Cricket World Cup 2007

The Caribbean Carnival Begins

Image Courtsey : Wikipedia.org

Here we are! Cricket’s biggest carnival has finally arrived. It was fitting that the greatest cricketer of all time, Sir Garfield Sobers, declared the world cup open. The organizers departed from the usual formality of the head of state of the host nation declaring the world cup open, and instead asked one of its erstwhile greats to do the honors. Probably this was influenced by the fact that the West Indies is an entity which consists of many nations, and maybe to avoid any dispute which may arise subsequently they selected their greatest ever cricketer to start off their greatest ever sporting event.

This is one of the most open of all world cups in recent memory and also the least hyped one. One can vividly remember the hype that surrounded the world cup last time in 2003. Compared to that this year the hype has relatively low key. It is not until 2 days before the world cup that it has started showing signs of picking up momentum. This could be attributed to the fact that almost 50% of the competing teams in this world do not stand a chance of winning a single match other than among themselves. This has inundated the group stage with a lot of meaningless matches and with the results being a foregone conclusion in almost half its matches. Hopefully the tournament would really start off when the super-eight stage begins on the 27th March.

Image Courtsey: smh.com

There have already been some fireworks on and off the field for this world cup. If the opening ceremony showcased some spectacular fireworks display, off the field it has been the showdown between Ponting and Gavaskar that has been in the news lately. Ponting’s harsh reply to Gavaskar’s equally harsh criticism of their behavior on the field and his subsequent return to Ponting’s taunts have all added spice to an already simmering rivalry between India and Australia. The Indians are still haunted by the massacre they received at the hands of the Australians during last world cup’s final. Indian captain has already stated that he would love to play Australia in the final, above even traditional rivals Pakistan!!! If that doesn’t tell you how much intensity Indians have to a clash with the Aussies nothing else will.

Another confrontation that has just been heated up is that of Bob Woolmer, the Pakistani coach, taking on former greats Imran Khan and Javed Miandad. Woolmer has been subject to their criticism for quite some time now. He has finally hit back taking on both these legends and claiming that he will prove them. Boy!!! As if the pressure of the world cup was not enough, he has gone on and added some more pressure upon himself and his team. Nevertheless there is no denying the fact that this has added much needed excitement to the initial stages of the tournament.

Image Courtsey: cricket-worldcup.net

The opinion that this world cup is the most open in recent time has almost become passé now. Australia’s dominance has been severely dented by their recent losses to England and New Zealand. Their bowling does not seem to posses the same potency it used to posses. With the exit of Shane Warne and the ageing on Glenn Magrath they seem to have lost some of their lethality which had made them such a dominant force for such a long time. Their decline is welcomed by the whole cricketing fraternity as this opens up the door to glory for every other major team in the competition. But still, only a fool would take the Aussies lightly and to their own detriment.

The pitches would be the most crucial factor in this world cup. If it behaves as it has in the past few years then we would not be seeing the run feasts that we have grown accustomed to, and according to me that’s a good thing. The pitches could make it an equal contest between the bowlers and the batsmen, with only the ones with the necessary skills and with the ability to adapt prevailing in the end. Low scores could be the order of the day and this would force the captains to think on their feet and change their strategies as per the demands of the situation.

Image Courtsey: cricket-online.com

I believe that if the wicket plays out as it is expected to, the teams from the subcontinent could come to the party in a big way. These guys are champions anytime the ball doesn’t bounce above their hips. Every Indian must therefore be hoping that their team goes one better in this edition than what they achieved last time around. Nothing would give them more pleasure than dishing it out to the Aussies. If history is anything to go by, then the last time a team was poised to win a hat-trick of world cups they were thwarted by a team of no-hopers from this great country. I genuinely wish that history would repeat itself.

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Saurav Ganguly – The Return of the Prince
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Saurav Ganguly – The Return of the Prince

Countdown to ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

After the recently concluded Sri Lanka series, there is no doubt as to who the real hero for the Indian cricket team is right now. Having been declared the man of the series for this series Dada must be looking back with quite satisfaction at the dramatic turn of events in the last 4 months or so. Ostracized from the Indian team almost a year back, his exit has been well documented and his return now has been equally glorious.

The prince of Kolkata (a title given to him by Sir Geoffrey Boycott) was unceremoniously dumped out of the team for reasons not entirely cricketing. His form, his supposed immobility in the field, and his overall attitude to the game were all cited as reasons for his exclusion. His public spat with the coach and the subsequent fallout with the powers that be in Indian cricket did not help his cause either.

However the way Dada dealt with this blow is really admirable. He went back to county and domestic cricket to work on each and every single aspect of his game that was subjected to criticism and came back with an answer for each and every one of them.

