Wisden India Issue 7

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ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

CUP OF GOOD HOPE WORLD CUP 2015 AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND TEAM PREVIEWS

INDIA’S WORLD CUP WINS

1975-2011 HIGHLIGHTS

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

CRICKET AND TRAVEL

WHAT’S INSIDE

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

ODI the winner at World Cup

At a time when the 50-over game strives for relevance, the tournament gives the game context and promises glory

R Kaushik |

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winningest team on the big stage Some luck, yes, but it was a lot of pluck and more skill that made Australia all-conquering at the World Cup

Shamya Dasgupta |

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Rise of the Asian associates

The Devils, the daredevils

1983 and 2011 – campaigns of contrast, two very different paths to the same celebratory end

R Kaushik |

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Afghanistan and UAE have made a quick climb through the ranks, but can they make the transformation from Associates to champions as successfully as Sri Lanka?

Karthik Lakshmanan |

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Million-dollar MIDDLE-AGER From modest beginnings in 1975, cricket’s showpiece event is now attracting the moolah by the millions

Manoj Narayan |

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Final hurrahs and fond farewells With several players expected to hang up their boots after World Cup 2015, the signs of a new world order in the next four-year cycle are already apparent

Sidhanta Patnaik |

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FALL OF THE TITANS

By mid-1980s, West Indies’ fast-bowling arsenal kept them in the hunt but their batsmen were a byword for inconsistency

Dileep Premachandran |

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WHAT’S INSIDE

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FLASHBACK

1975 1979 12

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1983 1987 28

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1992 1996 50

60

Lights, colour, action!

The last time the World Cup was in Australia and New Zealand, it signalled the dawn of cricketainment.

Cricket as we knew it had changed

Disha Shetty |

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Two new balls and two powerplayS A round-up of all the rule changes for World Cup 2015 that aim to make the game more attractive to fans

Himanish Bhattacharjee |

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1999 2003 68

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2007 2011 82

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TEAM PREVIEWS

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25

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37

40

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57

64

70

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ON THE ROAD

Stunning harbours, picturesque cityscapes, plentiful parks, friendly people, and cricket history peeking out at you from the most unexpected corners - a teaser of what to see and do in Australia and New Zealand

Arundhati Sridhar |

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Edited by: Karunya Keshav Designed by: Ashish Mohanty All pictures published as part of Cup of Good Hope courtesy of Getty Images and Wisden India Archive

6 WORLD CUP 2015

ODI the winner at World Cup At a time when the 50-over game strives for relevance, the tournament gives the game context and promises glory R Kaushik

Pakistan v Australia in UAE: 0-3 (3)

South Africa v West Indies in South Africa:

India v West Indies in India: 2-1 (5)

4-1 (5)

New Zealand v South Africa in New Zealand:

New Zealand v Pakistan in New Zealand:

0-2 (3)

2-0 (2)

India v Sri Lanka in India: 5-0 (5) Australia v South Africa in Australia: 4-1 (5) Bangladesh v Zimbabwe in Bangladesh: 5-0 (5) Sri Lanka v England in Sri Lanka: 5-2 (7) Pakistan v New Zealand in UAE: 2-3 (5)

T

hat has been the One-Day International between

schedule

October

2014

and now, with the New Zealand-Pakistan

two-

New Zealand v Sri Lanka in New Zealand:

match series the last international outing

4-2 (7)

before the World Cup. That’s 12 bilateral

Australia-England-India Australia: Australia

tri-series

in

series/tri-series, and these are the ones only involving the Test-playing nations.

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Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea played two ODIs in Australia, while Afghanistan, Ireland and Scotland were involved in a triangular tournament in Dubai.

I am not sure how many of us remember these matches, let alone the results. Yes, perhaps West Indies’ tour of India, but that only because the Caribbean team ditched the tour midway through due to a Classic SIX Every cricket fan around the globe knows India are 2011 champions.

pay fallout between the cricket board and the players. But beyond that, not many of these matches or series ring more than a faint bell.

ODI cricket finds itself between a rock and a hard place. The very fact that so many rule changes have been made to the 50over format is alone indicative of the need

to tell us that all three of its international

to keep the product alive and interesting

products are robust and self-sustaining, is

in an era when Twenty20 cricket has

unsurprisingly the most natural casualty

graduated from upstart to a format that

in this scenario. A seven-hour game with a

is easily the most widely followed, and

45-minute break thrown in would appear

when Test cricket, for all the supposed

neither here nor there. You could squeeze

lack of patronage, continues to hold its

in two Twenty20 games in that duration.

own because the players pay it at least lip

Compared to the 20-over slam-bang, thrill-

service and traditionalists still abound.

a-nanosecond circus, the 50-over game is almost pedestrian. There is a touch of

The 50-over game, no matter how much

predictability to the proceedings – tee off

the International Cricket Council will try

at the beginning, consolidate in the middle

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

8 WORLD CUP 2015 and ennui of the middle overs. Have they worked? Hard to say from a spectator and interest perspective, though various ONE FOR FANS Cricket’s most glamorous contest will be a runaway hit.

captains have voiced their displeasure at the increasing imbalance between bat and ball. But that’s another topic altogether.

One of the reasons why we struggle to remember the aforementioned 12 events is a distinct lack of context. These are matches, series, tournaments that have become no more than a formality. Cricket boards have obligations towards their broadcast partners and other sponsors, so visibility is necessary. A 50-over game

and then go for broke at the end – that

allows broadcasters the opportunity to air

makes one game no different from another, one series eerily similar to the previous or the next one.

Which is why, suddenly, back to one new ball at each end. Which is why, only one five-over block of powerplay after

There are far too many ODIs floating around to keep track of what is happening where. The 50-over game is almost entirely dependent on the World Cup, therefore, to retain its sustainability.

the mandatory first ten. Which is why, during the 35 non-powerplay overs, only

advertisements during almost 100 breaks

four fielders are allowed to patrol the vast

between overs, not to mention every time

expanse of the outfield. All designed to take

a wicket falls or the players adjourn for

the element of predictability away from the

a drinks interval. Even when a player is

game, to retain interest all the way through

receiving treatment for injury – and this

an innings, to dissipate the boredom

is particularly unique to the subcontinent

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– someone is trying to sell water or a soft drink or insurance. Oh well, cricket has long metamorphosed into a commercial beast.

But let’s return to the context. Or rather the lack of it. Australia beating Pakistan

It has a prestigious crown and oodles of prize money at the end of it, but more than anything, it comes with a tag, a label, a prefix and a suffix that span four whole years.

Not just any prefix or suffix. World Cup winners.

in the UAE or New Zealand crushing Sri Lanka in their own backyard are all no more

spectator-at-the-ground interest point of

than sideshows. There are so many ODIs

view – in a country like India where there

floating around the cricketing stratosphere

are nearly 20 international centres, each

that it is impossible to keep track of what

venue gets no more than one ODI a year

is happening where, no matter how ardent

– but it is debatable how seriously players

and committed a cricket fan you are. The

approach these matches. This is not to

authorities will tell us that of course, every

suggest that they don’t want to win every

ODI has context because unlike a Test

match they play, but look at Sri Lanka’s

series, ratings points are updated after

approach when they were pushed in as

every single 50-over international game.

late replacements for the runaway West

All well, to a point. But then you have

Indies in India. Or, more recently, India’s

a scenario where the ranking changes

approach in the tri-series in Australia when

hands sometimes three times a week,

they were so concerned about ironing out

and occasionally, a team that is not even

kinks and arriving at combinations for the

involved in the action briefly becomes No.

World Cup that victory was no more than

1 because someone has lost and someone

a bonus.

else has won. Context? Really?

The World Cup, of course, is a different The 50-over game is almost entirely

entity altogether. Australia are the current

dependent on the World Cup, therefore, to

No. 1 and India are No. 2, but who is the

retain its sustainability. The ODIs are fine

world champion? Do we even care to find

from a commercial and sometimes from a

out who Nos. 3 and 4 are in the ICC ODI

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

10 WORLD CUP 2015

THE best People play the sport to be recognised and acknowledged as the best.

ratings? No sir, it is about who is the World

turned the cricketing order upside down

Cup winner. Every cricket enthusiast

one emotional March night in Lahore in

around the globe – and there are many,

1996.

even if that number is miniscule compared to say football or tennis fans – knows

That’s the charm, the magic, the power

that India are the defending World Cup

of the World Cup – it has context. It has

champions. That Australia won the title

a prestigious crown and oodles of prize

immediately before that, in 2007. As they

money at the end of it, but more than

did in 2003. And in 1999. That West Indies

anything, it comes with a tag, a label, a

won the first two World Cups, in 1975 and

prefix and a suffix that span four whole

1979. That Kapil Dev inspired India to an

years. Not just any prefix or suffix. World

extraordinary, against-all-odds triumph

Cup winners. World champions. Now,

in 1983, Allan Border’s dark horses went

that’s what people play sport for. To be the

all the way in 1987, Imran Khan’s soldiers

best, and to be remembered and recognised

scripted a remarkable comeback in 1992

and acknowledged as the best. The other

and that Arjuna Ranatunga’s brave troops

series and tournaments will never provide

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that status. Fifty-over cricket desperately

camouflage the fact that not even cricket’s

needs the World Cup – as its flag-bearer,

apex body believed the Champions Trophy

as the mother of all ODI tournaments, as

was doing anything to promote the cause

the showpiece event that brings the top

of the 50-over game.

nations all together under one common platform, battling each other and elements

And so here we are now, with the

alien to most but the hosts/co-hosts for

World Cup bearing the onerous task of

seven weeks, all for the winner’s medal

carrying the future of the 50-over game

and a slice of glory that, no matter what,

at the international level on its broad but

history will always reflect and remember.

overburdened shoulders. Most World Cups are guaranteed to be hits, even cricket

another

World Cups that are only contested by

tournament that had the potential to

14 teams this time and ten from the next

augment the World Cup’s battle to further

edition onwards. That said, sometimes,

the cause of the 50-over game, but when

it is possible to make a hash of even a

teams such as the United States of

tournament as popular as the World

America started to be involved in a cricket

Cup – like in the Caribbean in 2007, a

tournament that goes by the name of the

tournament that many of its billion critics

Champions Trophy, surely something is

tell us is still going on somewhere in those

amiss? In its collective wisdom, the ICC

lovely islands.

The

Champions

Trophy

is

decided that the Champions Trophy was going nowhere, especially with the World

This 11th edition of cricket’s most

T20, the biennial bash, a far more lucrative

glamorous and prestigious multi-team

and viable proposition. The 2013 edition in

competition will be a runaway hit, co-hosts

England was to have been the last of the

Australia and New Zealand will ensure

Champions Trophies. It took the success

that. Despite the insular nature of these

of that same event in 2013 – ah, but India’s

islands, tickets have sold like hot cakes,

surge to the title had nothing to do with

public interest is peaking to a nicety. Fifty-

it – for the ICC to revisit its decision to

over cricket will be in the forefront for seven

scrap that tournament. But that could not

weeks, from February 14 to March 29, 2015. After that? Wait for 2019, I suspect.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

12 Gary Gilmour: 6-14 off 12 overs and 28* off 28

1975

balls v Australia, Leeds. Match Impact: 18.08 The second-highest impact performance in the history of ODI cricket and the highest impact performance in World Cups came in the first semifinal of the 1975 World Cup. In only his third ODI, Gary Gilmour picked up six top/middle-order English wickets and had a high Pressure-Building Impact (taking wickets in quick succession to build pressure) as he reduced Australia from 2 for 0 to 36 for 6. His job was not finished though: England, chasing 94, were 39 for 6 when Gilmour came out to bat and smacked an unbeaten 28 off 28 balls.

Not only did he have a high Runs Tally (proportion of runs scored), Pressure and Chasing Impact, but he also had an exceptional Strike Rate Impact, given the low and slow scoring nature of the match.

Final: West Indies v Australia Favorites West Indies took on Australia in a It was the opening round of the inaugural World Cup in England and one-day cricket was still new. On a warm, sunny day at Lord’s, England’s Dennis Amiss, the opener, enthralled a full house with an exciting 137 off 147 balls. With half-centuries from Keith Fletcher and Chris Old, England posted a daunting 334 for 4 in 60 overs, the highest one-day total back then. Indian fans, hopeful of a spirited fightback, were in for a rude

FLASHBACK

shock when Sunil Gavaskar opened India’s innings in Test-match mode. He bizarrely batted through 60 overs, but scored only 36 runs in an unthinkable 174 balls. The Wisden Almanack reported that after the match the Indian team claimed Gavaskar thought England’s score was beyond reach and so decided to get some practice.

India crawled to 132 for 3 and lost by 202 runs.

60-overs-a-side game, and were in some trouble at 50 for 3 before a classic from Clive Lloyd, their captain, took them to 291 for 8. Lloyd, assisted

by Rohan Kanhai (55), smashed 102 in 85 balls, the knock including 12 fours and two sixes.

The Australians threatened, but their innings was marked by run outs, five in all, three of them orchestrated by Vivian Richards. The final pair of Jeff Thompson and Dennis Lillee got their team to within 18 runs of victory, but the day would belong to Lloyd and his men.

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Didn’t realise I bowled the first World Cup ball Madan Lal I came to know only later that I’d bowled the first ball of the World Cup in 1975. I had no clue at that time.

Going into the 1975 World Cup, we didn’t have much idea about one-day cricket. We were not used to the

1979

We still had a Test mindset

format, so the massive 202-run loss to England in the opening match was not too much of a setback. There

The simple game, a shock upset and an embarrassing

were not many One-Day International tournaments

encounter with Len Hutton

in India, so we didn’t have that sort of experience of playing at a world stage. Only after the 1975 World Cup

AU n s h u m a n G a e k w a d

did we start playing more ODIs. Playing cricket in England, particularly in the summer, is Since we were not at all familiar with the format or the

a delightful experience. The pace of life, the greenery,

rules, the biggest challenge for us was to do well. We

the crisp air, the moist wickets and everything that

started improving somewhat only after the first World

comes along with it can be both a thrill and a challenge.

Cup, once we started playing against the top nations.

Having experienced things first hand in 1975, I was

Both 1975 and 1979 editions were not the World Cups

personally keyed up for the 1979 World Cup. But,

to remember because we didn’t do well at all.

somehow, as a team, we didn’t quite understand its importance.

As told to Disha Shetty After our failure in 1975, India made a conscious effort, but not a professional one, to get better. The Packer

Brief scores:

revolution had just begun, but we still had a Test match

Lord’s, London: West Indies 291/8 in 60 overs (Clive Lloyd 102, Rohan Kanhai 55, Keith Boyce 34, Bernard Julien 26 n.o.; Gary Gilmour 5-48, Jeff Thomson 2-44) beat Australia 274 in 58.4 overs (Ian Chappell 62, Alan Turner 40, Doug Walters 35, Ross Edwards 28; Keith Boyce 4-50) by 17 runs.

MoM: Clive Lloyd

mindset and there was not much planning that went into our campaign. For us, one-day cricket meant just batting out the 60 overs, as it was then, and not getting bowled out. That perhaps explains our record in the first two editions.

My first memory of the 1979 edition is the handbook

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

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After our failure in 1975, we made a conscious effort, but not a professional one, to get better.

For us, one-day cricket meant just batting out the 60 overs, as it was then, and not getting bowled out.

That perhaps explains our record in the first two editions. we were given upon landing. It was a tiny booklet of around 15 pages. The tournament rules were simple – no elaborate security arrangements, and not much restriction in terms of media commitments like there is today because there were just a handful of journalists.

We did not have briefings on anti-corruption and dope tests either. In that sense, the cricket was pure and unadulterated.

Another thing about those days was, all of us shared rooms and that fostered team spirit. But we were also scared to go out or break team rules.

There was also plenty of fun we had as a team.

Travelling by bus, in trains, meeting local Indian families who were gracious enough to host us, mingling freely with friends without having to worry about cameras or security restrictions was fun.

