In Pictures: The Greatest Sporting Moments of 2015

Another exciting season of sports comes to an end. 2015 had a full package of joy and heartbreak.

Another exciting season of sports comes to an end. 2015, like all other years, had a full package of jubilation, heartbreak, drama and suspense.

The Quint takes a look at the top ten sporting moments in 2015 – from Australia winning the cricket World Cup to football administrator Sepp Blatter getting suspended.

R Ashwin was India’s premier bowler in Tests in 2015. He was the highest wicket-taker this year with 55 wickets at an average of 17.81.

Barcelona star Lionel Messi kisses the Champions League trophy after his team beat Juventus 3-1 in the finals at the Olympic stadium in Berlin in June.

Former Australian captain Michael Clarke lifts the World Cup after beating New Zealand in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March.

Novak Djokovic throws his racquet at a ball which was impossible to reach against France’s Richard Gasquet at Wimbledon in July. He managed to get a lot of other things right in the year.

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates after clinching the Formula One world championship after his win at the US Grand Prix race at the Circuit of the Americas, in Texas.

Japan’s Kensuke Hatakeyama celebrates after his team’s extraordinary victory over South Africa in a pool match in the Rugby World Cup in Brighton, England.

Japan’s 34-32 win over the two-time world champion is arguably the biggest upset in rugby history. Despite the victory, Japan failed to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Serena Williams hugs the French Open tennis trophy after beating Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic in three sets. She came close to being the first player to win a grand slam since Steffi Graf in 1988 after she won the first three majors of the year. Unfortunately, she lost in the semi-finals of the US Open.

Jamaica’s Usain Bolt (right) wins the gold medal in the men’s 100m ahead of United States’ Justin Gatlin (left) at the World Athletics Championships in Beijing in August.

Prince Of Penzance jockey, Michelle Payne, celebrates after winning the Melbourne Cup. Payne’s win on the 100-1 outsider made her the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter arrives for a news conference in Zurich, Switzerland after he was banned for 8 years from all football-related activities over a $2 million payment by FIFA to Michel Platini, the UEFA president.