It was said that he can’t play on fast and bouncy tracks. He answered this with some superlative performances in South Africa, where you can find some of the bounciest tracks in the world. He was among the few batsmen to have come out of that tour with their heads held high. The other aspect of his game subject to much ridicule was his fielding. I can’t remember him dropping any catches after his comeback. As a matter of fact, he pulled off a great catch in the series against Sri Lanka indicating the progress that he has made as a fielder. He may still not be the sharpest of fielders, but he has become a reliable enough one. As for his attitude, anybody who has seen him on and off the field would vouch for his change. His focus is so unwavering; one could almost sense the hunger in his eyes. This was illustrated when he came out to practice on a rain affected day in South Africa when the rest of the team had already left for the hotel. One could almost feel his burning desire to shut the critics up once and for all.

Sourav’s second coming (or third coming rather, if you consider that he was actually selected for the Australian tour of 1992) augurs well for team India when they are on the threshold of embarking on the most important tournament of the year. India needs Ganguly to be at the top of his game if India has to have any chance of winning the world cup. He along with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid form the holy trinity of Indian cricket. And all three knows that this could very well be their last chance of winning the World Cup.

Sourav has an important role to play in the world cup. Since our fielding is the weakest point we will need our batsmen to make up those runs that our fielders will invariably give away. And Sourav, who is now almost certain to open the batting for India at the World Cup, will be playing a lead role in achieving this. Presently he is slotted at the right position as he has scored a majority of his runs at the top of the order. His record in ODIs is second only to that of Sachin Tendulkar. His greatest value to the team however will be his handling of spinners, as the pitches in the West Indies are almost certain to assist the slower bowlers. There is no better batsman who can handle the spinners as Sourav can. If he can stay in the middle till the 35th over then expect the spinners to be murdered. His medium pace bowling too will come in handy for India at a time when we are struggling to find bowlers to complete their quota of overs.

Ganguly must be savoring the moment right now as he would those sweet Bengali Rôshogollas one gets at his home town. The Bengal Tiger is back with a bang and you can be rest assured that he would be leading the charge for India in the West Indies.

Who can topple the Australian Applecart? – III

Countdown To ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

India

Presently India to cricket is what Brazil is to Football (Soccer in US). But unfortunately this is only in terms of passion and fan following. We still have a long way to go before we can claim that in terms of results. So as always a whole nation is slowly but surely going to be in the grips of World Cup mania. But what about the team they are supporting? Are they worthy of such adulation? Only time will tell.

The Indian team is just back from the tough tour of South Africa where they received a drubbing in the one dayers played there. Probably because of this there isn’t much anticipation for the world cup unlike in earlier years.

India has a very talented and experienced team as far as batting is concerned. The Holy trinity (Tendulkar, Dravid and Ganguly) of Indian cricket are back. With the experience of having played almost 1000 one dayers between them and having scored a combined tally of more than 33000 runs they are sure to give nightmares any bowling attack in the world. They are supported by an explosive MS Dhoni and Sehwag and the batting does look ominous.

Impressive though the batting line up might be on paper, it is not without chink. The main core of the lineup is ageing. Sehwag’s form is questionable. And even when he is in his best form he is not very reliable. He is like this lottery ticket that when it hits it will always give you jackpots or go bust. More than any other batsmen in the Indian team, his would be the performance that everyone will be watching with great interest. Robin Uthappa is still to find his feet in international cricket. It would be unfair to expect too much from someone so early in his career. Yuvraj is just recovered from an injury and will take time to get back into his groove.

The weakest link in Indian cricket would be the bowling attack. Even with the presence of Kumble and Harbhajan it would be surprising if any team where to be intimidated by our bowling attack. Barring an ageing Kumble there is no other bowler whom we can term as a genuine match winner. Even though Zheer Khan has been on god form lately he is supported by a higly inconsistent Agarkar. With Sreeanth and Munaf not coming up the ranks in ODI as they were expected, India will surely miss Pathan and his abitliy to take early wickets. India desperately needs Pathan to get the balance of their right.

However it is not all gloom for the Indian prospects. The pitches would not be fast and bouncy and hence the batsmen’s techniques will not be exposed unlike the ones in South Africa or Australia. This will be a big help for players like Sehwag who can then just thrust their front foot forward and bludgeon through the line of the ball. The pitch would be assisting the slower bowlers rather than the pace bowlers, and since India has plenty of options when it comes to slow bowling this would not be too much of concern. Yuvraj, Sehwag, and Tendulkar can all turn their arms over if need arise and can provide additional options to Dravid.

Personally I would love nothing more than seeing India win the tournament. Even though my heart desires this, I must say that we would be hard pressed to even get into the Semi-Finals. There are other teams far better than us whom we will have to overcome if we are to reach there. Based on their current form no sane person would bet on that happening. By hey, stranger things are known to have happened in cricket. Remember 1983?

So how can Australia be beaten?

So far we have been looking at the various teams other than Australia who has a chance of winning the world cup. Let’s now see what should be the best way to beat Australia.

The first thing to do would be to go into the field with the belief that you can beat Australia. You have to be aggressive all the time and come hard at them. This Australian team’s bowling can collapse when subjected to adequate pressure. The only way to beat Australia would be to out-bat them. Since their bowling is their weak point you have to get after them in a sensible manner all through the innings to make them suffer.