Coming back to the cricket, we knew it wouldn’t be a walk in the park for us. Although we lost to West Indies and New Zealand, we were confident of beating Sri Lanka. They were the minnows and our body language was that of a side who had beaten them even before we stepped onto the field. But what happened there was quite shocking.

I still remember Venkat (S Venkataraghavan), who was our captain, coming back into the dressing room and not finding any of us there. He was furious, and sensing that, we all hid in the bathroom and pretended to be having a shower. It was only after a while did we all come out. That loss was deflating.

Another memory of the Cricket World Cup, although an embarrassing one, would be the one in 1975. We were in the long room at Lord’s for a cocktail and dinner party. Karsan Ghavri and I were smoking pipes and having a quiet drink when an elderly gentleman walked up to us and engaged us in a conversation.

Both of us put on a fake accent and started talking to him like we would to a friend, not knowing who he was.

Karsan was from Rajkot, I was from Baroda, so you can imagine how the Gujarati-tinged British accent we tried to put up must have been!

After about half an hour, he introduced himself to us as Len Hutton. We were shell shocked and immediately put down our drinks and went looking for him in the long room. He was gone. Sir Len Hutton!

It didn’t dawn upon us then. But that is just one of several memories I associate with England and Cricket World Cups.

Aunshuman Gaekwad played 40 Tests and 15 ODIs for India, and was part of the squads for the 1975 and 1979 World Cups.

As told to Shashank Kishore

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Associates Sri Lanka beat India

Final: West Indies v England

Beaten by New Zealand in their opener by nine wickets and with the match against West Indies called off, Sri Lanka went into their final group game against India missing their injured captain and with nobody

99 for 4, it seemed England had the initiative at Lord’s. But that was before Vivian Richards (138 from 157 balls) and Collis King (86 from 66

expecting a great contest.

balls) got together not just to steady the ship,

Yet, they took apart a toothless Indian attack. A 96-run

partnership was instrumental in a 286 for 9 total.

but to steer it full speed ahead. Their 139-run

stand for the second wicket between Sunil Wettimuny (67) and Roy Dias (50) off 25 overs was followed by a robust half-century from Duleep Mendis (64). Sudath Pasqual, the 18-year-old, added 52 off seven overs with

The English defense began well in Mike Brearley (64) and Geoff Boycott (57), but the runs came too slowly. And with the dismissal of Graham Gooch

Mendis to take Sri Lanka to 238 for 5 in 60 overs.

at 183 for 3 came an almighty collapse as eight

India had to wait until Monday to begin their chase,

world supremacy for the second time in a row.

owing to a late start on Saturday. Sunil Gavaskar and

FLASHBACK

With West Indies, the defending champions, at

Aunshuman Gaekwad began strongly with a 60-run

wickets fell for just 11 runs, giving West Indies Joel Garner was the chief destroyer, taking five wickets, and was twice on a hat-trick.

stand, but Gundappa Viswanath’s run-out on 22 sparked a flurry of wickets. Somachandra de Silva dismissed Dilip Vengsarkar, Brijesh Patel and Mohinder Amarnath, before Tony Opatha swept through the Indian tail to give Sri Lanka a shock 47-run victory.

Viv Richards: 138* off 157 balls and 0-35 off 10 overs v England. Match Impact: 9.36 In the 1979 final, West Indies had been reduced to 99 for 4 against England when Collis King joined Viv Richards at the crease. King began

Brief scores: Final, 1979 Lord’s, London: West Indies 286/9 in 60 overs (Vivian Richards 138, Collis King 86; Phil Edmonds 2-40, Ian Botham 2-44) beat England 194 in 51 overs (Mike Brearley 64, Geoff Boycott 57, Graham Gooch 32; Joel Garner 5-38, Colin Croft 3-32) by 92 runs. MoM: Vivian Richards

the onslaught, smashing 86 off 66 in a 139-run partnership, but it was Richards who controlled the innings. He stabilised the innings before going on the rampage. He had a high Runs Tally (proportion of runs scored), Pressure and Partnership-Building Impact. In England’s chase of 287, they fell short by 92 runs. Richards chipped in there too, conceding only 35 off his ten overs (high Economy Impact). This was also a tournament-defining performance.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

INDIA

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POOL B

Strengths

India go into the World Cup as defending champions and the second-ranked OneDay International team in the world. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain, likes continuity and has made no bones about his wish to have each squad member get an extended run in the lead-up to the World Cup. The ability to thrill and frustrate notwithstanding, the selectors have shown patience with a number of players over the last two years. That has eventually borne fruit, especially in the batting department, as exemplified by Rohit Sharma. Unlucky to miss out on selection in 2011, Rohit has emerged as one of the pillars in the batting. Twin double-centuries in ODIs have only enhanced his reputation.

Virat Kohli’s presence along with Suresh Raina and Dhoni gives the middle order a power boost. The team’s penchant for chasing down tall totals is sure to give opponents something to think about.

“I think whenever you play one-day cricket, India will always have a chance.You look at the batting, they have a strong line-up. ODIs are a lot easier than Test cricket so bowlers will also do well. I’ve earlier said also this is the best possible team at the moment.”

- Sourav Ganguly, former India captain

Watch out for

SQUAD MS Dhoni (capt), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Stuart Binny, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Mohit Sharma.

Virat Kohli. Picked in 2011 on the back of solid performances in limited overs, he thrilled on World Cup debut by smashing a century against Bangladesh. Sizable contributions in all the other matches, including the final, meant his role even within a team of superstars was clearly defined. The dynamics are different now and he will have to shepherd a relatively inexperienced middle order.

Aggression is his middle name, and India’s new Test captain has shown he can walk the talk. Rest assured, there will be no backing down.

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Weaknesses

The Indian bowling has come under the scanner for quite some time now, their frailties exposed after a long, fruitless tour of Australia just before the World Cup. With no respite in sight, Dhoni will have plenty of headaches as the tournament presses on. Primarily picked for their ability to bowl at over 140 clicks, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami have proved expensive, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s ability when there is no swing on offer will be tested. With 76 ODIs under his belt, Ishant Sharma was the most experienced seamer and expected to lead the attack, but with injury ruling him out and Mohit Sharma drafted in his place before the warm-up games, it will only add to Dhoni’s concerns.

India have long wished for a genuine seam bowling allrounder, which Stuart Binny offers. But he’s still a rookie at the top level, as is Axar Patel, which means Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin will have their task cut out in the spin department. But the clear lack of experience could be a major talking point.

Morale too will be low after failing to win a single game in the tri-series with Australia and England, and in the Tests that preceded it.

“What makes this team special is that over the last few years they have faced all kinds of situations in limited-overs cricket and have shown they are capable of coming out successfully from all of them. That’s why I say we have a good chance to win this World Cup. A big reason for my belief is our Champions Trophy victory in England.

We played in very foreign conditions that didn’t suit the side and yet we played so well that we didn’t lose a single match. That shows that the side is used to winning and that’s really exciting.”

- Duncan Fletcher, coach

World Cup history

With just a solitary win against East Africa across two editions in 1975 and 1979, India caught the world by surprise as they denied West Indies a third title. While memories of Kapil Dev with the trophy on the Lord’s balcony is an iconic image, Dhoni’s winning six in 2011 is also the stuff of legend, coming as it did after the low of 2007.

Before that, India did fairly well by reaching the semifinal in 1987 and 1996, while they finished runners-up to Australia in 2003.

FIXTURES Feb 15: Pakistan, Adelaide Feb 22: South Africa, Melbourne Feb 28: United Arab Emirates, Perth March 6: West Indies, Perth March 10: Ireland, Hamilton March 14: Zimbabwe, Auckland

- Shashank Kishore ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

18 WORLD CUP 2015

The Devils, the daredevils 1983 and 2011 – campaigns of contrast, two very different paths to the same celebratory end R Kaushik

W

hen Kapil Dev led

rankest of rank outsiders – 66-1 outsiders,

his team out at the

to be precise. In two previous World Cups,

1983 World Cup in

they had just one win to show from six

England, satellite

matches, the one against East Africa in

TV wasn’t even a

1975. Four years on, they were put in

figment of the imagination in India. The

their place even by Sri Lanka, then only

Berlin Wall continued to stand between the

an Associate member still some way short

Germanys, few outside of the Germanys

of Test status. No one believed India would

had heard of Boris Becker, Michael Jackson

even be competitive, let alone make a

was yet to burst into Grammy folklore and

serious pitch for top honours.

all Sachin Tendulkar had were stars in his eyes and dreams in his heart.

How things had changed by the time the 2011 edition came a-calling! Tendulkar

India entered the 1983 World Cup as the

had gone from aspiring India cricketer to

19

28-year wait From rank outsiders in 1983 to perennial favourites in 2011.

master of the world. India had graduated

overwhelmingly fancied. Both champions,

from no-hopers to perennial favourites.

charting different paths to glory but getting

The contrast couldn’t have been starker.

to the summit nevertheless against all odds,

In 1983, Indian fans would have happily

both stirring journeys – one chronicled

settled for a victory here, a close defeat

sketchily for obvious reasons, the other an

there;

than

emotional roller coaster lived out not just

Mahendra Singh Dhoni holding the cup

by the 15 men constituting the team but

aloft at the Wankhede Stadium would

a billion fans that drove the team forward

have been construed a gross, abject, total

collectively, inexorably, towards the tryst

failure.

with ultimate glory.

in

2011,

anything

less

Kapil’s Devils, Dhoni’s Daredevils. The

In 1983, no one gave Kapil’s Devils a

class of ’83, the band of ’11. Total underdogs,

chance. No one, that is, outside of the team

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

20 WORLD CUP 2015 Gavaskar walked in. The great opener sat on the seat of the toilet during the length of the meeting! And oh, forget about wives and girlfriends on tour.

India went into that epochal tournament with some momentum. In Berbice a few weeks previously, they had registered their first away win over West Indies, riding on The Pioneers In 1983, there was no support staff, no database, no mind gurus.

Gavaskar’s 90. It was the spur the side needed; the rest of the world focussed on which of Australia or England or Pakistan would challenge the World Cup hegemony of Clive Lloyd’s men. India quietly worked their way through the draw, beating West Indies in their opening game on the back of a solid innings from Yashpal Sharma to

itself. In those days, there was no fancy

convince themselves, as much as anyone

support staff, no technological support, no

else, that Berbice was no flash in the pan.

database and mind gurus and workload management. It was the team, and PR Man

India’s path to the semifinal was strewn

Singh – manager, coach, facilitator, all

with obstacles. Crushed by Australia the

rolled into one. There was no team room –

first time around – the four teams in each

‘meetings’ were held in the room of either

group met each other twice with the top

the captain or the manager, both of whom

two making the semis – they needed to

had larger settlements than the rest of the

defeat David Hookes’s men in their final

players who were bunched two to a room.

group tie to make the last four. They did,

I remember Man Singh talking about one

fairly easily, but before that match, the

memorable team meeting in Kapil’s room,

team and its dedicated followers tracking

packed to the rafters even before Sunil

their progress on radio died a million

21

deaths against Zimbabwe in Tunbridge

Richards pulled, Kapil ran and ran and

Wells, Kapil hauling them from the mess

ran, and held on to a sensational catch.

of 9 for 4 and 17 for 5 with the single-most

Kaps, you beauty! One tremendous final

influential knock in the history of the World

push from the bowlers with Mohinder

Cup – 175*, sadly unrecorded for posterity

Amarnath, soft and gentle and sleepy,

because the BBC was on strike.

trapping Michael Holding leg before, all hell breaks loose. Champions of the world.

You felt that this was a run too good to be

Who would have thunk?

true. England, the mother nation, the host nation, in the semis surely a bridge too

Twenty-eight years on, the script was

far? Of course not. By then, Doordarshan

written out beautifully. Tendulkar’s last

had woken up to the possibilities. So we

World Cup – this one is for you, Master.

huddled in front of our old black and

The Master himself had a great World Cup –

white Dyanora set, waiting for the bubble

centuries against South Africa and England

to burst, but eventually rejoicing in the

– but no one could best Yuvraj Singh. India meandered through the league phase, then

Then Madan Lal banged one in, Richards pulled, Kapil ran and ran and ran, and held on to a sensational catch. Kaps, you beauty!

sprang to life in the knockouts. Australia dethroned in a tense quarterfinal, Pakistan conquered in a tenser semi. Wankhede and Sri Lanka. Mahela Jayawardene magical.

Then enter Dhoni. Out of sorts with the

flurry of boundaries with which Sandeep

bat, walking out ahead of the flaming hot

Patil drove Bob Willis and England to their

Yuvi, a massive gamble but one designed

knees.

to negate Malinga and Murali. Worked out quite beautifully. Gautam Gambhir was

West Indies in the final. Lord’s. June 25.

the ice, Dhoni the raging, unputoutable

183 all out. There we go. Awesome run,

fire. Kulasekara deposited into orbit over

outstanding run, but not enough. Nearly

long-on. Twirling bat, Sachin on shoulders,

not enough. Not with Viv, Smokin’ Joe, in

victory lap, the tri-colour proud and flying

the mood. Then Madan Lal banged one in,

high. It was the stuff of dreams, sending

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

22 WORLD CUP 2015

There was a common thread that bound 1983 and 2011. No, not Srikkanth; it was the multiple allrounders India possessed.

expert, Balwinder Sandhu. Spinning ones in 2011, making the most of the purchase the subcontinent offered them. Yuvraj at YUVRAJ SINGH The allrounder was key to India’s success.

the top of the list. Sehwag. Raina. Pathan, Yusuf. And specialists Harbhajan, Ashwin and Chawla. With Zaheer the battering ram, reverse swing and all, producing a wicket every time India desperately needed one. The devourer of left-hand batsmen.

Andrew Strauss in Bangalore. Devon Smith in Chennai. Mike Hussey in Ahmedabad.

the nation on an adrenaline rush that not

Upul Tharanga in the final.

even the immediate spoiler in the form of IPL 4 could staunch.

India were a naturally athletic fielding unit in 1983. A jog here, a run there, the

There was, though, a common thread

occasional trot from the ground to the

that bound 1983 and 2011. No, not

hotel. But no trainer to monitor BMI (body

Krishnamachari Srikkanth, dashing opener

mass index, apparently) or some such. No

then and selection panel chairman now. It

physio to monitor injuries, no masseur to

was in the personnel that India possessed.

untighten knots. In 2011, India had worked

Multiple allrounders. Seaming ones in 1983

towards becoming a fantastic fielding side.

that exploited the conditions in England

Scientific. Professional. Clinical. Different

beautifully.

ways then to skin a cat, each one as effective

Amarnath,

Madan,

Roger

Binny, Kapil, of course. And that swing

as the other. The Devils, the Daredevils.

23

FALL OF THE TITANS By mid-1980s, West Indies’ fast-bowling arsenal kept them in the hunt but their batsmen were a byword for inconsistency D i l e e p Pr e m a c h a n d r a n

I

n the first three World Cups, West

masters were knocked off their perch.

Indies lost just two games, both of

That may be true as far as Test cricket

them to India in 1983. In the last

is concerned, but in the 50-over format,

three, they have won just that

the cracks had become apparent nearly a

many games against established

decade earlier.

opposition. It’s a sobering statistic and a reminder of just how steep the fall from

At the time, those defeats to India were seen as an aberration. They were not.

grace has been.

Years from now, anyone reading the

In March 1985, Pakistan comfortably

cricket history of our time will probably

defeated them in the semifinals of the

identify the mid-1990s, and specifically

World Championship of Cricket. Mohsin

Australia’s tour of the Caribbean in 1995,

Khan may have toiled 93 balls for his 23,

as the time when the game’s one-time

but there was serenity to the manner in

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

24 WORLD CUP 2015 which Rameez Raja (60) and Qasim Umar (42 not out) eased past the target. The West Indies total of 159 wasn’t the result of devastating new-ball spells from Imran Khan and Wasim Akram either. It was the far less threatening duo of Tahir Naqqash (3 for 23) and Mudassar Nazar (5 for 28) that did the damage.

