Dates | 17 February – 10 March 1985 |
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Administrator(s) | Australian Cricket Board |
Cricket format | One Day International |
Tournament format(s) | Group stage and Knockout |
Host(s) | Australia |
Champions | India (1st title) |
Runners-up | Pakistan |
Participants | 7 |
Matches | 13 |
Player of the series | Ravi Shastri |
Most runs | Krishnamachari Srikkanth (238) |
Most wickets | Laxman Sivaramakrishnan (10) |
The Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket was part of the celebrations commemorating the 150th anniversary of European settlement in the Australian state of Victoria. It was a One Day International (ODI) tournament held in Australia from 17 February to 10 March 1985. India defeated Pakistan in the final by 8 wickets.
All of the then seven Test match playing teams participated with matches played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the Sydney Cricket Ground. The tournament saw the first matches played under lights at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. India were the reigning World Cup holders, having defeated West Indies in the 1983 Cricket World Cup Final, but the bookmakers installed West Indies as favourites. India were ultimately undefeated at the tournament, with Ravi Shastri named as the player of the tournament.