The second thing to do would be to take all your chances and not take the foot off the gas pedal at any point. A team like Australia will never give you a second chance and will make you pay for any lapses that may happen. Remember Gibbs dropped catch of Steve Waugh in the 1999 edition of the tournament?
Readers are welcome to add their own suggestions.

It would take a tremendous effort for any team to stop the Australian juggernaut and prevent them from winning the title for a third consecutive time. That team will have to really play out of their skins to beat the champions. But that is the beauty of sport isn’t it? For what greater joy is there in sport than to see Goliath felled by David.

Who can topple the Australian Applecart? - II

Countdown To ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

West Indies

The West Indies are hosting the World Cup for the first time. Expect them to come at their opponents with renewed vigor and pride. Not to mention the advantage of playing at home. They have good young side revolving around the experienced players. They have proved that on their day they can be as good any in the game by reaching the final of the last champions trophy and winning the edition previous to that.

Their strength is undoubtedly their batting. Led by the indomitable Brian Lara they have enough experience with Chanderpaul, Sarwan and Gayle in the ranks. Add to that the talented Samuels and Bravo and the West Indies have a potent mix of youth and experience.

Their short coming though is undoubtedly their bowling. There is no one in the West Indies side whom you can rely on as a match winner. They are all capable enough bowlers but they will find it tough to stem the tide when it goes against them. They lack quality experience in this department even though Bradshaw, Taylor and Edwards have been around for some time.

Their major advantage would be that they are playing at home and this should motivate the side more than anything. They are an altogether different side when playing at home as illustrated by the drubbing they dished out to India last year. However they may not have the consistency that is required in tournaments like this for them to get into the semifinal stages of the competition. West Indies were so pathetic at one time that now inconsistency seems sort of an improvement. I seriously doubt them getting past the Super Eight stage.

Pakistan

All the subcontinent teams have a good chance this time of doing well in the competition. The pitch being the major factor for this. The pitches in West Indies do not have the bounce and speed to terrorize the batsmen from the subcontinent.

In the case of Pakistan it all depends on the mood that they are in on any given day. One day they can beat Australia and the next day they can lose to Bangladesh. Whichever side turns up on the field, you will never get bored with seeing their antics on and off the field. It will be a wonder if Pakistan goes through a 2 month tournament without running into some sort of controversy or the other. If they can keep their focus they will be a tough team to beat, which unfortunately for them never happens.

There has never been a dearth of talent in the Pakistan team. If they have ever lacked anything it always was discipline and focus. However this time under the calm Inzamam and the calculating Woolmer they might just change this. The team contains a set of explosive talented players with none other than Shoaib Akthar being most explosive of them all. Pakistan has a good bowling attack with a potent pace battery of Akhtar and Asif, supported by the wily leg spin of Danish Kaneria. After Australia theirs is the best bowling attack and can cause trouble to the rest provided they maintaint their form and fitness.

Their batting too has a nice blend of experience and youth with Inzamam himself leading the way. The gentle giant would do well to keep an eye on his running between the wickets as his opponent for sure will try their best to exploit chink in his armor. Yousuf is in the form of his life. Both he and Younis Khan will have a major role to play Pakistan are to do well in the competition. But the man who could influence Pakistan’s fate more than anybody else would be Shahid Afridi. If he gets going the opposition might as well start packing.

The major concern for Pakistan would be their fielding. If they can plug this gap in their game they could well be the champions of this World Cup. They are the team to watch out for as they should be reaching the Semi-Finals and is one of the favorites in my book to go all the way.

Sri Lanka

The best fielding side from the subcontinent however has more to their game than just fielding. They have some of the most exciting player in world cricket at the moment led by the youthful and exuberant Jayawardene.

Their batting line-up is one of the best. They have abundance of experience in Jayasurya and Attapattu. Adding to it is the solidity of Jaywardene and flair of Sangakkara. Without a doubt batting is their strong point and if Jayasuriya is in his elements then it will be tough for any team against them.

Bowling is the weak link in their line up. This is not withstanding the fact that they have a magician in their ranks called Muralitharan. But unlike in test matches, in One Dayers a bowler gets to bowl only 10 overs in an innings. This enables the opposition to play him out by adopting a low risk approach. He is given excellent support by Vaas. The veteran medium pace bowler is miserly when it comes to giving runs and it is tough to get runs off him without taking a lot of risks. The support bowling is the concern. They are not as world class as these two. But if Mahroof, Fernando and Malinga can give these guys some support it would help Sri Lanka in reaching the finals.

The main advantage for Sri Lanka though would be the pitches in West Indies. It would be so similar to the ones in Sri Lanka that they would be forgiven for thinking that are playing at home. I believe Sri Lanka will have to play really bad to not win the cup. This is their best chance to win the cup away from home.


To be continued...