TOP 5 IMPACT BOWLERS FOR WEST INDIES IN ODIs Joel Garner 2.95 Michael Holding 2.62 Curtly Ambrose 2.41 Malcolm Marshall 2.03 Ian Bishop 1.95

A year later, it was England, and not West Indies, that won the Perth Challenge.

Gone were Joel Garner and Michael

On their day, the fast-bowling arsenal still

Holding, who still command a place in a

made West Indies a fearsome proposition

list of the five highest impact bowlers to

– Sri Lanka were bowled out for 55, with

play ODIs for West Indies. A third, Malcolm

Courtney Walsh taking 5 for 1, in a Sharjah

Marshall, had opted to give the tournament

tournament a year before the 1987 World

a miss. The two other men who round off

Cup – but the batsmen had become a

that all-time top five, Curtly Ambrose and

byword for inconsistency, especially on

Ian Bishop, would make their debuts only

slow and low surfaces.

a year later.

The black-and-white World Cup histories

Walsh, as skilled as he was, was no

often cite Walsh’s refusal to run out Saleem

Garner in the slog overs. In Gujranwala,

Jaffar in 1987 – who had backed up too

England, with four wickets in hand, had

far – as the moment when the team’s

needed 91 from the last ten overs to win.

fortunes changed. Again, there’s a bit of

With Allan Lamb in splendid form, that was

urban legend at work there. West Indies

whittled down to 34 off three overs, still a

had already lost their opening game of the

considerable ask. Walsh bowled overs 48

tournament to England and were a vastly

and 50. Patrick Patterson had conceded

inferior team to the one that had lost to

just five off the penultimate over, but with

India four years previously.

Walsh giving away a whopping 31 in nine

WEST INDIES

25

POOL B

Strengths

If the batting arsenal that West Indies possess fires, they could well have a great time. While Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith are more than capable of giving the team a flying start, Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo know how to build the innings.

Watch out for

Chris Gayle. A thorough entertainer, West Indies depend on him to give them the much-needed impetus at the top. He can single-handedly change the course of a game, but can as easily throw away his wicket. His last hundred – his 21st in the format – came 17 games ago, and his team would be hoping he can take his T20 form into the 50-over game.

“I am disappointed that we won’t have as strong a team in the 50-over format without Pollard and Bravo. That’s really a big blow for us to lose two key players. It is a ridiculous selection from my point of view. I don’t know where our cricket is headed. It’s really sad. It really hurt..”

- Chris Gayle World Cup history

Champions in 1975 and 1979, and finalists in 1983, West Indies have been the major players in the World Cup memories of many fans. From Clive Lloyd’s stunning century in that first final, to the magic of Joel Garner and Viv Richards, it’s an illustrious history the team carries into any World Cup. Unfortunately, theirs is now a team in decline.

Lloyd, now chief selector, however, has backed the squad, saying they were chosen with an eye on the future.

SQUAD Jason Holder (capt), Marlon Samuels, Chris Gayle, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith, Andre Russell, Darren Sammy, Jonathan Carter, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Nikita Miller, Sheldon Cottrell, Kemar Roach, Jerome Taylor, Sulieman Benn.

Weaknesses

Sunil Narine’s withdrawal came as a huge blow for the West Indies. While they would miss his wickettaking ability, he would have been a huge factor in curbing the run rate in the middle and death overs as well. While Andre Russell has shown glimpses of brilliance – with the added advantage of being familiar with local conditions thanks to a stint in the Big Bash League – the bowling doesn’t quite inspire fear. West Indies are of course going to miss quality allrounders such as Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard, who were left out of the squad following a turbulent few months following the team’s aborted tour of India late last year. Jason Holder’s lack of experience as captain may hamper their chances too.

FIXTURES Feb 16: Ireland, Nelson Feb 21: Pakistan, Christchurch Feb 24: Zimbabwe, Canberra FEB 27: South Africa, Sydney March 6: India, Perth March 15: UAE, NAPIER

- Akash Sarkar ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

26 WORLD CUP 2015 cow-corner cleave either. It went straight back over Walsh’s head.

By the time West Indies beat Pakistan in their final match, they had already been eliminated. Their only other victories were against Sri Lanka, who were still half a decade away from becoming a force.

England won their second encounter by 34 BRIAN LARA One of the few who could match up to the greats of the 1970s and ’80s.

runs, highlighting a real vulnerability in the lower middle order.

The story was little different in 1992.

Bowlers who were still as good as any in the game kept them in the hunt, but the

batsmen

failed

repeatedly

when

challenged. Against South Africa – a match that deserves to be remembered if only for Adrian Kuiper’s jaw-dropping slog-swept six off Ambrose – they were skittled for 136 in response to 200. Then, with a place legal deliveries, England sauntered past

in the last four beckoning, they restricted

the target.

a strong Australian line-up to 216 at the MCG. The response was a pitiful 159, with

Sportsmanship or not, he was no less culpable against Pakistan. Again, 14 were

only Brian Lara (70 off 97 balls) crossing 15.

needed from the last six balls, with the final pair of Abdul Qadir and Jaffar at the

The story pretty much ends there. The

crease. This time, Walsh’s sequence went

record books may say that they reached

1-1-2-6-2-2. The six that Qadir hit was no

the semifinal in 1996, and bossed it for

27

long periods until Shane Warne’s dramatic

There are many theories advanced for

late intervention. But the frailties that had

why things went so wrong in the space of a

become apparent even in the Test side were

decade. Some mention the lure of American

in ample evidence during the course of a

sport. Holding, who is as passionate about

tournament in which they were thumped

West Indies cricket now as he was while

by both India and Kenya. Lara’s brilliance

wearing the colours, rubbishes that notion.

eliminated South Africa, the form team,

He speaks of the cyclical nature of winning

in the quarterfinal, but all Warne did was

and losing, and also of administrators who

capitalise on batting diffidence that even

have seldom had the players’ best interests

Kenya, the new kids on the tournament

at heart.

scene, had exploited so ruthlessly.

A cursory look at the world of sport It was also undeniable that the region

supports his view. A generation ago,

struggled to produce players of comparable

Sports Illustrated reckoned that three

quality to the titans of the 1970s and ’80s.

teams epitomised sporting dominance in

The bowling standards were maintained

the 1980s. One was West Indies. Another,

until Ambrose and Walsh called it a day, but

Liverpool Football Club, won its last league

outside of Lara, Chris Gayle and Shivnarine

title in 1990. The third, the San Francisco

Chanderpaul – and he’s been more grafter

49ers, have been back to the Super Bowl

than destroyer – it’s hard to think of a

just once since winning their fifth in

batting talent fit to rank alongside Sachin

January 1995.

Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting or Inzamam-ulHaq, leave alone the incomparable Vivian Richards.

Empires fade, and in some cases, crumble to dust. In sport, as in life.

WORLD CUP FACTS Australia dropped players who defected to the World Series in 1979, while Pakistan and West Indies selected them fearing fans’ backlash.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

28

1983

Kapil Dev: 175* off 138 balls and 1-32 off 11 overs v Zimbabwe, Tunbridge Wells. Match Impact: 13.40 Kapil Dev scored almost 66% of his team’s total. His innings had a high Pressure, Runs Tally (proportion of runs scored) and Partnership-Building Impact (ability to build partnerships and occupy the crease). It is, till date, the highest impact innings played by any Indian in a World Cup. His allround performance – he picked up a wicket and was economical – is the third-highest impact performance by any player in World Cup history.

Final: West Indies v India It was a match that pitted an unlikely candidate in India against the most dominant force in world cricket at the time. Both teams had come into the final on the back of some strong performances.

Clive Lloyd asked India to bat at Lord’s and the West Indies bowlers hunted in a pack to dismiss them for 183. The defining moment came when West Indies were on 57 for 2 and Kapil Dev plucked a famous catch, running backwards, to dismiss India desperately needed a win against Zimbabwe to stay in the tournament, and at 17 for 5, then 78 for 7, it looked bleak. That was until Kapil Dev, the India captain, decided to take matters into his own hands in a merciless display of power hitting. Kapil Dev dispatched Zimbabwe’s bowlers to all corners of the park as he

FLASH BACK

raced to his hundred from a mere 72 balls. By the time India’s quota was complete, he had piled on 175 runs from 138 deliveries with 16 fours and six sixes in what would go down as one of the greatest innings ever.

India won that match. The Kapil magic continued in the final, when he took a memorable catch to dismiss Viv Richards.

Vivian Richards, who was at his destructive best.

West Indies were shot out for 140 and India stunned the world to lift their maiden World Cup. Brief scores: Lord’s, London: India 183 in 54.4 overs (K Srikkanth 38, Mohinder Amarnath 26, Sandeep Patil 27; Andy Roberts 3-32, Malcolm Marshall 2-24, Michael Holding 2-26, Larry Gomes 2-49) beat West Indies 140 in 52 overs (Vivian Richards 33, Jeff Dujon 25; Balwinder Sandhu 2-32, Madan Lal 3-31, Mohinder Amarnath 3-12) by 43 runs. MoM: Mohinder Amarnath

29

The team that was a family Celebrations continued long after that historic victory against West Indies

PR Man Singh D Govindraj, part of the Indian squad that won the

objective was to keep the unit in a happy space devoid

Test series in West Indies and England in 1971, was

of any mental pressure.

employed with State Bank of India in London in 1983.

He wanted the side then to play in his benefit match

After a game, a player waited anxiously for his friends

immediately after the World Cup, and when I proposed

to come and pick up his wife, who was staying with

the idea to Kapil Dev, or “Kaptaan” as I address him, the

them. Soon after that, I asked the team if they have

boys immediately agreed to it. June 26, the day after

any problem if the ladies travelled in our bus. Cheeka

the final, was a Sunday and was appropriate, as it gave

(Krishnamachari Srikkanth) had got married just two

the Indian diaspora around London’s Gymkhana Ground

months previously and wanted to spend a day with

a chance to watch their favourite players in action.

Vidya (his wife, who was staying with a relative).

Instead, I asked Roger (Binny, Srikkanth’s roommate) to

We had little idea then that the match would take place

shift to my room and Vidya moved in with Cheeka.

less than 24 hours after we had defeated West Indies in the historic final and celebrated till 3am in the night.

The board’s clause was that wives couldn’t stay in

All the players turned up on Sunday afternoon, but the

the same hotel or travel in the team bus. I violated

effects of the spirit had not yet mellowed down.

the norms on humanitarian grounds, and when we landed in Mumbai after the tournament, an official

The scenes at the ground, expectedly, were chaotic and

reprimanded me. I smiled and replied, “Had I not done

the match had to be stopped many times. Soon after

that, we would not have won the cup.”

that, we headed to my brother-in-law’s house for a dinner party and there too people gatecrashed. It was

Before the World Cup, my father had got a showcase

so euphoric that even though we fell short of food and

cleared in our Secunderabad house for the winner’s

liquor, no one complained.

medal that his son was to bring. It was a bit overambitious, though I was confident of a semifinal

In the June 1983 edition of Wisden Cricket Monthly,

berth with the bits and pieces players we possessed in

David Firth, the editor, had written that India did not

our ranks, but today it is my proudest possession.

deserve to play in the World Cup. He literally had to eat doing so!

PR Man Singh was India’s manager during the 1983 World Cup campaign.

We won because the team lived like a family.

As told to Sidhanta Patnaik

his words, and the publication carried an image of him

Differences were solved amicably, and as manager, my ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

30 WORLD CUP 2015

winningest team on the big stage Some luck, yes, but it was a lot of pluck and more skill that made Australia all-conquering at the World Cup S h a m ya D a s g u p ta

N

from

But were they the best team in the world

West Indies in the early

then? Hard to say. South Africa must feel

editions of the World

they were as good. Ditto for 1987, when

Cup, has dominated the

Australia won the World Cup for the first

tournament quite like

time, against all calculations. But win they

Australia did over two editions: 2003 and

did, in 1987 and in 1999, and then in 2003

2007. Australia fans may add 1999 there,

and 2007, twice more than West Indies and

but that’s not quite fair.

India have.

o

team,

apart

In 1999, Australia were hardly all-

1987: The out-of-turn champions

conquering in ODIs. They could have

Allan Border had taken charge of the

crashed out of the tournament any number

Australian team at possibly the worst

of times. That they didn’t, of course, is

time, quality-wise, in their history, in

a testament to their resolve and ability.

1984-85 after Kim Hughes’s tear-drenched

31

Elite company Australia’s three World Cup-winning captains, with Michael Clarke.

resignation. Dennis Lillee, Greg Chappell

the drawn series in India, but the Ashes

and Rodney Marsh had retired and a

loss pushed Australia back again. So, when

number of players were serving bans for

they went to the subcontinent for the 1987

having toured South Africa. The squad

Reliance World Cup, it wasn’t with a lot of

wasn’t the best, and through 1985-86, the

hope. Still, they won.

losses piled up.

The team certainly had the personnel – So bad was the situation that Border

David Boon and Geoff Marsh, the openers,

even threatened to resign. That he didn’t

scored 447 and 428 runs respectively, Dean

was because the Australian Cricket Board

Jones scored 314, and Mike Veletta, down

(later Cricket Australia) staunchly backed

the order, pitched in with crucial knocks.

him, and they brought in Bob Simpson as

Then there were the young allrounders –

the team’s coach to help Border along.

Steve Waugh and Simon O’Donnell – who added key runs and picked up important

The Border-Simpson association started well with the tied Test in Chennai, part of

wickets. And Craig McDermott, who topped the charts with 18 wickets.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

32 WORLD CUP 2015 sweep a catch to Greg Dyer behind the wickets is another case in point.

Luck, yes, sure. Pluck too. And we had the second of three successive unlikely

GEOFF MARSH World Cup winner with Australia as player and as coach.

There was on display a trait that we have come to see in big matches as quintessentially Australian: Winning key moments champions of the World Cup, sandwiched between India in 1983 and Pakistan in 1992.

1999: High after teetering on the edge True, Pakistan emerged out of nowhere to win the 1992 World Cup, but Australia’s entry into the final of the 1999 tournament

There also was on display a trait that

was just as unexpected.

we have come to see, in big matches over the years, as quintessentially Australian:

To start with, after beating Scotland,

Winning key moments. In the first match of

Australia slipped to a five-wicket loss to

the tournament they played, for example,

New Zealand and then a ten-run loss to

India were well on course to chasing down

Pakistan. The format of the World Cup

271 till Australia effected two run-outs

worked in their favour, with wins over

and Waugh went past Maninder Singh’s

Bangladesh and West Indies enough to

defences to clinch an unlikely one-run

take them into the Super Sixes, but it was

win. The final, then, when Border brought

still a bit sticky for them.

himself on and got Mike Gatting to reverse

AUSTRALIA

33

POOL A

Strengths

A formidable batting line-up in a side that prides itself on aggression - David Warner and Steve Smith are in especially dangerous form - and a bowling attack that will thrive in home conditions make Australia a threat. Recent successes against South Africa, India and England have proven the depth in their ranks and they go into the World Cup as the No. 1 ODI side, capable of lifting their game at the big moments.

Weaknesses

Australia will be without their captain for at least the initial games in the tournament.

Michael Clarke’s selection despite injury concerns – he has been given till February 21 to prove his fitness – could pose a distraction for the team, even as George Bailey, the stand-in captain, tries to make the team his own.

“The good thing is all the quick bowlers are very quick bowlers. We can all run in and try and hit the deck and bowl quite quick. The WACA and a couple of other grounds are nice and fast for us. I think that’s going to be our biggest strength in the bowling, having three or four quick guys in the side.”

- Pat Cummins World Cup history

Their four wins – in 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007 – are the most by any team. They were unbeaten in 34 World Cup matches, and hold the record for the highest percentage of wins in World Cup matches.

Their 359 for 2 against India in 2003 is the highest score in a World Cup final.

The 1979 and 2011 World Cups were the only ones in which they exited in the group stages.

