In 1985, during the innings break of an India-Pakistan game, when the rivals met each other in the first match of the four nations cup at Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium (Sharjah), Pakistan must be a happier team. Indian batters were bundled out for 125 runs, and Pakistan fans must have expected a fairly easy chase.
But what followed was a tragedy for the Pakistani batters as they fell like dominoes, wrapped up for just 87 runs, and ended up losing the game by 38 runs. Pakistani pacer Imran Khan’s best-ever bowling performance and his only 6-wicket haul in the format went pointless that day.
It is one of the greatest Indian ODI wins, mainly due to the fact that it is the lowest team total ever successfully defended by a team in ODI history. You can watch the entire match here.
This article will list the lowest ten team scores successfully defended by any team in ODI cricket.
Lowest ODI Score Successfully Defended by Teams
| TARGET | TEAM | OPPONENT | OPPONENT SCORE | VENUE | YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 126 | India | Pakistan | 87/10 | Sharjah | 1985 |
| 128 | West Indies | England | 125/10 | Kingstown | 1981 |
| 130 | Zimbabwe | Afghanistan | 126/10 | Harare | 2017 |
| 130 | South Africa | England | 115/10 | East London | 1996 |
| 132 | Afghanistan | Zimbabwe | 82/10 | Sharjah | 2015 |
| 135 | Zimbabwe | England | 125/10 | Albury | 1992 |
| 135 | Kenya | Zimbabwe | 69/10 | Harare | 2006 |
| 139 | Zimbabwe | West Indies | 91/10 | Sydney | 2001 |
| 141 | South Africa | West Indies | 136/10 | Cape Town | 1993 |
| 147 | Pakistan | New Zealand | 110/10 | Auckland | 1994 |
Key Stats
Zimbabwe, the team that has been all-out below 100 most times in ODI, has the most successful wins while defending the lowest totals in ODI. They are part of five instances in the top-10 list above – 3 times the winning side and 2 times the victim side.
England bundling out for 115 while chasing South Africa’s 129 in a 1996 ODI game in East London is the lowest any home team has failed to chase in the 50-overs format.
Another instance, where India defended 105 successfully by dismissing all Bangladeshi wickets for a score of 58, is not placed in this list as the match was affected by rain and restricted to 41 overs.
The venues, Sharjah and Harare, featured twice in the above list.
