On This Day in Cricket - March 21

As the calendar shifts to March 21, the cricketing world can relive the moments that enriched cricketing history. In 2015, Martin Guptill scored a double century against the West Indies in the ODI World Cup and registered his name in the history books. In 1979, New Zealand’s star player Grant Elliott was born, who then became a superhero for the team in the 2015 ODI World Cup. In 2014, the Indian team defeated the Pakistan team in the T20 World Cup by 7 wickets, as Virat Kohli was the key player for them.

On This Day - March 21, 1979 - Grant Elliott Was Born Today

The day of 21st March, 1979, belongs to the star player of New Zealand, Grant Elliott, who managed to get the best performance of his career during the 2015 ODI World Cup. Coming to his overall career, the ODI format proved to be his best, where he played 83 matches and scored 1976 runs at an average of 34.06 and a strike rate of 81.78 for the team.

(Grant Elliott was born on 21st March, 1979)

Talking about the Test format, Elliott failed to reproduce his ODI heroics over there, as in the 5 matches played by him, he was able to score just 86 runs with an average of 10.75. In the T20I Format, he scored 151 runs in the 17 matches played while keeping an average of 15.54 and a strike rate of 108.91.

On This Day - March 21, 2021 - India Legends defeats Sri Lanka Legends by 14 Runs

Getting the final of the Road Safety World Series 2021 underway, India Legends produced a strong all-round performance to defeat Sri Lanka Legends by 14 runs in Raipur. Batting first, India Legends posted 181 for 4 in 20 overs. Yuvraj Singh led the charge with 60 off 41 balls, while Yusuf Pathan smashed an unbeaten 62 from 36 deliveries. Sachin Tendulkar also contributed 30 at the top.

(India Legends defeated Sri Lanka Legends by 14 runs)

In reply, Sri Lanka Legends finished on 167 for 7. Sanath Jayasuriya scored 43, and Chinthaka Jayasinghe added 40, but the target proved slightly out of reach. Irfan Pathan and Yusuf Pathan picked up 2 wickets each to control the chase. Yusuf Pathan was named Player of the Match for his all-round effort, while Tillakaratne Dilshan won Player of the Series. India Legends lifted the title with this win.

On This Day - March 21, 2014 - India defeats Pakistan by 7 Wickets

Winning against the arch rivals Pakistan national cricket team, India national cricket team delivered a solid performance in the World T20 2014 clash at Mirpur. After choosing to bowl first, India kept Pakistan under pressure throughout the innings and restricted them to 130/7 in 20 overs. Pakistan had a slow start, losing Kamran Akmal early. Umar Akmal top-scored with 33, while Ahmed Shehzad added 22. However, regular wickets and tight bowling stopped them from building momentum.

(India defeated Pakistan by 7 wickets)

Amit Mishra was the standout bowler with 2/22, while Ravindra Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar Kumar chipped in with key wickets. Chasing 131, India got a steady start with Rohit Sharma scoring 24 and Shikhar Dhawan making 30. The match was then controlled by Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina, who built an unbeaten partnership to guide the team home. Kohli remained not out on 36, while Raina finished with 35 as India reached 131/3 in 18.3 overs. India secured a comfortable 7-wicket win with 9 balls remaining.

On This Day - March 21, 2015 - Martin Guptill smashes a Double-Century against the West Indies

Smashing a double century, Martin Guptill produced one of the greatest World Cup knocks to power the New Zealand national cricket team to a massive 393 for 6 against the West Indies cricket team in the 4th quarter final at Wellington in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. Guptill remained unbeaten on 237 from 163 balls, smashing 24 fours and 11 sixes. He built steady partnerships with Kane Williamson, who made 33, and Ross Taylor, who added 42. Late hitting from Grant Elliott pushed the total close to 400.

(Martin Guptill scored a double-century against West Indies)

In reply, the West Indies started aggressively as Chris Gayle blasted 61 off 33 balls. However, regular wickets halted their chase. Trent Boult led the bowling attack with 4 for 44, while Daniel Vettori picked up 2 wickets. West Indies were eventually bowled out for 250 in 30.3 overs, handing New Zealand a huge 143-run victory. The win helped New Zealand move into the semi-finals in dominant fashion.