Watch out for

David Warner. Misadventures during India’s tour have meant he’s been told by Cricket Australia to “stop looking for trouble”. But away from the controversies, the opener has had a purple patch. Australia will be looking to him for an attacking start, and he could be the difference between a winning score and an average one.

FIXTURES

SQUAD Michael Clarke (capt), George Bailey (vice-capt), Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Brad Haddin, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner, Shane Watson.

Feb 14: England, Melbourne Feb 21: Bangladesh, Brisbane Feb 28: New Zealand, Auckland March 4: Afghanistan, Perth March 8: Sri Lanka, Sydney March 14: Scotland, Hobart

- Kritika Naidu

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

34 WORLD CUP 2015 So, when it came to the last Super Sixes game, Australia had to beat South Africa. That’s when we had the ‘You just dropped the World Cup, mate’ moment, and Australia were in the semifinals, where they met South Africa again. The match was tied as South Africa messed things up

Buchanan went on to oversee a glorious run for Australian cricket.

Then again, how could anyone really go wrong with Gilchrist, Hayden, Ponting, Martyn, Lehmann, Bevan, Symonds, Hogg, Bichel, Lee and McGrath?

in the last over – the birth of the C-word – and Australia, having won the earlier game

the champion among them with 398 runs,

between the two sides, went through to the

including that unbeaten 120 that took

final, where Pakistan were made to wipe

Australia to the semifinals. And there was

the floor in an eight-wicket result.

the Shane Warne-Glenn McGrath combine, which ended with 38 wickets.

It was the start of the Australian domination, but hardly the stuff of world champions. More than once in the group

The core of a fantastic one-day unit was clearly taking shape.

stage, then in the Super Sixes when Herschelle Gibbs dropped Waugh, and

2003: The team that won everything

then in the semifinal when Allan Donald

Ricky Ponting and John Buchanan

ran himself out so mindlessly, Australia

inherited the team Steve Waugh and Geoff

survived because of huge slices of luck.

Marsh had built. Marsh had quit soon after the 1999 World Cup, and Waugh played

Yet, luck alone cannot help a team win seven matches in a row.

a big part in Buchanan coming in as his replacement in spite of little first-class experience as a cricketer. There was a fair

Geoff Marsh, the coach at the time,

bit of criticism then, but Waugh liked the

has been credited widely for scripting the

quiet worker. Buchanan went on to oversee

turnaround, despite being away in the back

a glorious run for Australian cricket.

room. The entire batting order came to the party at different stages – Steve Waugh

Then again, how could anyone really go

35

wrong with Gilchrist, Hayden, Ponting, Martyn, Lehmann, Bevan, Symonds, Hogg, Bichel, Lee and McGrath? Remember that withdrawn from that 2003 squad for various reasons were Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie and Shane Watson.

Twice they won the World Cup when they weren’t anybody’s favourites, and twice they won when there were no other favourites.

At their best or not, it’s impossible to count out Australia among the favourites in 2015

That winning run, of seven games that had started in 1999 stretched to 18 by

even in the cricket lexicon till Buchanan,

March 23, 2003, as Australia won all their

and his laptop, hit the scene.

games, the two-wicket win over England with two balls to spare the only time they had been stretched.

2007: Ponting’s Invincibles The sequence of wins went from 18 to 30 in a bit of blur as Australia again won every

Warne might have said then, and later,

single match they played in the Caribbean

that the role of a coach was only to ferry

in the 2007 World Cup – three in the group

players from the hotel to the ground, but

stages, seven in the Super Eights, and then

Buchanan, by all accounts, played a key

the semifinal and the final.

role in that team becoming as good as it was.

He need not have bothered about talent and

The squad had changed, but only a tad,

skills, and he didn’t, but he, quietly, did

and the changes only seemed to make the

the one thing a team of champion players

unit stronger – Mike Hussey and Michael

needed so desperately: Managing the men;

Clarke among the men to have made the

‘man management’, a term that wasn’t

step up in the four-year gap. As in 2003,

WORLD CUP FACTS Gary Gilmour, who with 11 wickets was the highest wicket-taker of the 1975 World Cup, played only two games, the semifinal and the final.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

36 WORLD CUP 2015 in 2007 too, Australia were a league or two ahead of the next best, so far ahead of the pack that they were, really, No. 1 in a field of one.

Like Clive Lloyd’s West Indians of the 1975 and 1979, Ricky Ponting’s Australians were the best cricket team in the world in both formats in 2003 and 2007. They had the best opening batsmen in the world in Hayden-Langer (Tests) and HaydenGilchrist (ODIs), the best wicketkeeperbatsman in the world in Gilchrist, a topnotch middle order with Ponting as the

2003 champs Ponting inherited the team Steve Waugh and Geoff Marsh built.

pivot around which everything revolved, the best spin bowler in the world, Warne, and the McGrath-led pace attack that was the envy of the rest of the world.

When it comes to a squad that good, the

out Australia among the top favourites in

trick is probably in ensuring there are no

2015 – played at home, even if they flopped

ego clashes or mistakes. Really, what else

so miserably the last time the World Cup

do you need? Injury management, maybe.

was played Down Under, in 1992. They

And suchlike stuff. Nothing a professional

are, after all, the winningest team in World

set-up can’t address.

Cup history, and a team that knows how to win can always be counted upon to dig

Twice they won the World Cup when they

just that bit deeper, find just that one extra

weren’t anybody’s favourites, and twice they

man to put his hand up, create a moment

won when there were no other favourites.

of magic from somewhere … strut their

At their best or not, it’s impossible to count

stuff on the biggest stage of them all.

ENGLAND

37

POOL A

Strengths

England’s strength lies in their middle-order batting, which has helped them recover from early setbacks in recent times. Joe Root, Jos Buttler and Ian Bell have been their most successful batsmen over the past year, and the presence of James Taylor and Moeen Ali, who has impressed with both bat and ball, will give the three-time losing finalists some confidence. Their decision to drop Alastair Cook seems to have lifted the team. In the bowling department, James Anderson and Stuart Broad are back in action, and with support from Steven Finn and Chris Woakes, they can trouble the opposition on the pace-friendly pitches in Australia and New Zealand.

Weaknesses

England’s recent ODI form has been dismal. They lost a seven-match away series to Sri Lanka 5-2 after conceding a 3-1 defeat against India at home. Nine of the 15-member squad will be playing in their first World Cup. Eoin Morgan replaced Cook as captain only after the Sri Lanka tour, and the team had only the tri-series in Australia – where they got to the final, but lost – to get used to the changes and adapt to a new, aggressive approach.

“We need to realise we have never been any good at one-day cricket – even when I was playing. I played in three World Cups and didn’t get anywhere in any of them, but for the England team now, it’s a chance to blaze a trail and form an identity.”

- Andrew Flintoff, former England allrounder World Cup history

The early editions of the tournament saw England as the perennial bridesmaids, having reached the World Cup final thrice, in 1979, 1987 and 1992, but never lifting the cup. It’s now been 25 years since they last appeared in a World Cup final. The 2003 edition was their worst, with Nasser Hussain’s side crashing out of the tournament in the group stages, finishing ninth.

Watch out for

Jos Buttler. The 24-year-old wicketkeeper from Somerset has 704 runs in his kitty from 25 matches in 2014. He has often bailed England out of tough situations, and has impressed with his agility behind the stumps.

FIXTURES

SQUAD Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler (wk), Steven Finn, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Joe Root, James Taylor, James Tredwell, Chris Woakes.

Feb 14: AUSTRALIA, Melbourne Feb 20: New Zealand, Wellington Feb 23: Scotland, Christchurch March 1: Sri Lanka, Wellington March 9: Bangladesh, Adelaide March 13: Afghanistan, Sydney

“I am the greatest patriot there is, but we do not have a cat in hell’s chance.”

- Graeme Swann, former England spinner

- Himanish Bhattacharjee

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

38

1987

England and Australia were both surprise qualifiers for the 1987 World Cup final. Neil Foster, Eddie Hemmings and John Emburey combined to keep Australia down to 253 for 5, and England’s reply was going swimmingly with Graham Gooch and Bill Athey in the middle after Tim Robinson’s early dismissal. Gooch fell after a while, and Mike Gatting joined Athey, the momentum not sagging for a moment and England on course to win the trophy.

But the pictures show Allan Border and not Gatting holding the World Cup. And the reason, at least in the minds of many, is Gatting himself.

In the semifinal against India, Gatting had contributed a wonderful 56 from 62 balls, but had gotten out in a fashion considered rather bizarre at the time: Attempting a reverse sweep. It was the cool, new stroke of the era and Gatting rather fancied his chances with it.

Against India, he attempted it against Maninder Singh and deflected the ball on to his stumps. Not satisfied, he tried it against the first ball Border bowled to him in the final. This time, Gatting, then on 41 from 44 balls,

FLASH BACK

top edged it on to his shoulder for the ball to pop up for an easy catch for Greg Dyer, the wicketkeeper. Wisden called it a shot “too crass to contemplate”.

England lost their way and Gatting has been trying to answer questions about that moment of madness ever since – unsuccessfully.

Dave Houghton: 142 off 137 balls v New Zealand, 1987, Hyderabad. Match Impact: 9.64 Chasing New Zealand’s 243 in humid and energysapping conditions, Zimbabwe were 104 for 7. By their own admission, No. 3 Dave Houghton and Iain Butchart’s plans were to save face. Eventually, the pressure was on the New Zealanders. A completely dehydrated Houghton got out attempting a slog with Zimbabwe needing 18 more to win. They would eventually lose by three runs. Houghton had an incredibly high Runs Tally (proportion of runs scored) and Pressure Impact.

His performance was made more remarkable by the fact that he had kept for the first 50 overs, effecting one catch.

Final: England v Australia In a match befitting a final, Allan Border chose to bat after winning the toss against England at the Eden Gardens. David Boon anchored the innings nicely at the top, with the middle order making vital contributions as well, while Mike Veletta blasted a 31-ball unbeaten 45 lower down – the result being Australia got to a very competitive 253 for 5. England lost Tim Robinson early, but the top and middle order were largely equal to the task. However, a cluster of wickets from 170 for 3 stalled England’s progress and they finished second best in a World Cup for the second time.

Brief scores: Eden Gardens, Kolkata: Australia 253/5 in 50 overs (David Boon 75, Dean Jones 33, Allan Border 31, Mike Veletta 45 n.o.; Eddie Hemmings 2-48) beat England 246/8 in 50 overs (Graham Gooch 35, Bill Athey 58, Mike Gatting 41, Allan Lamb 45; Steve Waugh 2-37, A Border 2-38).

MoM: David Boon

39

Hat-trick and a Gavaskar hundred

The ball trickled over and I just couldn’t believe that I’d

We played every match like the defending champions,

Gavaskar hit his first century. His explosive innings set

but messed up the semifinal chase

up an easy win for us. Sharing the Man of the Match

taken a hat-trick in a World Cup. The match was more memorable because Sunil

award with a legend like Gavaskar, what more could a

C h e t a n S h a rm a

youngster like me ask for?

The 1987 World Cup didn’t start on a positive note

When we boarded the flight to Mumbai from Nagpur,

for me. I had fractured a bone in my left thumb while

the airline crew cheered us a lot as we entered. That

fielding in a practice match against Pakistan at the

experience was really out of this world.

Nehru Stadium. I was very disappointed that I would India’s 1987 World Cup campaign was very rewarding.

miss the first few matches of the tournament.

We played every match like the defending champions, When I finally got a chance, against Australia, I wasn’t

but messed up the semifinal chase. But overall, it was a

too successful.

good showing.

Against New Zealand, in a match that we needed to win

Chetan Sharma is a medium-pace bowler who played in 23 Tests and 65 ODIs, taking 61 and 67 wickets respectively for India.

comprehensively, it took me a while to find my rhythm.

But Kapil paaji backed me a lot throughout, he brought me back into the attack in the 42nd over. My first wicket (Ken Rutherford) gave me a lot of confidence. Then I bowled a quicker one to get (Ian) Smith off the next.

Kapil paaji calmed my nerves when I was on the hat-

As told to Disha Shetty

trick ball. He said that I had done well to get those two crucial wickets and if I didn’t get a hat-trick, I wouldn’t lose anything. But what I didn’t expect was that (Ewen) Chatfield would leave so much gap between his legs.

WORLD CUP FACTS Sachin Tendulkar, then 13, was a ball boy during the 1987 semifinal between India and England at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

BANGLADESH

40

POOL A

Strengths

Bangladesh have their critics, given their struggle in Tests, but the 50-over game suits their style. That the selectors have relieved Mushfiqur Rahim, the wicketkeeperbatsman, from his captaincy duties could work in their favour, allowing him to focus on his batting. Shakib Al Hasan, the top ranked allrounder in Tests and Twenty20s, will be a vital contributor. As for their bowling, young talent Taskin Ahmed started his career with impressive performances against India at home, while Taijul Islam, the left-arm spinner, recently became the first bowler to claim a hat-trick on ODI debut.

Weaknesses

Bangladesh failed to register an ODI win for most of 2014, until their 5-0 thrashing of Zimbabwe at the end of the year. The team’s ability to put up consistent performance is in serious question, and could be a factor given the format of the tournament. The inexperienced bowling line-up will be put to a stern test. Mashrafe Mortaza is captain for this World Cup, but the pacer, though experienced, is injury prone.

“I personally think that if we play with guts, we will get a good result. We have a chance to prove ourselves. I think we may see a couple of Bangladeshi batsmen among the top five batsmen at this World Cup. Our target will be to do something special.”

- Mushfiqur Rahim World Cup history

Constant underachievers, Bangladesh’s win against India in the opening encounter of the 2007 World Cup, saw them through to the Super Eights. That has been the only time they have moved beyond the first round; this time, they will have to beat more than the Associates in their group to keep their hopes alive.

SQUAD Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Anamul Haque, Mominul Haque, Shakib Al Hasan (vice-capt), Mahmudullah Riaz, Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Nasir Hossain, Taijul Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Al-Amin Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman, Arafat Sunny.

Watch out for

Shakib Al Hasan. A left-hand batsman and left-arm spinner, Shakib will be playing his third World Cup. Despite his troubles with the board, he has been the team’s mainstay.

Besides, he is the only one to have experienced Australian conditions recently, having participated in the Big Bash Twenty20 tournament.

FIXTURES Feb 18: AFGHANISTAN, CANBERRA Feb 21: AUSTRALIA, Brisbane Feb 26: SRI LANKA, MELBOURNE March 5: SCOTLAND, NELSON March 9: ENGLAND, ADELAIDE March 13: NEW ZEALAND, HAMILTON

- Akash Sarkar

41

Rise of the Asian associates Afghanistan and UAE have made a quick climb through the ranks, but can they make the transformation from Associates to champions as successfully as Sri Lanka?

Karthik Lakshmanan

O

n

October

4,

2013,

That

historic

October

2013

victory,

Mohammad

which Nabi called “a gift to the younger

Nabi, the Afghanistan

generation”, was the icing on the cake

captain,

Kenya’s

after Afghanistan cricket’s rapid progress

Shem Ngoche through

over the years. The Afghanistan Cricket

when

hit

complete

Federation was merely 12 years old, and

the 94-run chase in Sharjah, people

just five years earlier, they were in Division

across Afghanistan took to the streets in

Five of the World Cricket League, then the

celebration. It was not an ordinary victory.

lowest division of the International Cricket

Afghanistan had just finished second in

Council’s 50-over competition for non-Test

the World Cricket League Championship

playing nations.

the

midwicket

boundary

to

behind Ireland and, in the process, sealed their qualification for the 2015 World Cup

Most sports were banned in Afghanistan

– their maiden entry into the tournament.

by the ruling Taliban, but cricket was made

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

AFGHANISTAN

42

POOL A

Strengths

It’s a young side; the number of the players in their early twenties should help them meet the physical demands of ODI cricket. Mohammad Nabi has been the full-time captain since 2013, and the players will have grown accustomed to his style. Nawroz Mangal has had good success at the top of the order, while 18-year-old Usman Ghani has shown promise. The middle order with the experienced Asghar Stanikzai, Samiullah Shenwari and Nabi wears a settled look. In Hamid Hassan, Afghanistan have a strike bowler who can bowl fast and swing the ball both ways.

