Skip to main content

Better than expected

After the first nine days of the tournament, I have to say that the quality of matches has been better than expected, maybe because so many of the top teams are relatively evenly matched making results difficult to predict. Still early in the tournament, but so far Australia, South Africa and Pakistan look a cut above the rest which I suppose points to the fact that in sub-continental conditions the teams with the best bowling will usually be on top in a tournament this long. India have been shockingly poor in the field even by their usually indifferent standards and a semi-final place will need a lot of luck.

The scheduling of the tournament is still the worst part of it though. Why there aren't two matches each day is unfathomable as is the fact that India play South Africa in Nagpur where crowds aren't bothering to turn up whereas Eden Gardens plays host to Ireland v. Netherlands and Kenya v. Zimbabwe, surely the two most anticipated clashes! ;-) Politics is clearly well and alive in Indian cricket scheduling and its a pity that the ICC doesn't come down more heavily on these sorts of goings-on.

So my predictions after the first round of data would be Australia vs. India in one semi and South Africa vs. Pakistan in the other. After that the head and the heart diverge. India vs. Pakistan at the Wankhede on Apr 2nd would be lovely but my feeling is it will be Aus vs. SA with the Proteas to win their first title. I'm sure I'll be eating my words soon but lets see :-)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Et tu?

As a single sport website, I think Cricinfo has brought about a revolution and the fact that they were bought by ESPN is testament to how highly valued they've become. Their editing and approach to articles/opinion has been refreshing to say the least and even though they seem to have had a lot of editorial staff movement they've usually maintained very high standards. Off late though, both in their headline styles as well as in actual content, there seems to be an occasional slippage of standards and an inching towards the modern media sensationalism which is a bit of a pity. This piece  by Siddharth Monga is a classic example. Granted that the last two press conferences by Dhoni and Sehwag  indicated clearly that the captain and his deputy did not agree on this aspect of selection but "discord", "dissent", "public sniping" feels rather presumptuous and heavy handed. Yes, it is a team sport but there is no reason why everyone on the team needs ...
1 comment
Read more

Quick singles: Why the double standards?

I'm no fan of David Warner's but for once, I'm firmly and squarely on his side . Sportspersons are probably treated the most unfairly by public opinion (and often the media) whenever they are involved in pay disputes. "Oh, look these millionaires are complaining about not getting paid enough" seems to be the gist of the general reactions. I find this attitude inexplicable at best and grossly hypocritical if I'm feeling less charitable. Like the rest of us, all athletes have the right to fight for what they think they should be paid. That is the fundamental part. In addition (and unlike many of the rest of us), most sportspersons operate in the knowledge that they only have a short period available as a performer, and therefore only a short period to maximise earnings. Most people that I know would behave exactly the same as Warner and his colleagues are doing. So why all the hue and cry?
Post a Comment
Read more

First thoughts on the Ashes

The only minor surprise for me in the 2013 Australian Ashes squad announced last week was the selection of James Faulkner ahead of Moises Henriques as the second all-rounder. Minor because given  the Shane Watson shenanigans of recent times, I would have thought that Inverarity and co would have opted for a second batting all-rounder (which is what Henriques clearly is). Instead they've gone with a bowling all-rounder in Faulkner and it'll be interesting to see what happens if Watson's batting woes in Test match cricket continue in the first two Tests. As for the rest of the squad, given the way the inexperienced batting performed in India, Rogers and Haddin were always going to make it in to the team and the choice of Khawaja over Smith appears sound too given that the latter's strength is in playing spin bowling. The batting still looks as unsettled and shaky as the Indian fast bowling line-up and its here that the series will be won or lost for the Aussies. The retu...
Post a Comment
Read more