Late, Very Late post on the World Cup

Long time no post. Blogger has been blocked in office, the UPS went for a toss, relatives came over and there was no gas in the tank left after watching the World Cup matches in the night. But I have got some time today.. so here is a late, very late analysis of the World Cup so far.

Whatever happens from now on - this World Cup would be known for all the wrong reasons. The death of Bob Woolmer has brought to light the dark side of the game yet again. It had ceased to be a gentleman's game for a long time now but this was really sad. The circumstances of the death are still not know and I would not speculate on them. I would just like to talk about some images of Woolmer that pop into my mind. My first memories of Bob Woolmer was in the 1996 World Cup in the SA - Pakistan game in the league stages. Inzy was considered among the best batsman in the world and was easily their best player of pace bowling. For Inzy, there were a short midwicket as a catching position even though the fielding restrictions were over. This prevented him from playing his trademark hoick over midwicket with which he had massacred the Kiwis four years ago. Forced Inzy looked for some other areas and eventually was run out cheaply. The next image that stays in the mind for long was the infamous earpiece incident during the 99 World Cup against India which he used to communicate with Donald and Cronje. This person was way ahead of his times. I don't know why they made him apologize for this? The third and probably the most impressive image was during the match fixing saga during the Oval Test of 2006. Bob was also a columnist for Cricinfo.com. He discussed the history of the cricket balls and the reasons behind reverse swing. That one article showed why he was such a great coach - he had immense knowledge about the game and its history and he could communicate it in very simple terms(I tried to find that post but have not been able to find on the cricinfo site). May you rest in peace Bob.

The second and the most obvious topic has to be on India's and Pakistan's early exit. I would write more in a separate post. But I was really pleased that the Indian team went out. Sri Lanka played well and really deserved to win that match after India has so famously botched up against Bangladesh. There was no way India could have competed in the tournament even it managed to get through to the next stage if Bermuda had shocked Bangladesh. Tendulakar failed again which is not very surprising and Murali was just fantastic.They talk about the oldies in India being liabilities. But just have a look at Sri Lanka - Jayasuriya and Murali are running around the park like kids. Their desire to win just shows through in their approach to the game. Just like India, Pakistan too did not deserve to be in the Super 8s. The Irish are playing really well. I believe they might be able to upset somebody in the next round.

The scariest match in the World Cup so far was the Aus-SA match in the group phase. There have been quite a few upsets and some thrillers that Sri Lanka have played. But what made me choose this match was the sheer intensity of the contest till about 75 overs. India Sri Lanka played the previous day. To see this match the next day akin to witnessing a Sampras-Ivanisevic bloodbath on grass the day after you have watched a Muster - Kuerten fistfight on clay. Both Australia and South Africa have 11 extremely fit gladiators. They don't give an inch, don't pull their punches and the cricket was really awesome. They seem to be from a different planet altogether. There were two captaincy masterstrokes in that match - first was the way South Africans bowled during the death - they bowled full and wide in stead of full and straight - the ground was very small straight - but was defendable on the side boundaries. So they bowled all the balls wide so that if they were hit, they were hit to the defendable parts and ended up giving 4s rather than 6s. Not many people credit Smith with brains (yours truly included), but this was a well thought out move. The second was the delaying of the third Power Play by Ricky Ponting - another captain whose skills are under-rated (perhaps rightly so). AB and Graeme Smith were going berserk. In such a huge run chase, the team chasing has to hit all the time. There is no room for a breather, no time to consolidate in the middle. With a huge cushion of runs in hand, Ponting decided to delay the third Power Play in the hope of getting a wicket. It was a huge risk because if it did not pay off, it would just consolidate South Africa's position even further. But the Aussies manufactured a wicket from nowhere and that finished off the game then and there.

The best match so far has been the Sri Lanka - England match. I switched off when Pietersen was dismissed believing that Sri Lanka would go on to win comfortably. But the next day as I switched on the TV to look at the results, I was shocked. I regret not seeing the match now. One thing must be said about Sri Lanka is that they really play as a team. In their case, the sum is much greater than their individual parts. Their bowling is disciplined and the fielding is superb. They gave only 3 extras the whole match - yes your read it correctly. And they did not give any till the 20th over (perhaps even later but I got sleepy after that).

Yesterday's match - South Africa vs Bangladesh showed why Smith is not rated very highly as a captain and why South Africa would not win this World Cup - it would surprise me if they reach the semis now. In the final overs, he did not ask the bowlers to bowl a single bouncer when the batsmen were charging all over the place. Nor did the bowlers think of it themselves. He gave the ball the Ntini and Nel when he could have given Kallis a bowl - Kallis (in the absence of Hall) is easily their best bowler at the death. He possesses a lethal in swinging yorker and is easily their most brainy cricketer in their team. And finally Smith was just playing catch up with Mohd. Ashraful during the slog overs. In the beginning of each over, Smith would bring the fine leg in. On the second or the third ball, Ashraful would scoop the ball over the fine leg's head for a four. Smith would change the field and send the fine leg back. The next over the fine leg would be back in the ring. This sequence went on incredibly for four overs !!!

And finally the predictions and wishes - I would like Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West Indies in the semis (though I guess South Africa might still sneak in). The final wish is an Australia - New Zealand or an Australia Sri Lanka affair and of course Australia to win the cup undefeated.