Weaknesses

A lot of the players are inexperienced. This will be Afghanistan’s first World Cup, and, although the team has been a part of three World Twenty20 tournaments, 50-over cricket throws up a different set of challenges. Mangal and Shapoor Zadran missed the team’s recent triangular series in Dubai, which also featured Ireland and Scotland, as they were denied visas, so will head into the World Cup without much match practice. Inconsistency in batting is also an issue.

“We will be the underdogs of our group. But the positive sign is we will have a good backing in Australia and New Zealand. Fortunately, we have beaten Bangladesh in the Asia Cup last year, which obviously has given us the confidence. We have played Australia, so know a little about their strengths and weaknesses.”

- Bashir Stanikzai, high performance manager, Afghanistan World Cup history

This is their first appearance at the World Cup, but as the highest ranked Associate, and having given Zimbabwe and Bangladesh something to think about not too far in the past, their opponents will be loath to take Afghanistan for granted.

SQUAD Afsar Zazai (wk), Aftab Alam, Asghar Stanikzai, Dawlat Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Hamid Hassan, Javed Ahmadi, Mirwais Ashraf, Mohammad Nabi (capt), Najibullah Zadran, Nasir Jamal, Nawroz Mangal, Samiullah Shenwari, Shapoor Zadran, Usman Ghani.

Watch out for

Mohammad Nabi. The Afghanistan captain will not only lend stability to the batting, but he’s also effective with his off-breaks.

FIXTURES Feb 18: Bangladesh, Canberra Feb 23: Sri Lanka, Dunedin Feb 26: Scotland, Dunedin March 4: Australia, Perth March 8: New Zealand, Napier March 13: England, Sydney

“To obtain a qualification spot in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 is something Afghanistan deserves.”

- Michael Clarke, Australia captain

- Akshay Gopalakrishnan

43

Historic win Qualification for CWC 2015 was a gift to the youth, said Nabi.

an exception in 2000 after widespread

their domestic competition. Afghanistan

interest in the sport. Afghan refugees living

lost

in Pakistan had been playing the sport

many with two draws in the remaining

and the Taliban’s official approval led to

games. Their steady rise continued with

expats setting up the Afghanistan Cricket

Afghanistan gaining Asian Cricket Council

Federation on their return to the country

membership in 2003.

three

matches,

but

impressed

in 2001. In the same year, the sport in the country got a major boost with the ICC awarding it an Affiliate Member status.

The year 2006 was the turning point.

They were runners-up in the Middle East cup, won six of their seven matches –

A few months later, even as the USA-led

including victories over the second XIs of

war began in Afghanistan, the country’s

Essex, Glamorgan and Leicestershire in

cricket team was invited by the Pakistan

their maiden tour of England – and finished

Cricket Board to play in the second tier of

third in the ACC Elite Cup.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

44 WORLD CUP 2015 ICC in June 2013. With growth as rapid as

Players like Shapoor Zadran, the left-arm fast bowler, Mohammad Shahzad, the wicketkeeper, and Nabi, the captain, became big inspirations for a war-torn nation and cricket gradually became a household game.

that, it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep Afghanistan out of the Asia Cup and they made their tournament debut in 2014. Afghanistan lost to Sri Lanka, Pakistan and India but defeated hosts Bangladesh by 32 runs in Fatullah – their first win over a Test playing nation.

They missed out on a chance to qualify for the 2011 World Cup, but were granted

***

One-Day International status, even as they made it to the World T20 in West Indies.

The 2015 World Cup will also mark the

That was their first tournament against

return of the United Arab Emirates to the

the full-time ICC Members. Despite some

World Cup tournament for the first time

spirited performances, they failed to make

since their maiden entry in 1996. What

it past the group stages, even as they

started as a team with first-class cricketers

continued to find success against non-Test

from other Asian countries like India,

playing nations.

Pakistan and Sri Lanka – UAE’s captain Sultan Zarawani was the only native Arab

Afghanistan have been regulars in ICC

in the 1996 squad – grew steadily over the

world tournaments since then. Players like

years to establish themselves as one of the

Shapoor Zadran, the left-arm fast bowler,

top Associate sides. Bangladesh’s entry

Mohammad Shahzad, the wicketkeeper,

into Test cricket saw UAE taking over as

and Nabi himself became big inspirations

the top Associate nation in Asia, winning

for a war-torn nation and cricket gradually

four ACC trophies between 2000 and 2006.

became a household game. Qualifications for the World T20s in 2012 and 2014 and

One of the biggest boosts for UAE cricket

the 2015 World Cup followed over the next

came in 2005, when the ICC shifted its

few years and amid all this, they were

headquarters to Dubai. The international

recognised as Associate Member of the

body also set up the ICC Cricket Academy,

45

a high-performance training centre, which has helped develop cricket in the area.

“There is a significant player base here and a lot of active cricketers, and at the top level the standard is pretty good,” explained Paul Radley, a reporter for The National, a UAE-based daily newspaper. “The current administration at the Emirates Cricket

One of the biggest boosts for UAE cricket came in 2005, when the ICC shifted its headquarters to Dubai.

REVIVAL UAE return to the World Cup for the first time since 1996.

Board are harnessing that better than ever before, and there is now a solid high performance programme in place, too.” it up with a berth in the 50-over World Cup UAE participated in the 2004 and 2008 Asia Cups but had the knack of

when they defeated Namibia by 36 runs in Christchurch in the World Cup qualifier.

falling at the final hurdle for World Cup qualifications. That, however, changed in

“The qualification means they got full

2013. UAE first made it to the 2014 World

ODI status, and thus extra funding, which

T20 by defeating Netherlands and followed

can go a long way towards improving cricket here,” observes Radley. “However,

WORLD CUP FACTS 1992 semifinalists South Africa would have had to return home if the referendum back home had upheld the apartheid rule. Thankfully, an overwhelming majority voted to end it and the team stayed on.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

UAE

46

POOL B Strengths

UAE could not make the most of the Associates and Affiliates tour of Australia and New Zealand, but pulled things back in the four-match home series against Afghanistan, which they won 3-1. The win should have restored some confidence.

Expect Khurram Khan to be heavily relied upon as he has been most dependable with the bat. They have generally hunted in a pack with the ball and have been consistent in their bowling, with Manjula Guruge especially promising swing and an ability to bowl well at the death.

Weaknesses

It’s a highly inexperienced squad: all 15 members together have experience of 71 ODIs. Besides, several players are well above 30, with a couple of them, including Mohammad Tauqir, the captain, over 40. Tauqir did not play in the four-ODI series against Afghanistan at home and UAE played under two different captains in Khurram and Ahmed Raza in the series, and that could unsettle them.

“In 1996, no one took the UAE as seriously as they do today. There was only limited exposure to the world. People weren’t sure how good UAE cricket was. But now, people have seen UAE playing at different levels, and I think we can surprise a few people and a few teams.”

- Aaqib Javed, UAE coach World Cup history

This will be only their second appearance at a World Cup, after nearly two decades. Their win over Netherlands by seven wickets in that World Cup was their first on cricket’s grandest stage. A team with plenty of expats, they will be hoping to get more wins this time around, and cause some upsets.

SQUAD Mohammad Tauqir (capt), Khurram Khan (vice-capt), Swapnil Patil, Saqlain Haider, Amjad Javed, Shaiman Anwar, Amjad Ali, Nasir Aziz, Rohan Mustafa, Manjula Guruge, Andri Berenger, Fahad Al Hashmi, Muhammad Naveed, Kamran Shahzad, K Karate.

Watch out for

Khurram Khan. Khurram has been in blazing form the past year. He was their top-scorer in the qualifying tournament and became the oldest ODI centurion when he made an unbeaten 132 not out against Afghanistan a few months ago. His left-arm spin can also come in handy.

Hopefully, losing the captaincy for policy reasons won’t affect his game.

FIXTURES Feb 19: Zimbabwe, Nelson Feb 25: Ireland, Brisbane Feb 28: India, Perth March 4: Pakistan, Napier March 12: South Africa, Wellington March 15: West Indies, Napier

- Akshay Gopalakrishnan

47

that is only guaranteed for four years, so while growth in the medium term should be good, after that it is unclear.” *** While

qualification

itself

is

Sri Lanka made their World Cup debut in 1975, but over their first five World Cups, won only four matches. Then, Arjuna Ranatunga led them to a historic World Cup victory in 1996.

an

achievement for the teams, they’ve set

before ended their final jinx by winning the

their sights high. “We will rock the World

World T20 in 2014.

Cup, all the boys are in confidence,” said Nasimullah Danish, Afghanistan cricket

The Asian Associates have, obviously,

board chairman, in an interview, and

merely taken baby steps in their World

they could well start the shake-up in their

Cup ambitions and have a long way to go,

opener against Bangladesh, a side they’ve

especially with a slimmed-down 2019 World

defeated. Mohammad Tauqir, the UAE

Cup being planned. Says Radley of UAE:

captain, meanwhile, has said his team are

“If it is a ten-team World Cup, it is going to

looking at a couple of wins, and stretching

be extremely hard for UAE to make it back.

‘big brother’ teams like India and Pakistan.

UAE will be competing for the final two places with well resourced full Test nations

The two sides, of course, need to look

like Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, and more

no further than their Asian counterparts

mature Associate sides like Ireland and

– Sri Lanka – for inspiration. Sri Lanka

Afghanistan. It is also hard to see full

made their World Cup debut in 1975, but

members giving them many opportunities

over their first five World Cups, won only

by way of bilateral ODI series in the next

four matches. Then, Arjuna Ranatunga

four years. If funding is then cut as a

led them to a historic World Cup victory in

consequence, then any progress made will

1996 and they’ve since been one of the top

be immediately undermined.”

sides across all formats. Runners-up in the 2007 and 2011 editions, they also came

The 2015 World Cup could then just be

second in the 2009 and 2012 World T20s,

the best place to start the long climb ahead.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

I CC WO R L D C UP 201 5 DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

DAY 5

DAY 6

DAY 7

DAY 8

DAY 9

DAY 10

DAY 11

DAY 12

DAY 13

DAY 14

DAY 15

14 FEB

NEW ZEALAND V SRI LANKA

15 FEB

SOUTH AFRICA V ZIMBABWE

16 FEB

WEST INDIES V IRELAND

17 FEB

NEW ZEALAND V SCOTLAND

18 FEB

BANGLADESH V AFGHANISTAN

SAT

SUN

MON

TUE

WED

19 FEB

THU

Match1, Pool A Hagley Oval, Christchurch - 11:00 Local

Match3, Pool B Seddon Park, Hamilton - 14:00 Local

AUSTRALIA V ENGLAND

Match2, Pool A Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne - 14:30 Local

INDIA V PAKISTAN

Match 4, Pool B Adelaide Oval, Adelaide - 14:00 Local

PO

Match5, Pool B Saxton Oval, Nelson - 11:00 Local

Match6, Pool A University Oval, Dunedin - 11:00 Local

QUARTE

Match7, Pool A Manuka Oval, Canberra - 14:30 Local

DAY 31 30

ZIMBABWE V UAE

18 MAR

Match 8, Pool B Saxton Oval, Nelson - 11:00 Local

20 FEB

NEW ZEALAND V ENGLAND

21 FEB

PAKISTAN V WEST INDIES

AUSTRALIA V BANGLADESH

22 FEB

SRI LANKA V AFGHANISTAN

SOUTH AFRICA V INDIA

FRI

SAT

SUN

Match9, Pool A Regional Stadium, Wellington - 14:00 Local

Match10, Pool B Hagley Oval, Christchurch - 11:00 Local

Match12, Pool A University Oval, Dunedin - 11:00 Local

23 FEB

ENGLAND V SCOTLAND

24 FEB

WEST INDIES V ZIMBABWE

25 FEB

IRELAND V UAE

26 FEB

AFGHANISTAN V SCOTLAND

27 FEB

SOUTH AFRICA V WEST INDIES

28 FEB

AUSTRALIA V NEW ZEALAND

MON

TUE

WED

THU

FRI

SAT

PO

Match 11, Pool A The Gabba, Brisbane - 13:30 Local

Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - 14:30 Local

DAY 32

QUARTER FINAL 3

FRI

DAY 34

24 MAR

TUE

DAY 34

29 MAR SRI LANKA V BANGLADESH

Match 18, Pool A Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne - 14:30 Local

Match19, Pool B Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - 14:30 Local

wisdenindia.com

Adelaide Oval, Adelaide - 14:00 Local

SEMI FINAL 1

TBD V TBD

Eden Park, Auckland - 14:00 Local

FIN

Match16, Pool B The Gabba, Brisbane - 13:30 Local

Match2, Pool A Eden Park, Auckland - 14:00 Local

TBD V TBD

SEMI

Match15, Pool B Manuka Oval, Canberra - 14:30 Local

Match17, Pool A University Oval, Dunedin - 11:00 Local

TBD V TBD

WED

20 MAR

Match 13, Pool B Cricket Ground, Melbourne - 14:30 Local

Match14, Pool A Hagley Oval, Christchurch - 11:00 Local

QUARTER FINAL 1

INDIA V UAE

Match 21, Pool B WACA, Perth - 14:30 Local

SUN

TBD V

Melbourne Cricket Groun

5

( F E BRUARY 14 - M AR C H 2 9 ) PAKISTAN V ZIMBABWE

Match 23, Pool B The Gabba, Brisbane- 13:30 Local

OOL A

ENGLAND V SRI LANKA

Match22, Pool A Regional Stadium, Wellington - 11:00 Local

SOUTH AFRICA V IRELAND

Match24, Pool B Manuka Oval, Canberra - 14:30 Local

AUSTRALIA V AFGHANISTAN

OOL B

Match 26, Pool A WACA, Perth - 14:00 Local

PAKISTAN V UAE

Match25, Pool B McLean Park, Napier - 14:00 Local

BANGLADESH V SCOTLAND

Match27, Pool A Saxton Oval, Nelson - 11:00 Local

INDIA V WEST INDIES

ER FINALS QUARTER FINAL 2

TBD V TBD Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne 14:30 Local -

QUARTER FINAL 4

TBD V TBD

Regional Stadium, Wellington 14:00 Local -

DAY 31 33

19 MAR THU DAY 33

Match28, Pool B WACA, Perth - 14:30 Local

ZIMBABWE V IRELAND

SOUTH AFRICA V PAKISTAN

Match 30, Pool A Bellerive Oval, Hobart - 14:30 Local

Match 29, Pool B Eden Park, Auckland - 14:00 Local

AUSTRALIA V SRI LANKA

NEW ZEALAND V AFGHANISTAN

Match 32, Pool A Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - 14:30 Local

21 MAR

Match 31, Pool A McLean Park, Napier - 11:00 Local

ENGLAND V BANGLADESH

SAT

Match 33, Pool A Adelaide Oval, Adelaide - 14:00 Local

I FINALS

INDIA V IRELAND

SEMI FINAL 2

TBD V TBD

Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney 14:30 Local -

Match 34, Pool B Seddon Park, Hamilton - 14:00 Local

DAY 35

SRI LANKA V SCOTLAND

26 MAR

Match 35, Pool B Bellerive Oval, Hobart - 14:30 Local

THU

SOUTH AFRICA V UAE

NAL

V TBD

nd, Melbourne - 14:30 Local

Match 36, Pool B Regional Stadium, Wellington - 14:00 Local

ENGLAND V AFGHANISTAN

BANGLADESH V NEW ZEALAND

Match 38, Pool A Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney - 14:30 Local

Match 37, Pool A Seddon Park, Hamilton - 14:00 Local

AUSTRALIA V SCOTLAND

INDIA V ZIMBABWE

Match 40, Pool A Bellerive Oval, Hobart - 14:30 Local

Match 39, Pool B Eden Park, Auckland - 14:00 Local

PAKISTAN V IRELAND

WEST INDIES V UAE

Match 42, Pool B Adelaide Oval, Adelaide - 14:00 Local

Match 41, Pool B McLean Park, Napier - 11:00 Local

1 MAR SUN

3 MAR TUE

4 MAR

WED

5 MAR THU

6 MAR FRI

7 MAR

SAT

8 MAR

SUN

9 MAR

MON

10 MAR TUE

11 MAR

WED

12 MAR THU

13 MAR FRI

14 MAR SAT

15 MAR SUN

DAY 16

DAY 17

DAY 18

DAY 19

DAY 20

DAY 21

DAY 22

DAY 23

DAY 24

DAY 25

DAY 26

DAY 27

DAY 28

DAY 29

50

1992

Rameez Raja: 119* off 155 balls v New Zealand, Christchurch. Match Impact: 13.20 In their last group game, a must-win for Pakistan, Wasim Akram’s 4 for 32 and Mushtaq Ahmed’s 2 for 18 shot New Zealand out for 166. Pakistan, in their reply, were jolted early by Danny Morrison, reduced to 9 for 2. Rameez Raja, the opener, eased the situation with Javed Miandad. In their third-wicket partnership, Miandad’s contribution was only 30, as Rameez Raja scored a mammoth 71% runs the team made. This he did under pressure (Pressure Impact) and made sure he batted till the end to finish the game off (Chasing Impact).

