Be it any player playing a sport, his/her biggest dream is to make their nation proud on a grand stage, and in the case of cricket, the ultimate level of glory is laying hands on the Cricket World Cup that is played every four years.
However, as we all know that life is not fair, there have been some legends of the game who could never feature in the World Cup despite being influential personalities in their teams. Today, we will have a look at such legends.
1) VVS Laxman (India)
A player that has been India's backbone on multiple occasions, VVS Laxman is one unlucky player when it comes to featuring in the World Cup.
Laxman was never the epicenter when it came to being an Indian ODI batsman, but did play 86 ODIs and with his stature in the Test format, you might expect him to feature in at least one World Cup.
However, he was unfortunate to always miss out on the squad. 2003 was his final chance to make a feature in the Cricket World Cup but instead, it was Dinesh Mongia who was selected. But that will still never make anyone feel that Laxman had an underwhelming career.
On the contrary, we are quite certain that VVS had so many incidences on the field where he was "very very special."
2) Alastair Cook (England)
Another astonishing Test batsman, Sir Alastair Cook was another star who never made a World Cup appearance. His case is a lot stronger than Laxman's as Cook was one of a kind.
His track record in ODIs was great too. Cook played 92 ODIs, scoring 3204 runs, and was a brilliant hitter of the ball. However, playing a World Cup was something Cook couldn't achieve in his shining career.
3) Justin Langer (Australia)
A player that spent 14 years playing top-tier cricket, it's quite disheartening to see him not represent his nation in the biggest cricket tournament.
Langer was and is a legend of the game, one of the best to have played for Australia but his game was only in its full potential in Tests. Langer is one of the rare batsmen to have not featured for Australia in World Cups, especially after people saw his partnerships with Matthew Hayden.
Langer retired from ODIs 10 years before he retired from Test cricket and that still wasn't enough for earning a spot in the World Cup.
4) Chris Martin
The Kiwi was and is a highly respected bowler ever to have played for New Zealand. However, he was so effective that in Tests, he was only behind the likes of Richard Hadlee and Daniel Vettori in terms of wickets.
Martin was New Zealand's spearhead during his time alongside several great players. Martin played just 20 ODIs and picked 18 wickets. However, there was one season where he could have played in the World Cup when he replaced an injured Daryl Tuffey in the 2007 World Cup but was still not picked to play any matches.
5) Matthew Hoggard (England)
A gem of an English bowler who was so good, Hoggard managed to pick 248 wickets in just 67 Tests and was phenomenal in the Ashes too.
But Hoggard didn't have the numbers to present when ODIs were concerned. He managed to pick just 30 scalps in 26 ODIs, not at all good for a player so influential in Tests.
Hoggard's ODI career concluded in 2006 but he did not play a single World Cup game in the 2003 World Cup too even though he had made it to the squad.
Sad, isn't it? Well, let us know your thoughts, and stay tuned with Cricwizz for more updates.
Cover Credits: CricketCountry
