Most consecutive wins in cricket across all formats

Australia’s supremacy in ODI and Test cricket hasn’t been surpassed since 2003 as they sit at the top of the list for most consecutive wins in cricket. As for T20Is, as many as three teams in Afghanistan, Romania and India hold the joint record with 12 wins on the trot.

T20Is

Afghanistan was the first team to win 12 consecutive T20Is. A run that started against Zimbabwe in February 2018 at Sharjah continued until a brilliant 25-run win over Bangladesh in September 2019. During their 12-match unbeaten run, the Afghans squared off against Zimbabwe, Bangladesh and Ireland.

The Chevrons were defeated on three occasions, Bangladesh on four, and Ireland were the most vicious victim as they were defeated five times.

A year after Afghanistan’s run came to a standstill, Romania began theirs. Starting off with a 52-run win over Bulgaria, the Romanian cricket team went on to beat the likes of Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Malta and Luxemburg in their next 11 matches.

Finally, in November 2021, India began their conquest by beating Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi. Interestingly, since that win, the Indian cricket team hasn’t lost a T20I match to date, meaning that they are only one win away from becoming the first team to win 13 T20I games on the trot.

ODIs

The record for most consecutive wins in ODI cricket belongs to the golden generation of the Australian team. Between January 2003 and May 2003, the Ricky Ponting-led side won a whopping 21 games on the trot. This includes the 2003 World Cup final win over India.

The testament of Australia’s dominance in 2003 can be demystified by the fact that the closest any team has ever come close to the record is South Africa and Pakistan when they won 12 consecutive ODIs.

As for Australia, they started their run during the 2002/03 three-team VB series. From that point on, the Aussies beat as many as 10 different teams. The only top cricketing nation they didn’t face was South Africa.

Tests

Four years after setting the record for most consecutive wins in Test cricket in 2001, the Australian cricket team matched the figure after going on a 16-match winning streak between December 2005 to January 2008.

It was that golden generation once again, but this time around, they upped the ante a bit, beating six different teams as compared to five during their previous run. This includes series sweeps over South Africa, Bangladesh, England and Sri Lanka.

Their closest competitor is West Indies, who recorded 11 consecutive Test wins from March 1984 to December 1984.

Featured photo: AFP / Rob Eillot