Final: England v Pakistan Pakistan started the 1992 World Cup with just one win in the first five matches. But then, four consecutive victories later, they met England in the final in front of an 87,182-strong crowd in Melbourne. Pakistan rode on Imran Khan and Javed Miandad’s century partnership to set Readmitted to the International Cricket Council and participating in their first World Cup, South Africa had caught the imagination of the cricket world, especially with the fielding of Jonty Rhodes, and his agility and skill were on full show against Pakistan. Inzamam-ulHaq was spearheading Pakistan’s chase of South Africa’s 211 (reduced by rain to 194 in 36 overs) with Imran

FLASH BACK

Khan, having hit five boundaries on his way to 48 and threatening more. Inzamam set off for a leg bye, but was sent back by Imran. But wait! Was it a bird? Was it a plane? Was it Superman? No! Rhodes charged in, picked up the ball on the run with his right hand, defied gravity and flew airborne to break the stumps. South Africa won by 20 runs.

England 250 for victory. In reply, England were 69 for 4 before Allan Lamb and Neil Fairbrother built a 72-run partnership. But once Wasim Akram and Aaqib Javed removed both, Graham Gooch’s men plummeted to a 22-run loss. Pakistan won their first World Cup final and England lost their third.

Brief scores: Melbourne Cricket Ground: Pakistan 249/6 in 50 overs (Imran Khan 72, Javed Miandad 58, Inzamam-ul-Haq 42, Wasim Akram 33; Derek Pringle 3-22) beat England 227 in 49.2 overs (Neil Fairbrother 62, Allan Lamb 31; Mushtaq Ahmed 3-41, Wasim Akram 3-49, Aaqib Javed 2-27) by 22 runs. MoM: Wasim Akram

51

Long tours of Australia are never easy Everyone remembers that incident with Javed, when I appealed for a run-out and Javed started jumping

mock imitation of the appeal). So David Shepherd came up to him and told him that if he did it again, he would be thrown out. So it ended there.

We didn’t have a good time at the World Cup, which came at the end of a long tour. Touring Australia is never easy anyway. Of course, if you do well, the locals are very appreciative, and there’s a big Indian community there. But the cricket is tough. So we would

Kiran More

go out for dinner with the teammates.

The most memorable match of the 1992 World Cup from our point of view was the game against Pakistan, in Sydney. We batted first and scored 216 (for 7, in 49 overs) and it wasn’t a bad total, which we thought was quite a good one, even though they had Javed Miandad and all the other batsmen. The boundaries were quite deep, so scoring runs quickly wasn’t easy. But we weren’t confident – a few more runs would have been better.

But spending three-four months there can be tough.

Especially if you don’t do well, that hits you more. We were in Australia for four months, we lost four of the five Tests, we did all right in the tri-series (West Indies were the third team), but the World Cup didn’t go well.

So it can get quite tiring.

This time also, the Indians will be in Australia for around four months and it’s always good to get a break

Everyone remembers and still asks me about that incident with Javed. I was talking, asking the bowlers to do what I felt was right, asking them to bowl close to his body and not give him space to hit. He got frustrated as he couldn’t score freely, and there was an appeal for a catch down the leg side off Sachin’s (Tendulkar) bowling, which I thought was out. That’s how the chatter started. He said a few things to me and I gave it back to him. And then that incident happened.

I appealed for a run-out and Javed started jumping (in

for 10-15 days in the middle. If you start losing, there are always issues that crop up, on the field and off the field; things start going wrong. There are injuries too. I hope we win, and everyone stays fit, because it will be a long and tough tour, as it always is when you go to Australia.

Kiran More was a wicketkeeper who played 49 Tests and 94 ODIs for India.

As told to Shamya Dasgupta

WORLD CUP FACTS After Pakistan’s terrible start in 1992, Imran Khan presented his squad a white T-shirt with a yellow tiger on it. “I want the team to play like a cornered tiger, when it’s most dangerous,” he said. They won the title.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

SRI LANKA

52

POOL A

Strengths

Sri Lanka’s batting is their strength. Mahela Jayawardene, and Kumar Sangakkara are looking for a perfect swansong, while Tillakaratne Dilshan is peaking at the right time. Then there is Angelo Mathews (1244 runs), the captain, who along with Sangakkara (1256 runs) finished as the best ODI batsman of 2014, and will provide some late thrust to Sri Lanka’s innings. There is enough depth at Mathews’s disposal. Sri Lanka can rotate their bowling well in the middle overs with a gamut of bowling allrounders in Jeevan Mendis, Thisara Perera and Nuwan Kulasekera. Mathews will bank on Lasith Malinga’s parsimony and incisiveness to lead the bowling pack.

Weaknesses

If there’s a criticism of the No. 4-ranked Sri Lankan side, it is that they lack pace bowling venom. Sri Lanka have relied heavily on Malinga; however, his participation in the tournament is subject to fitness, as he recovers from an ankle surgery. Another pressing question is who will open the innings with Dilshan. After Kusal Perera’s replacement, Dimuth Karunaratne – recalled into the side after a year – failed to impress in the New Zealand ODIs, Sri Lanka look set to hand back the role to Jayawardene. Their recent limitedovers form has also been far from convincing. They were outclassed 5-0 by India but bounced back to defeat England 5-2 in a seven-match ODI series, before struggling against a confident New Zealand side going into the World Cup.

Watch out for

World Cup history

SQUAD

“We may not have won those two World Cups, but reaching two finals showed we played consistently well.”

Kumar Sangakkara. His red hot form has now extended for well over four years and he ended 2014 as the highest run-getter in both ODIs and Tests. Yet, he has announced his plans to retire from all international cricket after the World Cup, although a recent double-ton in the second Test against New Zealand, which put him one behind Don Bradman on that count, had him reconsider Test retirement.

Angelo Mathews (capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Lahiru Thirimanne (vc), Dinesh Chandimal, Thisara Perera, Jeevan Mendis, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga, Dushmantha Chameera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Rangana Herath, Sachithra Senanayake.

Part of the World Cup since its inception in 1975, Sri Lanka had a string of first-round exits until they made it all the way to the title in 1996. Having made six ICC finals since then – twice at the World Cup, thrice at the World Twenty20, once at the Champions Trophy – Sri Lanka have proved time and time again that they are a brilliant tournament side with a knack for navigating through the knockout rounds. They are a rhythm-and-confidence side, and once they get on a roll, they are almost unstoppable.

- Mahela Jayawardene

FIXTURES Feb 14: New Zealand, Christchurch Feb 22: Afghanistan, Dunedin Feb 26: Bangladesh, Melbourne March 1: England, Wellington March 8: Australia, Sydney March 11: Scotland, Hobart

- Disha Shetty

53

Million-dollar MIDDLE-AGER From modest beginnings in 1975, cricket’s showpiece event is now attracting the moolah by the millions M a n o j N a r aya n

I

If cricket was a classic rock song,

of economics and greater fan following

the World Cup would be its guitar

has taken cricket beyond the traditional

solo – that bit which everyone

pockets. As those from different corners

looks forward to and remembers

of the world gather in Australia and New

long after it’s gone. Like the

Zealand for the 11th edition of the premier

guitar solo sells the song, the World Cup

competition, it is worth looking at the

is cricket’s most salable asset. The 2015

tournament’s financial journey from a

World Cup will easily be the most followed,

nervous experiment to a global spectacle.

on television, on social media and on the internet at large. The digital age is here.

Let’s start with the players. Apart from the worldwide recognition and popularity,

It wasn’t always thus. There were simpler

at stake is the considerable prize money.

times when only those with a ticket could

When West Indies won the inaugural World

view the action. Now, a combination

Cup in 1975, they collected £4000 (nearly

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

54 WORLD CUP 2015

LUCRATIVE Broadcasters are rolling out the big bucks to telecast the World Cup.

£30,000 adjusted for inflation) for their

1992, the tournament assumed a bigger,

efforts, from a total pool of £9000. The

more radical skin. Whites were dispensed

losing finalists got £2000, while the Man of

with as coloured clothing, white balls and

the Match in the final bagged £200.

floodlights were introduced to augment day-night matches. Television took on a

As the world around it evolved, so did

bigger role and a strange rain rule triggered

the popularity of the World Cup grow.

all sorts of debates. The tournament was of

Sponsors began to pour in, TV deals were

a higher profile, and players were the direct

signed and everyone jostled for a piece

beneficiaries. Martin Crowe, the top-scorer

of the pie. The 1987 World Cup, jointly

with 456 runs from nine matches, won

hosted by India and Pakistan, received a

the Man of the Series award and walked

windfall as Reliance Industries broke the

away with a Nissan 300. In 1996, Sanath

million-buck barrier with £2.17 million as

Jayasuriya won an Audi A4.

sponsorship fee. The prize money on offer rose substantially, too. From £66,200 in

In subsequent editions, Sachin Tendulkar

1983, to a sizeable £99,300 in 1987. In

received a golden bat (2003), while Glenn

55

McGrath was given a diamond-studded cricket ball (2007). In keeping with the trend of each event being more rewarding than the previous one, the 2015 World Cup will be the most lucrative yet. The ICC announced a 20% increase in prize money

When West Indies won the inaugural World Cup in 1975, they collected £4000. This edition, the winning team stands to earn $3.975m, a figure that could go up to over $4m if they are undefeated

from the 2011 edition, with the total prize money pegged at an impressive $10m. The

As far as sponsors are concerned,

winning team stands to earn $3.975m – a

the World Cup has had steady backing.

figure that could go up to over $4m if they

The first three tournaments in England

are undefeated in the tournament. Each

were backed by the Prudential Assurance

win in the group stages alone is worth

Company, which invested £100,000 in

$45,000. The six teams who fail to make

1975 and signed off with £500,000 in 1983.

the quarterfinals will also be rewarded

Then came Reliance Industries in 1987,

$35,000 each.

before Benson and Hedges pumped in £3m for the 1992 tournament. The Wills World

Keep in mind that much of this boom happened when the rest of the world was

Cup in 1996 was the last tournament with a title sponsor, Wills contributing £8m.

struggling through recession. People don’t get saturated with sport. Which is why the

Thereafter, the ICC took control of the

organisers – the ICC – are happy. How

running of the World Cup (until then the

does the ICC run something as large-scale

home boards were in charge), doing away

as the World Cup? Where does the money

with naming rights. The results could be

come from? Sponsors and broadcasters.

seen shortly into the new millennium,

WORLD CUP FACTS Kapil Dev’s unbeaten 175 in 1983 was the first ODI hundred by an Indian batsman. Before that, Kris Srikkanth’s 95 against Sri Lanka in Delhi in 1982 was the highest one-day score by an Indian.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

56 WORLD CUP 2015 as Global Cricket Corporation splashed

These days, television rights go for

$550m for the right to broadcast World

billions. It is the engine that drives the

Cups 2003 and 2007. ESPNStar changed

sport. When ESPNStar bought broadcast

the

rights in 2006 for the period between

broadcasting

landscape

with

a

mammoth deal of $1.1 billion.

2007 and 2015, they paid almost twice the previous deal. In December 2014, the ICC

The 2015 World Cup will have a wide

announced “cricket’s biggest-ever global

range of sponsors – LG, PepsiCo, MRF

broadcast

partnership”

after

awarding

Tyres, Hyundai, Reliance – all of whom

rights for all ICC events for the next cycle,

have a strong presence in India. This is no

from 2015 to 2023, to Star India and Star

coincidence. With a population of over 1.2

Middle East. The exact figures were not

billion, India possess the biggest market

disclosed, but, according to the ICC, is

in cricket, and that’ll inevitably influence

supposed to be “significantly in excess of

both sponsors and broadcasters. The ICC’s

the ICC’s previous commercial deals”.

World Cup 2015 ‘Commercial Partner forum’ in August last year included Star

Why are people willing to spend such

Sports, Super Sport, BSkyB, ESPN, Fox

huge amounts on broadcasting a sport

Sports Australia, Sky TV New Zealand and

that is still largely considered niche? Why

Channel Nine – all leading broadcasters

is the World Cup so lucrative? The answer,

across the world, all rolling out the big

again, is in its reach. In the 2011 World

bucks to telecast the tournament to

Cup, when India and Pakistan clashed in

respective audiences.

the semifinal, an estimated 900 million

WORLD CUP FACTS

South Africa tried to bridge the communication gap between the coach and players on field during matches by wiring Hansie Cronje and Allan Donald to Bob Woolmer during their first game against India in 1999, only for the match referee and ICC to intervene and bar the method.

SOUTH AFRICA

57

POOL B

Strengths

From the likes of Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers with the bat to Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Vernon Philander with the ball, they are all match-winners. Records fall by the wayside when these guys get going. De Villiers scored the fastest ODI century, off just 31 balls against West Indies as they warmed up for the World Cup. Amla is the quickest to reach 2000, 3000, 4000 and, most recently, 5000 runs in terms of innings played. Steyn is the highest-ranked bowler in the tournament.

Capable of generating pace and bounce, he will be a force in Australia, but he is likely to set fire to the field on swing-friendly conditions in New Zealand. If Steyn has a bad day, South Africa have a tall, hit-the-deck bowler in Morkel to rely on, along with Philander who can be devastating when offered even minimal assistance from the pitch.

Weaknesses

As accomplished as their specialist batsmen and bowlers are, South Africa have concerns when it comes to allrounders. JP Duminy is a capable batsman and offspinner, but on pace friendly conditions in Australia and New Zealand, a seaming allrounder is ideal. That’s where Farhaan Behardien comes in. He lacks the presence though. He is 31, and in his 20 ODIs since making his debut against New Zealand in 2013, he has 313 runs and 11 wickets – not the most intimidating figures. That apart, South Africa will also have to battle their own demons: that hugely damaging ‘chokers’ tag.

World Cup history

South Africa have a troubled World Cup history.

In their inaugural campaign in 1992, they were infamously left needing 21 runs off one ball in the semifinal against England after a brief spell of rain. They made the quarterfinals in 1996, before agony ensued in 1999, which worked out better for Australia than it did for South Africa. In 2003, at home, South Africa were knocked out in the group stage after tying their last game against Sri Lanka when a win was needed, and reached the semis in 2007 but were ousted by Australia again, while in 2011 they couldn’t go past New Zealand in the quarterfinal.

SQUAD AB de Villiers (capt), Hashim Amla (vice-capt), Kyle Abbott, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wk), JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Aaron Phangiso, Vernon Philander, Rilee Rossouw, Dale Steyn.

