This was a year of a few firsts in cricket, and not all of them welcome. Let’s start with the good, because there no dearth of negativity around us, even in the world of sports.
South Africa, the perennial title challengers for decades, finally got to lift a major trophy. And what an apt victory it was – the World Test Championship.
Australia did not have an ICC trophy in their cabinet, but had two major triumphs to allay any fears of losing their edge due to an ageing core. A momentous Test series victory against India – their first in nearly a decade – was the last remaining box that the golden generation of Australia needed to tick. And they did that in such an emphatic fashion at the start of the year, it set off a chain reaction across Indian cricket that cost many players their careers, the reverberations of which are still being felt.
Australia also cut a resurgent England down to size in the ongoing Ashes, tearing apart a hugely promising English side even with key players missing in the first two Tests.
For India, it was a year of extremes as they extended their shocking record in home Tests to five successive defeats to top-ranked teams, while also clinching the 50-overs Champions Trophy and 20-overs Asia Cup titles.
And then, there was the India-Pakistan political drama, played out in all its ugliness, putting such a deep stain on the game that it turned the biggest match in cricket into a sad spectacle of human folly. It was a year when cricket learnt quite a few lessons.
Performance of the year: South Africa do know how to win
The Proteas Test team have been a force of nature for the best part of two years. They won seven straight Tests, albeit in short two-match series, to qualify for the WTC final against Australia at Lord’s in June.
But when they conceded a 74-run lead after being rolled over for 138 in the first innings by Australia’s world-beating bowling attack, it seemed as if another runners-up finish awaited. However, a monumental push from pacers Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi, followed by a historic century by opener Aiden Markram, handed Temba Bavuma the WTC mace, silencing everyone who had made snide remarks about his leadership and South Africa’s record in knockouts.
The Proteas took a minor hit in the drawn Test series in Pakistan before crushing a listless India team in their backyard in an unprecedented Test series sweep.
South Africa were within touching distance of the 2024 T20 World Cup as well. A big part of that squad finally tasted success this year. Since their core group is largely intact, expect at least one more ICC trophy from a team that is finally living up to its potential.
Win some, lose some
India won two big titles this year – the ICC Champions Trophy and the T20 Asia Cup; both in Dubai. They were also disappointing in equal measure. A Test series defeat in Australia, another clean sweep at home against a strong opposition – South Africa this year after New Zealand in 2024 – bookended a strange year where they also drew a remarkable Test series in England – under the nascent leadership of new Test captain and doyen of the team management, Shubman Gill.
The moment India began forcing Virat Kohli and then captain Rohit Sharma out of the Test team and ODI setup, the dynamics of the team buckled under pressure. Possibly, the regular members of the team sensed the ground shifting beneath them. Maybe it was that sort of a year. Whatever the reason, a general lack of confidence and bewildering selection decisions – like promoting Gill in a settled T20 team or the unrelenting backing for Harshit Rana – became a running theme by the end of the year.
Similarly, Pakistan did not have that one big win by the end of the year, but they were good on several counts. They drew a Test series against world champions South Africa and had a 21-13 record in T20s. Sure, the year was marked by even more uncertainty about their leadership and future of star players like Babar Azam, but the team in green were not too far off the mark.
Disappointment of the year: India-Pakistan debacle
India defeated Pakistan in three out of three games at the T20 Asia Cup to clinch another major title. That made it three successive multi-team trophies for a really strong Indian team. But that was not the big story. Not even close.
The broken political relations between the two neighbours following a brief war earlier in the year took a turn for the worse during the Asia Cup. India first refused to shake hands with Pakistan, pledging their support to their nation’s army and victims of the attacks on tourists in Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir. That set off a shocking chain of events.
The captains did not pose together for photos before the final, Pakistan threatened to pull out of the tournament at one point and by the end, the trophy was not handed over to India as the Pakistan cricket chief, who was also the head of Asian cricket at the time, insisted on handing over the trophy.
Someone won, but everyone else lost as the two teams held cricket hostage in an unending bout of sabre rattling. Cricket has had enough of India v Pakistan.
Surprise package: England not there yet, Australia not done yet
Ben Stokes has one thing on his mind – excellence in Test cricket. He has eschewed white-ball cricket for now as he looks to put England back on top in the longest format. His mission seemed to be on track as England, having moved on from the fast bowling legends James Anderson and Stuart Broad, showed they had what it takes by battling for 25 days across five Tests to draw the series against India at home.
Australia, on the other hand, were beginning to lose their aura with almost half their first-choice team close to or above the age of 35. They had lost the WTC final as well, after falling short in the Champions Trophy. Maybe this was the year England would finally snatch the urn from Australia’s nearly decade-long grip.
Wrong. Australia crushed England inside two days in the first Test and in the second, their tailenders joined the fun to score over 500 and complete another massive victory. All that without captain Pat Cummins and pace spearhead Josh Hazlewood. Unknown medium pacers like Brendan Doggett and Michael Neser played their part admirably to gain a decisive 2-0 lead.
The final nail in the coffin came in Adelaide, with Australia winning by 82 runs to secure an unassailable 3-0 lead to retain the Ashes. It left England reeling and still searching for a first win in Australia in 15 years.
More importantly, England were shown that strong statements about intent need to be backed by solid and sensible actions on the field against top teams, like having proper training and warm-up games ahead of the Ashes. And Australia proved that even though they are an ageing side, with their pace attack most likely on its final legs as a trio, they know too much and have won too many times to be taken lightly.
Wishlist for 2026
Next year will start with a bang with the T20 World Cup early on in India and Sri Lanka. And once again, India will take on Pakistan in the group stage, where the same drama we saw at the Asia Cup feels almost inevitable. Will the players shake hands? Will they break out into a fight?
Hopefully, this is the last time the neighbours are forced into the same group at every ICC tournament. Other teams and rivalries are just as enticing. And they don’t carry anywhere near as much baggage.
Also, it would be great to have a team like New Zealand or Sri Lanka win the title. They are well-balanced and perfectly suited for the demands of T20 cricket in the subcontinent.
And looking at the larger picture, one hopes that cricket administrators wake up and smell the coffee, and acknowledge that it might be time to have clear and separate windows for international cricket, like football, so that all stakeholders can get the most out of franchise cricket, which in turn would keep the wheels turning in international cricket.
The money supply from mega broadcast deals might slow down. And many franchise owners will simultaneously own bigger cricket products across various markets. For everyone to flourish in the skewed world of cricket economics, someone needs to hit the reset button.
