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The good and bad of the 2015 World Cup so far

The good and bad of the 2015 World Cup so far

The 20th World Cup match will kick off tonight between Australia and New Zealand in Auckland in what fans are calling a “mini-final.” Fireworks, fancy strokes and lots of sixes are expected. Things are meant to get ugly. Here’s a look at the good and bad of the World Cup so far.

 

THE GOOD

Chris Gayle, West Indies, 215 (147) vs Zimbabwe : This is going to be hard to top. A man under pressure who hadn’t scored a century since June 2013. The West Indies started the World Cup with a loss to Ireland then beat Pakistan and faced off against Zimbabwe in what was an historic, record-breaking day for Gayle. The opening bat looked iffy early but returned to form in a big way hitting everything out of the park. Does it get any better than this? No.

Tim Southee, New Zealand, 7-33 vs England : The opening bowler ripped through England like a cyclone. Pitching the ball up and getting it to move late troubled the English. It was the most destructible spell of bowling at the World Cup so far. See for yourself below.

 

 

AB de Villiers, South Africa, 162* (66) vs West Indies : The Proteas skipper keeps proving to the world he loves the short game. In January he blasted the fastest century off 31 balls. Yesterday he smashed the West Indies bowling attack to all parts of the S.C.G. in a record-breaking whirlwind innings. It was one for the ages. His last eight innings: 162*, 30, 25, 24, 19, 149, 81, 148. When he gets beyond 30, he goes big.

 

A tri of good things: Three lesser known players have stood firm under the pressures of the World Cup. South Africa’s leg spinner, Imran Tahir claimed a workman-like 5-45 against the West Indies which takes his tournament tally to nine wickets (second best). India’s Shikar Dhawan produced a masterful 137 (146) against South Africa on the M.C.G. in a pressure game for India. And Australia’s all-rounder Mitch Marsh ripped through England in the World Cup opener taking 5-33; this from a 23-year old who has only played 14 one-day internationals.

 


 

Afghanistan’s first ever win vs Scotland: They’ve added some great memories to the fairy tale for now. Competing in their first World Cup, they stiffed Scotland with three balls to spare. At 7-97 chasing 211, no one gave them a chance. This will be filed away as a “courageous performance.”

Ireland are undefeated: Two matches, two wins. One against the West Indies and the other over UAE in a tight one. They chased 300 plus to beat the Caribbean boys and 278 against UAE. They’ve made 586 runs at the World Cup in two outings. I don’t think you would have said that four years ago.

 

THE BAD

England Cricket: They were thumped by 111 runs by Australia and then clobbered by 8 wickets by New Zealand. Forget what they do against the minnows, they are 0-2 against the big boys. They have Sri Lanka coming up and if they lose that, they’ll be taking a 0-3 record into the knockout rounds where they will get eaten alive. No Pieterson, no Cook, no Trott, no England.

 

Pakistan’s off field drama: You could write a soap opera T.V  series using the material coming from the Pakistan cricket camp since the World Cup started. Players broke curfew on the eve of the cup; their fielding coach resigned, and was then reinstated; players have refused to do extra work to improve their game; and Moin Khan, the guy in charge of team selection, was sent home for dabbling in casino time the night before the West Indies match. It’s no wonder they are sitting in last position in Pool B.

Scotland still winless at World Cups: They almost claimed Afghanistan as their first World Cup scalp but couldn’t get there. From three World Cup appearances, Scotland are 0-11. There’s still time, but can’t see wins against Sri Lanka or Australia. They play Bangladesh which could fall their way.

The Australia-Bangladesh washout: I guess there is not much you can do when a tropical cyclone named Marcia, clocking 295 kph winds puts a game out of action. But, what about replaying the match? Australia had seven days between that game and tonight’s match against New Zealand. Both teams will have to settle for half a point.

World Cup Format: We are into match 20 starting tonight and first thoughts: there is too much lagging in the tournament. I realize the ICC wants to cash in on this world event and like to show the bigger matches on weekends, but, a week between blockbuster clashes is too long to wait. More blockbuster fixtures needed, more double headers (or triple headers!) and a format like this: 16 teams, four groups, then a super six league round (best six teams), semi finals and a final. Main point here: we get to the "best of the best" matches quicker, which is what fans want.

McGrathgate: It was horrible timing for Australian bowling legend Glenn McGrath to have his African Safari hunting pictures splashed all over social media during a World Cup. The images show him and fellow Australian bowler Brett Lee posing in front of elephants and deer that had been hunted. Naturally the social media world showed no mercy and called the photos distasteful and cruel. One hopes this doesn't tarnish his great career.