“I want bowling line-ups to look at our batting line-up and think: We are not going to get through there.”

- AB de Villiers

Watch out for

AB de Villiers. He is the highest-ranked ODI batsmen, and you can see why. His batsmanship is unorthodox and beautiful all at once, given his ability to twist himself into positions that make every delivery playable. He has an eye for the boundary, as seen during his record century against West Indies – of 25 boundaries, 16 were sixes.

FIXTURES Feb 15: Zimbabwe, Hamilton Feb 22: India, Melbourne Feb 27: West Indies, Sydney March 3: Ireland, Canberra March 7: Pakistan, Auckland March 12: UAE, Wellington

- Manoj Narayan

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

58 WORLD CUP 2015 Nike, with its Winner Stays campaign, captured fans’ imagination as regular kids in a neighbourhood park transformed into their favourite players and played in front of a packed stadium. Ambush marketing but within the ambit of the rules – that will dot this World Cup as well.

As was the case during the 2011 World Cup. Though LG is one of ICC’s commercial partners, Sony ran its Bravia range of television sets campaign featuring Mahendra

Singh

Dhoni.

The

ICC’s

contention was that Dhoni was in a blue tuned in. When the two teams clash again

shirt that bore a striking resemblance to

in the group stages on February 15, that

India’s blue kit. The issue was eventually

figure is expected to hit a billion, at least.

sorted out, with Dhoni’s shirt colour changed to grey in subsequent ads.

For advertisers, these figures are akin to an all-you-can-eat buffet. You don’t

To protect its commercial rights, the

have to be a commercial partner of the

ICC

tournament to be associated with it.

Integrity International (CII) to monitor any

Adidas was the official sponsor of the Fifa

infringement of its sponsors’ commercial

World Cup in Brazil in 2014, but while the

rights. “Each ad is open to interpretation. So

brand’s name was plastered everywhere,

the players and teams are advised on what

the likes of McDonald’s and Nike made

ads they can appear in during the World

as much of an impression with their ad

Cup,” explained Roshan Gopalakrishna,

campaigns.

exuded

the legal and business head of CII. “A lot

feel-good, showing common Brazilian folk

of letters have gone out to these brands,

doing extraordinary things with a football.

and it will help because it means all your

McDonald’s

GOL!

has

teamed

up

with

Copyright

59

infringements are out of the way. They will

It all goes to show what an opportunity

think twice before offering tickets, they will

the World Cup is for advertisers, and their

think twice before using the colour blue.

clamour to get on board without actually

The message that gets sent out is that

being on board. According to reports, ad

there is someone monitoring all this, and

spends in India during the tournament are

so it really is up to how their marketing

expected to range around Rs 1500 crore –

teams can come up with a solution to it.

around the same range as in 2011, which is

We’ll continuously be monitoring these

a positive given that the 2011 tournament

ads.”

was held in India during prime time. Ad rates during World Cups have increased

This

time

around,

given

that

the

exponentially as well. During the 2011

tournament will be staged in Australia and

World Cup, a ten-second spot was worth

New Zealand, protection of commercial

Rs 3-4 lakh, a figure that mushroomed as

rights is expected to be easier, at least

India progressed towards the finals. This

in these two countries. “The context

time around, a ten-second spot could cost

here is of two western countries, where

around Rs 5 lakh.

enforcement of intellectual property rights is much easier. For this World Cup, there

All these are huge figures, suggestive

is an entire list of words and terms that

of how far the tournament has come

are protected by law in Australia and New

as a commercial entity. Long before the

Zealand,” said Gopalakrishna. “At least in

Cricket World Cup came into being, other

those two countries, none of the rivals can

sports already had their global events in

use any of the listed terms in advertising.

place. Indeed, the 1975 World Cup was an

It still happens elsewhere, but it depends

accident of sorts, but the event has clearly

on the position of the law. For example,

come a long way since then. To paraphrase

the term Cricket World Cup is protected,

Scyld Berry, the World Cup is now a middle-

but in India, ‘World Cup’ is a very generic

aged man of 40, wise and assured, but still

term, and it can apply to multiple sports.

possessing the old flamboyance of a classic

So in India, it’s just a case of being on the

rock star.

lookout.”

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

60 Aravinda de Silva: 3-42 off 9 overs and 107* off

1996

124 balls v Australia, Lahore. Match Impact: 12.11 In the final, Aravinda de Silva picked up three top/middle-order wickets, including those of the two top-scorers in the Australian innings, Mark Taylor and Ricky Ponting. Chasing 242, Sri Lanka were under pressure at 23 for 2 with both Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana back in the pavilion. Much like the semifinal against India, de

Kenya were on an unprecedented high, having beaten

Silva took charge, showing his ability to bat under

West Indies in their previous game. But Aravinda de

pressure (Pressure Impact), build partnerships

Silva was in the form of his life and an inexperienced

(Partnership-Building Impact) and finish the match

Kenya attack only fuelled his appetite for runs as he

(Chasing Impact). Overall, this was the highest

made a 115-ball 145 in Sri Lanka’s crushing win.

impact tournament-defining performance by any player in World Cups.

Coming in at 88 for 2 with a good foundation set, de Silva took off like a bullet train, bringing up his century off 92 balls. His partnership with Asakna Gurusinha

Final: Sri Lanka v Australia

was worth 184, the highest for Sri Lanka in ODIs for any

Sri Lanka entered the 1996 World Cup final on the

wicket at the time.

back of an unbeaten run in the tournament to face

FLASH BACK

Mark Taylor’s Australia at the Gaddafi Stadium in De Silva finally fell for 145 to finish with an incredible

Lahore. Asked to bat first under overcast conditions,

strike rate of 126, as Sri Lanka missed the 400-run mark

Australia posted 241 for 7 courtesy Taylor’s 74,

by a whisker. He had hit 14 fours and five sixes.

along with worthy contributions from Ricky Ponting

Sri Lanka’s 398 for 5 was the highest World Cup total for

(45) and Michael Bevan (36 not out).

11 years till India eclipsed that record in 2007. Kenya got to a respectable 254 for 7, but it still meant a 144-

Despite a shaky start to their chase, Aravinda de

run defeat.

Silva’s unbeaten 107, and gritty knocks from Asanka Gurusinha (65) and Ranatunga (47 not out) helped Sri Lanka claim a seven-wicket victory, and their only World Cup title.

Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore: Australia 241/7 in 50 overs (Mark Taylor 74, Ricky Ponting 45, Michael Bevan 36 not out; Aravinda De Silva 3-42) lost to Sri Lanka 245 for 3 in 46.2 overs (Aravinda De Silva 107 not out, Asanka Gurusinha 65, Arjuna Ranatunga 47 not out) by seven wickets. MoM: Aravinda De Silva

61

We have to accept what happened

The 1996 World Cup is also remembered for the

We always raised our game a little bit when we played

Kolkata. It was bitterly disappointing, mainly because

Pakistan, no match was ever bigger than that

it came in Kolkata. We had the team, and we started

semifinal.

Unfortunately, we lost pretty badly in the semifinal in

well when I got two wickets early (Sanath Jayasuriya

J a v a g a l Sr i n a t h

and Romesh Kaluwitharana) and then got Asanka

I thought we played really well in the 1996 World Cup.

played! Anyway, we were going pretty evenly in that

It was played at home for us, and we did quite well in

match before it all went wrong. It was a sad game for

most of the matches, especially the quarterfinal against

us, and quite emotional as well.

Gurusinha. But what an innings Aravinda de Silva

Pakistan, which was a great experience.

I don’t like using words like ‘devastated’, but it was

I don’t know how or why, but we always raised our

pretty close to that. There were many people in the

game a little bit when we played Pakistan – for me, no

stands who were crying, and even in our dressing room

match was ever bigger than a game against Pakistan. To

there were players in tears. I wasn’t, and I realised

many people in both the countries, the India v Pakistan

that Sachin wasn’t, so I went up to him to speak. What

game is bigger than the final of the tournament. In fact,

he told me has remained with me. He said that we

that match is the final, even if it is an exhibition game.

had played the game with conviction and still lost. It happens, there’s nothing we can do about it. “It’s not

I was there in 1992, when we won the match, but

the end of the world,” he said. And that’s so true. I wish

Pakistan won the World Cup. The Kiran More-Javed

the result had gone differently, but we have to accept

Miandad incident – everyone remembers that. Even in

what happened.

1996, we had the incident between Aamer Sohail and

In India-Pakistan games, both the winner and the loser

Javagal Srinath was a fast bowler who played in 67 Tests and 229 ODIs for India. He is the country’s jointhighest wicket-taker in World Cups, picking up 44 across four editions.

are remembered, but for entirely different reasons.

As told to Shamya Dasgupta

Venkatesh Prasad, my bowling partner from Karnataka.

We won that game as well. And then we won in 2003 as well, when Sachin Tendulkar demolished Shoaib Akhtar.

Thankfully, we have won all the World Cup contests.

WORLD CUP FACTS Australia and West Indies forfeited their 1996 World Cup group matches in Colombo due to security concerns and still ended up as semifinalists along with Sri Lanka, the team who won those forfeited matches.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

62 WORLD CUP 2015

Final hurrahs and fond farewells With several players expected to hang up their boots after World Cup 2015, the signs of a new world order in the next four-year cycle are already apparent S i d h a n ta Pat n a i k

I

’ve had a tremendous time playing

concluded Lara. It was a poignant exit for

for West Indies. All I ask is, did I

one of the game’s legend on the biggest

entertain?

stage.

Brian Lara threw this question

Eight years later, at the 2015 World Cup

to the crowd at the Kensington Oval in

in Australia and New Zealand, there will

Barbados on April 21, 2007, after West

be more men hoping to bow out on a high,

Indies lost a thriller to England, the hosts’

or at least leaving with the satisfaction of

last game in the World Cup and Lara’s last

having entertained. This edition will draw

in Caribbean colours. The skipper had a

the curtains on the illustrious careers

poor tournament, but the crowd screamed

of

in approval of their famous son.

Vettori, and end One-Day International

Mahela

Jayawardene

and

Daniel

commitments for Kumar Sangakkara, run“If

I

entertained

you,

I’m

happy,”

machine extraordinaire; Misbah-ul-Haq,

63

Big Dream For Tendulkar, it was not about the records, but winning the World Cup.

the man responsible for comparative parity

president, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, coaxed

in Pakistan cricket in recent times; and the

the captain to reconsider retirement and

dynamic Shahid Afridi.

nurture the 1992 World Cup team. Almost a spent force by then, Imran used the larger

The World Cups have been the final

motivation of building Pakistan’s first

hurrah for many a cricketer over the

cancer hospital in memory of his mother to

years. Sure that the 1987 World Cup in

trigger his team to an inspirational win in

front of his home supporters would be his

Melbourne.

final limited-overs outing, Sunil Gavaskar batted freely to an 88-ball 103, his only

Four years later in 1996, Javed Miandad, the all-knowing cog in that success, became

ODI century, against New Zealand.

the first to play in six World Cups, but his After Imran Khan’s Pakistan lost the Lahore semifinal in 1987, the country’s

entertaining 19-year career ended with a quarterfinal loss to India in Bangalore.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

NEW ZEALAND

64

POOL A

Strengths

Records have been tumbling at the hands of an in-form batting unit, with Brendon McCullum, Kane Williamson, Corey Anderson and Luke Ronchi all proving effective not only in putting up large scores, but also chasing them down. The bowlers, meanwhile, led by Trent Boult and with the experience of Daniel Vettori heading the spin department, have been more than dangerous. With nine wins in 16 ODIs in 2014, and now playing in their backyard, New Zealand are the team to beat.

Weaknesses

Lower-order batting is a concern. Kyle Mills and Tim Southee, at times, have shown glimpses of match-winning ability with the bat, but Boult, Mitchell McClenaghan and Adam Milne are all untested.

“You can’t have a team-first mentality if only a few people are buying into it. When you have players sacrificing their own personal records for what the team needs, that’s what it’s all about.”

- Mike Hesson, coach World Cup history

Watch out for

SQUAD

“On paper, it’s without doubt the strongest team I’ve been with. But World Cups aren’t won on paper.”

New Zealand have made six semifinals in ten World Cups, and have had several memorable games. In 2007, McCullum scored the fastest half-century in World Cup history, taking all of 20 balls against Canada. The 363 for 5 New Zealand posted was their highest in the tournament. New Zealand’s best figures for bowling belong to Shane Bond, who took 6 for 23 against Australia in 2003.

Brendon McCullum (capt), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Mitchell McClenaghan , Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Adam Milne, Luke Ronchi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Daniel Vettori, Kane Williamson.

Brendon McCullum. Leading from the front, the New Zealand captain promises to carry forward his recordbreaking Test form into the limited overs. He can singlehandedly change the games, and his team will depend on the starts he provides at the top. Add to this his astute captaincy and energetic fielding, and you have a World Cup-winning combination.

- Brendon McCullum

FIXTURES Feb 14: SRI LANKA, Christchurch Feb 17: Scotland, Dunedin Feb 20: England, Wellington March 28: Australia, Auckland March 8: Afghanistan, Napier March 13: Bangladesh, Hamilton

- Kritika Naidu

65

Wasim Akram, at 38, was the first bowler to reach 500 ODI wickets at the 2003 World Cup in South Africa, but he, Waqar Younis and Saeed Anwar never played an international again. That same year,

This edition will draw the curtains on the illustrious careers of Jayawardene and Vettori, and end ODI commitments for Sangakkara, Misbah and Afridi.

Sourav Ganguly influenced Javagal Srinath to come out of retreat and spearhead the

died mysteriously, as did Anil Kumble

bowling unit one last time, and it proved

and Stephen Fleming. Glenn McGrath’s

decisive as Srinath’s 16 wickets took India

farewell after Australia’s third consecutive

to the final. The home fans, however, were

World Cup title was a rare highlight from

disappointed. Jonty Rhodes’s broken hand

that controversy-marred tournament.

while attempting a catch against Kenya, on the fourth day of the event, and Allan

Muttiah

Muralitharan,

international

Donald’s lacklustre outing were anti-climax

cricket’s highest wicket-taker, picked up

endings too. South Africa crashed out in

New Zealand’s Scott Styris, also on his last

the first round after their rain-affected

leg, off his last ball at home in the 2011

game against Sri Lanka was tied. Aravinda

World Cup semifinal, and then called it a

de Silva, who made 73 in that match and

day after the final against India in Mumbai.

hero of 1996, bowed out after a semifinal loss to Australia.

In contrast, Shoaib Akhtar, one of world’s fastest bowlers, well past his prime, sat

In the West Indies in 2007, Inzamam-ul-

gloom-faced in the dressing room in the

Haq, Pakistan’s captain, quit ODIs just a

reserves, even as India defeated Pakistan

few days after Bob Woolmer, their coach,

in the other semifinal.

WORLD CUP FACTS Sachin Tendulkar holds these batting records in World Cups: Most runs (2278), most hundreds (6), most fifties (15) and most runs in a tournament (673).

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

66 WORLD CUP 2015 Unlike football, where the club versus country debate runs deep, cricket’s core identity still revolves around international rivalry.

Cricketers aspire to represent their ODI exit Jayawardene and Sangakkara will sign off with one last World Cup.

country and be a part of a champion side, and the World Cup scheduled every four years fuels that desire. *** Test cricket, of course, is the pinnacle, but its legacy is in bilateral contests. The 1912 triangular series between England,

When Sachin Tendulkar says in a

Australia and South Africa, and the

television advertisement that scoring 100

Asian Test Championships in 1998-99

centuries or more than 34,000 runs was

and 2001-02 proved the impracticality of

not his biggest dream, but winning the

a multi-nation Test event. The seemingly

World Cup was, or when Srinath writes

dull prospects required the International

that playing in the tournament was his

Cricket Council to shelve the idea of the

biggest incentive growing up, they are only

World

reiterating the significance of the World

ranking system across three formats is far

Cup among players.

from consistent, the World T20 is taking

Test

Championship.

