loss to Australia by six wickets, their hopes of making it to the next round were dashed.
T20 World Cup 2012 – Winners
After the lows of 2010 came the absolute highs of 2012, where West Indies went all the way much to the delight of the Caribbean population. They travelled to Sri Lanka with a lot of fire in the belly having failed to make it to the semis in 2012. West Indies lost to Australia in the opening game of the tournament via DLS method before their match against Ireland was rained off. They then defeated England but lost badly to Sri Lanka before a win in a Super Over against Sri Lanka helped them scrape into the semi-finals.
In the final four, West Indies came up against Australia and absolutely thrashed them by 74 runs. Then came the final against hosts Sri Lanka and this time, the bowlers stood up. West Indies only managed 137 for 6 in their 20 overs, but Sunil Narine’s frugal spell of 3 for 9 restricted Sri Lanka and bowled them out for a mere 101 much to the dismay of the local Colombo crowd.
T20 World Cup 2014 – Semi-final exit
West Indies travelled to Bangladesh in 2014 as absolute favourites and played that way for the longest stretch. They started the tournament with a seven-wicket win against India in Mirpur before thrashing hosts Bangladesh by 73 runs at the same venue. Then came a six-wicket win against Australia following which they beat Pakistan by a mammoth 84 runs to cruise into the semis. But there they came up against a fighting Sri Lanka side and lost the game by 27 runs (DLS method).
T20 World Cup 2016 – Runners-up
The one that they shouldn’t have won but did anyhow because of Carlos ‘remember the name’ Brathwaite. They began the tournament in India with a six-wicket win over India before getting over Sri Lanka by seven wickets and South Africa by three. Then came a shock defeat at the hands of Afghanistan but they had already qualified for the semi-finals by then. In the final four, they met India and much to the shock of the Mumbai crowd beat them by seven wickets to set up a final date with England in Kolkata.
In front of a packed crowd, England batted first and scored 155 for 9, which was a middling total but England had a good bowling attack. West Indies stumbled to 107 for 6 and it seemed England were clear favourites to take the trophy home for the second time. Marlon Samuels was steady and then walked in Carlos Brathwaite. With West Indies requiring 19 to win off the final over, Brathwaite smashed Ben Stokes for four sixes in a row to leave England stunned. That was West Indies’ second T20 World Cup trophy and the only team at the time to achieve the feat.
T20 World Cup 2021 – Group stage exit
The 2021 edition of the T20 World Cup happened after five years as the teams travelled to UAE. West Indies did not have the best of times at the tournament as they lost to England at the start of the tournament before going down to South Africa. They did defeat Bangladesh but lost to Sri Lanka and then to Australia to crash out of the T20 World Cup.
T20 World Cup 2022 – Group stage exit
It was possibly the most disastrous World Cup campaign for West Indies in their history. They could not make the main event of the T20 World Cup 2022 and had to go through a qualifying round. They first came up against Scotland and shockingly went down by 42 runs in the opening game. A 31-run win over Zimbabwe followed but once they went down by nine wickets to Ireland, their tournament was over.
T20 World Cup 2024 – Group stage exit
Coming into the tournament at home, West Indies were desperate to write their previous wrongs and they played that way. They started the group stage with a five-wicket win against Papua New Guinea. Then came a 134-run thrashing of Uganda before they beat New Zealand by 13 runs and Afghanistan by 104 runs to move to the Super Eight stage unscathed. However, things took a turn for the worse there. They lost to England by eight wickets and while they defeated USA, a loss to South Africa ended their campaign.
What to expect from West Indies
Despite losing a lot of players to franchise cricket and tiffs with the board, West Indies are still considered a powerful side when it comes to T20 cricket. They have had decent players come up in recent times and if the heart is at the right place, West Indies have the personnel to take them to the highs they have previously experienced. As they say, never count out West Indies, they will be desperate to make a mark in future events.
