World Series Cup
| Administrator | Cricket Australia |
|---|---|
| Format | One Day International |
| First tournament | 1979–80 |
| Last tournament | 2014–15 Tri-Series |
| Tournament format | Triangular round robin followed by a best of three final |
| Number of teams |
 Australia England West Indies India Pakistan New Zealand Sri Lanka South Africa Zimbabwe
|
| Current champion |
Australia
|
| Most successful |
Australia (20) |
| TV |
Nine Network Fox Sports |
The Australian Tri-Series refers to the one day international (ODI) cricket tournament held in Australia, and contested by Australia and two touring teams. The series is played during the height of the Australian cricket season, in the summer months of December, January and February. The series has been the primary format for international one-day cricket throughout most of the history of ODI cricket in Australia. The tri-series was first held in 1979–80 and was contested every season until 2007–08. It has since been held twice, in the 2011–12 season, and again in the 2014–15 season, prior to the World Cup.
The concept of a three-team international series known as a tri-series in cricket originated with the World Series Cricket program sponsored by Kerry Packer. Packer was keen to exploit what he saw as strong interest in ODI cricket, and staged long tri-series amongst teams from Australia, West Indies, and The Rest of the World in the 1977–78 and 1978–79 seasons. These tournaments have never been awarded either One Day International or List A status.
When the World Series Cricket schism ended in 1979–80, the tri-series format was retained. Throughout its existence, the tournament was held as a series of One Day Internationals, featuring a round-robin played amongst the three teams, followed by a finals series played between the top two. The most common format over the years was that each team played each other four times in the round-robin, followed by a final decided by a best-of-three series (with the third match played only if necessary), for a total of fourteen or fifteen ODIs played through the summer.
The basic format has been unchanged throughout the tri-series' history, but specific details have varied:
Over its duration, the series has taken on several mostly commercial names:
After the 2007–08 season, the tri-series format was abandoned. For three seasons (2008–09 until 2010–11), Australia still played ODIs against two touring teams, but these were staged as separate ODI series against a single opponent. The Commonwealth Bank of Australia was still the naming rights sponsor of ODI cricket in Australia during these summers, so all series were still known as the Commonwealth Bank Series during this time.
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