Best team to not win the cup - West Indies, 1983

Picture these 14: Clive Lloyd, Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Viv Richards, Larry Gomes, Faoud Bacchus, Jeff Dujon, Malcolm Marshall, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner, Winston Davis, Gus Logie and Wayne Daniel. This squad did not win the World Cup! In the first two editions of the Cricket World Cup(1975 and 1979), West Indies were the unstoppable force. Coming into the third edition in 1983, also in England, not many were willing to bet against the Caribbeans completing a hattrick of titles. Lloyd's men had never tasted defeat in a World Cup game. Then, in 1983, they ran into an inspired bunch of cricketers, masquerading an immovable object.West Indies' title defense began with a stunning 34-run defeat to India at Old Trafford. In the two editions preceding the 1983 World Cup, India had won just one World Cup game - against lowly East Africa, in 1975. Surely, a defeat to India was but a minor aberration. Indeed! They stamped their authority on the tournament in their very next game, by thumping the Australians by 101 runs, with fast bowler Winston Davis taking 7/51. All was normal with the World Cup as the buccaneering West Indian side then swept aside Zimbabwe, before getting back at India with a 66-run win that saw a blistering 119 from Viv Richards. With victories in each of their five games after their opening defeat, West Indies marched into the semi-finals, looking very much like the emperor they were accustomed to being, than the crown prince they resembled in Manchester.Then, in the second semi-final, Malcolm Marshall and Andy Roberts reduced the other pre-tournament favourite, Pakistan, to 184/8 in their 60 overs before Richards and Larry Gomes cantered to the target to give the Windies their third successive World Cup final appearance. Standing between them and the title, was India, a team that had exceeded expectations merely by qualifying out of their group. A David vs Goliath battle ensued. Lloyd won the toss, and instructed Roberts, Marshall and Michael Holding to blow the batting line-up off. They responded in kind and India were skittled out for one-less than what Pakistan achieved. Then, the unthinkable happened. Kapil's Devils, as they were being called, came out and made 183 look like 283. Inexplicably, the mighty West Indies were bowled out for 140. David had once again triumphed over Goliath and statistics stood bemused. Richards had scored 367 runs at 73.40. Gomes and Greenidge averaged over 40. Marshall and Holding took 12 wickets apiece at 14.58 and 19.58 respectively. Dujon led the chart for the most dismissals and yet West Indies fell short of their treble. It was one aberration too many.