Dennis Amiss

Young Pakistan opener Imam-ul-Haq became the only second Pakistan batsman to score a hundred on his one-day international debut, anchoring his team's seven wicket win in the third match against Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

On June 7, 1975, India played their inaugural ODI World Cup match against England at Lord's. Six bowlers were used, with pacer Madan Lal delivering the first ball. Despite disciplined efforts, India lost by 202 runs as England posted a total of 334 for 4. Sunil Gavaskar's defensive innings of 36 off 174 balls stood out.

It was on June 7, 1975, when the first-ever Men's Cricket World Cup began in England. It was the first time that the Men's World Cup was being played and the first match of the tournament was played between England and India at the Lord's Cricket Ground.

Sunil Gavaskar became the first cricketer to score 10,000 Test runs and had a notable career. However, his slow innings of 36 runs off 174 balls during the 1975 World Cup match against England at Lord’s led to criticism and a heavy defeat for India by 202 runs. Despite this, he emerged as India's top scorer in that tournament.

Joe Root, the England skipper, is now rapidly acquiring that dreaded tag of being an ‘India specialist’. In 22 Tests, Root has aggregated more than 2000 runs at an average of over 58.62 with seven hundreds, two of them in India.

Billy Ibadulla, former Pakistan all-rounder, died on Friday at the age of 88. Ibadulla, who played four Tests between 1964 and 1967, holds the distinction of being the first Pakistan batter to score a century on his Test debut.

Champion bowler, candid person and the strong, moral voice of Indian cricket, that's how Bishan Singh Bedi, who died on Monday, lived in the memories of his contemporaries and successors. Bedi, who took 266 wickets from 67 Tests, was one of the finest left-arm spinners to have graced cricket. But for BS Chandrasekhar, who shared the field with Bedi for long years he was much more than a fine cricketer or teammate.

A job well started is a job well done, goes the old adage. And the very first time India won its opening match at the World Cup, they went on to lift the trophy. That was 1983. They did it again in 2011, when they were crowned champions for the second time.

England, the defending champions of the ICC ODI World Cup, have a success rate of 59.75% in the tournament, winning 48 out of 83 matches. They won their only title in 2019, defeating New Zealand in a Super over. In the 2019 edition, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow both scored over 500 runs, England recorded their highest and second-highest totals, and their runs per over was the best.

A look at bilateral series between India and England, on Indian soil, between 1976-77 to 1984-85.