Cricket is Australia’s most sought-after sport and has witnessed countless rivalries between other countries in its glorious history. From tedious battles on the pitch to tactical impacts on the bench, Australia had to face it throughout. In this article, view the Top 10 Greatest Rivalries of Cricket Australia.
1. The Ashes
Historically, the Ashes have been Australia’s most coveted trophy, as it is a sign to show the inefficiency of the English Cricket Team. This trend first started in 1882, when the English Dominance in cricket broke by the Australian Cricket team and its captain, W.L. Murdoch. The Aussies won the series 2-1. A terra-cotta pot was sent to the England Captain, Ivo Bligh, which contained a burnt bail, symbolizing the ashes of English cricket. The English Captain sought to retain the pot, which was then, made into a trophy. Australia and England regularly contest for taking the Ashes trophy. Ashes have produced brilliant cricketers such as Steve Waugh, Don Bradman, Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Andrew Strauss, and Kevin Pietersen..
2. Trans-Tasman Rivalry
The Trans-tasman Rivalry is the Cricket Rivalry between Australia and its nearest neighbor, New Zealand. This rivalry started in 1946 when New Zealand gained test recognition and played its first match against Australia. The rivalry became intense in the 1985-86 season, as Richard Hadlee, New Zealand pacer, picked up nine wickets in an inning to finish off Australia and win the first test by an inning and 41 runs. Australia won the second test but lost out on the third due to the excellence of Richard Hadlee, who picked eleven wickets to crush Australia’s hopes and win the series and retain the trophy. The return test was similar, with Australia suffering at the hands of Richard Hadlee and spinner John Bracewell picking ten wickets in an inning. New Zealand dominated the 1985-86 season. Australia and New Zealand contest for the trophy and annually face off against each other.
3. Border-Gavaskar Trophy
India and Australia, annually compete for the Border-Gavaskar trophy. The name comes from Indian Captain Sunil Gavaskar and Australian skipper Allan Border. The first test match of the Border-Gavaskar trophy was in Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi, where Sachin, for the first time, was captain of a test series. The most epic encounter in the Border-Gavaskar trophy was the 2000-01 series, in which Australia faced India thrice. In the first test, Australia dominated the Indian batters in both innings, and the Australian batters scored 349, with tons from Hayden, Waugh, and Adam Gilchrist. Australia won by ten wickets as the openers smashed 47 runs off seven overs. The second test presented the most intense moments of rivalry between both countries. India won the test because of a 300-plus stand from Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. India won the third test because of Harbhajan Singh's excellent bowling, which included a career-best 8/84. He also scored the winning runs to give India the victory. Border-Gavaskar trophy has some of the most intense moments of rivalry between Australia and India.
4. Australia-South Africa Rivalry
This rivalry dates back to 1902 when South Africa became a cricketing nation. Both sides have faced off against each other 203 times with Australia winning 113 matches. There have been many controversies in games that these teams face, such as the underarm incident and the ball-tampering scandal in 2018, with captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner, banned. This also exposed the mindset of the Australian dressing room to be a win-at-all-costs mentality.
The most known one is the 434 run-chase which saw Australia post a massive score of 434, the highest ODI score at the time, as Ponting scored 164 runs and South Africa responded with Herschelle Gibbs scoring 175 runs. The match dragged on to the last over, where Mark Boucher hit the winning runs.
5. Australia- Sri Lanka Rivalry
This rivalry started in the 1996 World Cup, in which Sri Lanka, under the leadership of captain Arjuna Ranatunga, against all odds, like the chucking label on a young Muralidharan, constant slander by Australian Media Channels, etc., reached the world cup final and defeated Australia, with Ranatunga hitting the winning runs. Since then, both countries have faced each other eight times in World Cups, with Australia winning seven matches.
6. India Vs. Australia In ODI
Australia and India’s rivalry started in December 1980, when India went to Australia at the MCG and won by 66 runs. Australia dominated India in ODIs and defeated India 27 times, and India won 15 times. In World Cups, Australia won 8 times against India, the most prominent being the final in 2003, where Australia scored 359, with Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting scoring 140 runs. Australia won by a massive margin of 125 runs.
7. Australia- England T20 Rivalry
T20 Rivalry started between England and Australia in 2005, the second T20 played. England and Australia played 22 times against each other and Australia won 11 times, and England won ten. The rivalry is very intense and both sides are very close but, Australia edges out England by a single game.
8. Australia Vs. Pakistan Rivalry
Australia-Pakistan Rivalry is one of the most dramatic and intense rivalries in cricketing history. Most intense matches include a tied test in 1986 and the ODI series 2002, where Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akthar was in his best form and provided a challenge for Aussie batters. One of the most dramatic matches was in 2009 when the young pace duo of Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif were a nightmare to face for Aussie batters. Australia won the match by a century off Cameron White. This rivalry produced great pacers, spinners, and batters in cricketing history.
9. Australia-West Indies In Tests
The Aussie-Caribbean Rivalry have a long history from the 1930s when West Indies played its first test series in Australia. The most intense years of rivalry were in the 1970s to the 1980s when Australia relied on the bodyline formula to defeat teams by bouncing the balls and hitting the batters on critical spots such as the head, chest, etc. West Indies suffered in the first test series in 1975, with Australia whitewashed the first test series. But on the return series, West Indies broke Australia, with Vivian Richards, a great West Indian batsman, smashing Aussie bowlers all around the ground. West Indies went on to dominate cricket for over a decade. Australia faced West Indies 15 times, winning twelve times, which included six consecutive series wins from 1984 to 1993.
10. Australia-West Indies In ODIs
Australia and the West Indies have faced each other in ODIs 143 times, with Australia winning 76 matches, with the most prominent games being the matches between 1980 to 1985, where West Indies dominated the Australians, with Vivian Richards playing his best games and emergence of the West Indian pace quartet.