The

WORLD CUP FACTS The 318 runs that Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid put on for the second wicket against Sri Lanka at Taunton in 1999 is the only 300+ partnership in World Cups.

ICC’s

67

baby steps, and the Champions Trophy

Within a year followed eight Test defeats

has always been viewed as a preparatory

in

England

and

Australia.

Virender

ground for the World Cup by the major

Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh,

cricket nations. Strategies have always

Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan – all

been built keeping the four-year World

key members of that 2011 campaign –

Cup cycle in mind.

gradually went off-piste.

After India’s first-round exit in 2007 and

So, Vettori, Jayawardene, Sangakkara,

subsequent attacks on the houses of some

Misbah and Afridi apart, there could be

players, 2011 World Cup became the team’s

many more swansongs at the 2015 World

singular mission. The outcome of every

Cup – some immediately, with fanfare, and

match was connected to the larger goal, and

some gradually driven by circumstances, the way Andrew Strauss, Kevin Pietersen,

There could be more swansongs at the 2015 World Cup – some immediately, with fanfare, and some gradually driven by circumstances

Graeme Swann, Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee, Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis, among others, bid adieu over the last four years.

it demanded immaculate planning, high

Michael

Clarke’s

back

and

Lasith

fitness levels and consistent performances.

Malinga’s knees have been dodgy, you

Add

the

never know what’s running in Dhoni’s

pressure from fans and sponsors, and the

mind, and Tillakaratne Dilshan, Rangana

team almost had a tunnel-vision approach.

Herath, Younis Khan, Chris Gayle and

to

it,

the

self-expectations,

Brad Haddin are already on the wrong Finally, once India lifted the trophy on April 2, 2011, Mahendra Singh Dhoni

side of 30, to be soon joined by Brendon McCullum and Shane Watson.

opened up about the pressure and anxiety in the dressing room. But, without that

The signs of a new world order in the

baggage to carry, the sudden void became

next four-year cricket cycle are already

challenging to fill.

apparent.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

68 Steve Waugh: 120* off 110 v South Africa, Leeds.

1999

In all the talk of the Australian domination between 1999 and 2007, it’s easy to forget that Australia were

Match Impact: 8.85 In a must-win game against South Africa, Australia, chasing 272, were 48 for 3 after 12 overs when Steve Waugh produced the highest impact batting performance of his career till then (it would be his second-highest impact ODI batting performance).

Under considerable pressure, he steadied the Australian ship and finished the chase unbeaten (Chasing Impact) with two balls to spare as the others played around him.

this close to being eliminated on more than once occasion during the 1999 World Cup. And it took a lot of drama for them to finally get where they did. At Headingley, South Africa, riding on Herschelle Gibbs’s 101, put up 271 for 7 from their 50 overs, and then they had Australia down for the count at 48 for 3. And that’s when Steve Waugh walked in. Between them, Waugh and Ricky Ponting put together 126 runs, the “You just dropped the World Cup, mate” jibe to Gibbs thrown in along the way, when Waugh was on 56. Whether Waugh said what he is reported to have said or not is contentious, but Gibbs did drop the World Cup that day for all practical purposes. Waugh went on to score an unbeaten 120, helping Australia get into the semifinal, where they met South Africa again.

Waugh, interestingly, scored 56 (the score he was

FLASH BACK

dropped on by Gibbs in the earlier game) as Australia put up 213. And then, in one of the most dramatic last overs in World Cup history, South Africa choked, not for the first time, as we would find out later, and ended on the same score as Australia. Match tied, but South Africa out because they had lost to Australia earlier in the tournament.

Final: Sri Lanka v Australia Having won two classics against South Africa on the way to the final, Australia won their second World Cup in 1999 with resolute brutality, comprehensively outplaying Pakistan. Pakistan got to 69 for 3 before Shane Warne caused havoc.

Warne picked up four wickets for the second consecutive game to take his wickets tally to 20, and restricted Pakistan to a meagre 132.

Then, the Pakistan bowling was swept away with as much ease. Adam Gilchrist reached his fifty in 33 balls while Mark Waugh passed 1000 World Cup runs on the way to an unbeaten 37 to take Australia over the line in just 20.1 overs with eight wickets to spare.

Brief scores: Lord’s, London: Pakistan 132 in 39 overs (Ijaz Ahmed 22; Glenn McGrath 2-13, Tom Moody 2-17, Shane Warne 4-33) lost to Australia 133/2 in 20.1 overs (Mark Waugh 37 n.o., Adam Gilchrist 57, Ricky Ponting 24) by eight wickets.

MoM: Shane Warne

69

Great to go after Shane Warne

We were really struggling, and when I went in to bat,

In England, the conditions and unexpectedly losing key

out, we would probably be bundled out for 50 or

players at various junctures were big challenges

something, which would be the most embarrassing

Rahul (Dravid) and I told each other that if we got

situation to be in. But luckily, we had a really good

Robin Singh

partnership (141 off 187).

More than anything else, coping with the weather

In fact, one of the most memorable moments from that

was strenuous for us when we landed in England to

tournament was going after Shane Warne. We took him

take part in the 1999 World Cup. I remember it was

apart in one over and they had to re-strategise after the

extremely cold when we played Kenya (in Bristol) and it

assault. That actually kind of got us back in the game,

was seaming around – like you must have also seen in

but, unfortunately, we could not pull off a win.

our game against England. Interestingly, every pitch was Doing well against Australia was satisfying, especially

different from the other in some way.

after hitting an all-time low against Zimbabwe earlier.

But the biggest setback for the team was when Sachin’s

Ten out of ten times you would expect to win the game

father passed away and he had to go back to India. As a

from the position we were in. We should have never

team, we had to figure out how to fill the gap and strike

lost that game.

the right balance.

In contrast, the highest point for the team was beating Later, again, against Pakistan, though we won, we had

Pakistan. They were playing exceptionally good cricket,

to go in without Sourav (Ganguly), who was out due to

and beating them in Old Trafford was a special feeling.

an injury.

When I look back now, getting those five wickets So, as a team, these moments when we unexpectedly

against Sri Lanka after that exceptional partnership

lost key players were the real challenge.

between Sourav and Rahul will always remain special – a match worth watching over and over again.

Personally, a big challenge was when we faced Australia – the toughest team in the tournament, apart from Pakistan. At one stage, we were down to 17 for 4 in that game, and then to be able to help the team come out

Robin Singh, an outstanding fielder and handy allrounder, played 136 ODIs for India.

of that situation and manage to get to a respectable total – that was one of the biggest moments in that

As told to Himanish Bhattacharjee

World Cup for me.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

SCOTLAND

70

POOL A

Strengths

The Scotland squad is a mix of youth and experience, and is full of fight. Matt Machan, Hamish Gardiner and Richie Berrington have been among the runs in the recent tri-series involving Afghanistan and Ireland in the United Arab Emirates. On the bowling front, right-arm medium pacers Iain Wardlaw and Josh Davey have struck form at the right time. Leading from the front will be Preston Mommsen, Associate Player of the Year for 2014.

Weaknesses

Lack of experience of playing against big sides on a global platform might prove to be Scotland’s biggest obstacle going into the World Cup.

“The tournament is an opportunity to get on the map.You’re trying to bring the next generation through and give them something to aspire to and everyone is looking to make progress.

Scotland’s fielding is world class and it’s an area where we should shine.”

- Paul Collingwood, coaching staff

Watch out for

World Cup history

SQUAD

“Scotland haven’t won a game in a World Cup before so that’s something we’re targeting. The team have set out the goal over the next few years to become the best-ever Scottish team so putting in good performances and getting a couple of wins would set us on the way.”

Richie Berrington. He is the first Scotland batsman to score a Twenty20 International century – against Bangladesh in July 2012. In the recent tri-series in UAE, he scored a match-winning 62 against Afghanistan while batting at No. 6. He is also a handy right-hand medium pacer, able to chip in with a wicket or two.

Preston Mommsen (capt), Richie Berrington, Kyle Coetzer, Freddie Coleman, Matthew Cross (wk), Josh Davey, Alasdair Evans, Hamish Gardiner, Majid Haq, Michael Leask, Matt Machan, Calum MacLeod, Rob Taylor, Safyaan Sharif, Iain Wardlaw.

Scotland are yet to register their first World Cup victory after playing eight matches in the tournament in the 1999 and 2007 editions.

- Craig Wright, assistant coach

FIXTURES Feb 14: New Zealand, Dunedin Feb 21: England, Christchurch Feb 26: Afghanistan, Dunedin March 5: Bangladesh, Nelson March 11: Sri Lanka, Hobart March 14: Australia, Hobart

- Himanish Bhattacharjee

71

Lights, colour, action!

The last time the World Cup was in Australia and New Zealand, it signalled the dawn of Cricketainment. Cricket as we knew it had changed Disha Shetty

H

aving narrowly scraped into

the

knockout

A new format, 39 keenly contested matches – the most in the competition’s

the

1992

history at that point – played before

World

Cup,

large crowds, a new look, new rules and

Pakistan had pushed

innovations – it was a tournament of

through to topple title favourites and

many firsts at a time when the commercial

co-hosts New Zealand, before beating

potential of cricket was ripe for the taking,

England in the final before a record crowd

and its success went on to define the one-

of 87,182 at the MCG. An emotional Imran

day game for years to come.

stages Cricket

of

Khan dedicated the win to a larger goal of building Pakistan’s first cancer hospital in

The 1992 World Cup broke new ground

memory of his mother. And, as the confetti

simply by being held in the southern

fell, it brought to an end a memorable

hemisphere,

tournament for more reasons than one

Australia and New Zealand welcoming the

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

with

trans-Tasman

rivals

72 WORLD CUP 2015

World Cup 1992 The first to feature coloured player jerseys.

world into their backyard. It also marked

inside the circle. Although these aspects

South Africa’s first appearance in a World

had been increasingly seen in One-Day

Cup, as they re-joined the International

Internationals since Kerry Packer’s World

Cricket Council as a Test-playing nation

Series Cricket introduced them in the late

after the end of apartheid.

1970s, they had not been a feature of the previous four World Cups.

As for the innovations on the field, the 1992 World Cup was the first to feature

A complete round-robin format replaced

coloured player jerseys with their names

the use of two qualifying groups. While

on the back, white balls (one from each

the initial draw was released with eight

end), black sightscreens, and, significantly,

competing countries and 28 round-robin

floodlights. The fielding circle rules were

matches, South Africa were added in

refined, allowing only two men outside

late 1991, and the draw was amended to

the ring in the first 15 overs; after that

include them. The revised draw comprised

it was as before – a minimum of four

36 round-robin matches – all nine teams

PAKISTAN

73

POOL B

Strengths

Pakistan will bank on the experience of players such as Misbah-ul-Haq, Younis Khan, and Shahid Afridi. With the flamboyance of Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal, their batting will be strong. Their unpredictability means they can spring some surprises, espcially now that they will return to the land of their World Cup win.

Weaknesses

Inexperience and injuries haunt Pakistan. They will miss the services of a quality world-class spinner in Saeed Ajmal, whose bowling action was cleared a little too late for him to be a part of the squad. With a week to go for the start of the tournament, they also lost the experienced Mohammad Hafeez to injury, while Junaid Khan was ruled out late too. The pitches in Australia and New Zealand are expected to help the pacers, and Mohammad Irfan and Wahab Riaz are likely to lead the attack, but Ehsan Adil, Haris Sohail and Sohail Khan have a combined experience of just 16 ODIs. Afridi can chip in with legspin, but Yasir Shah, who has played just one ODI, is yet to be tested.

“I don’t see much of the depth in our fast bowling. Sohail Khan, Ehsan Adil and Wahab Riaz are all yet to prove that they could be match-winners. When you lose your experienced bowlers, for whatever reason, the first thing that should spring to your mind is to look for an experienced replacement.”

- Javed Miandad, former Pakistan captain World Cup history

Pakistan, under Imran Khan, came from behind to win the World Cup in 1992 in style. They were runners up in 1999, but crashed out in the pool stage in 2003 and 2007. Their 2007 campaign was especially messy – they were eliminated after an upset to Ireland, and their coach Bob Woolmer died suddenly just a few hours later.

SQUAD Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Ahmed Shehzad, Nasir Jamshed, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Younis Khan, Haris Sohail, Umar Akmal, Sohaib Maqsood, Shahid Afridi, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Irfan, Rahat Ali, Ehsan Adil, Sohail Khan, Wahab Riaz.

Watch out for

Umar Akmal. With a range of audacious shots to offer, Akmal’s immediate aim when at the crease seems to be to get the scoreboard ticking. And given Pakistan’s trouble in the early part of the innings, this contribution is immense. Very few balls that Akmal faces are dot balls.

FIXTURES Feb 15: India, Adelaide Feb 21: West Indies, Christchurch MARCH 1: Zimbabwe, Brisbane March 4: UAE, Napier March 7: South Africa, Auckland March 15: IRELAND, Adelaide

- Akash Sarkar

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

74 WORLD CUP 2015 playing each other once – two semifinals

1992 WORLD CUP

and the final.

Among the less successful changes introduced was the modification of the ‘rain rule’, which calculated a revised target for a team batting second in rainaffected matches. Previously, the run-rate

9 Teams 39 Matches over 33 days 456 Runs by Martin Crowe 18 Wickets by Wasim Akram 87,182 People at the MCG for the final

of the team batting first was multiplied by the number of overs available to the team batting second – a rule that was deemed too

at making matches more exciting and

favourable to the team chasing. To rectify

increasing cricket’s appeal with fans.

this, a panel of experts, including Richie Benaud, suggested that the reduction

Today, as we dig out Jonty Rhodes

in target be proportionate to the lowest

‘superman’ run-out, Zimbabwe’s Eddo

scoring overs of the side batting first. It

Brandes’s inspired victory against England,

aimed to take into account the benefits of

Inzamam-ul-Haq’s astounding 60 in 37

chasing.

balls, or Australia’s last-ball thriller against India from YouTube and internet archives

However, this resulted in some absurd

and re-live the tournament in all its colour

chases, most of all when South Africa lost

over and over again, it would seem that

out on a berth in the final to England.

goal has been achieved, and then some. It

South Africa had needed 22 off 13 balls in

was Cricketainment that brought the sport

the semifinal against England when rain

into the modern era.

stopped play. When the match resumed after a 12-minute break, they were left

Twenty-three years later, as we return to

with an impossible target of 21 off just one

the scenes of those celebrations in the age

delivery.

of Twenty20, new power structures and cut-throat commercial interests, the sands

The tweaks to the game were aimed

of cricket are in evident shift again.

IRELAND

75

POOL B

Strengths

Ireland come into the World Cup with everyone almost expecting them to cause upsets, as in 2007 against Pakistan and 2011 against England. The team will bank on the firepower of Kevin O’Brien, who holds the record for the fastest century in a World Cup, the experience of William Porterfield and Ed Joyce and the flamboyance of youth with Stuart Thompson, the pacer, who has an impressive bowling average of 14.50 and Craig Young, who picked up 5 for 46 on his ODI debut. Their recent tour of Australia and New Zealand recently as part of the ICC High Performance Programme will have introduced them to the challenges they can expect.

Weaknesses

Their lack of big-match temperament can work against them, and they have their work cut out to prove their wins aren’t flashes in the pan. They didn’t have a great acclimatisation tour, winning just two out of seven games played, although the tri-series win in Dubai against Afghanistan and Scotland would have given them reason to celebrate.

“Ireland have got a good structure. They’re a well-drilled unit, and a lot of their players have county experience, so you know they are going to cause problems. It will be their goal to have an Irish Test team to keep hold of the players that have come over to England to do that.”

- Paul Collingwood, former England cricketer World Cup history

Watch out for

SQUAD

“We have a very talented and experienced. We just have to go and play to the best of our abilities.”

Ireland have played in two World Cups so far, their come-from-behind win against England in 2011 and their three-wicket victory over Pakistan on St Patrick’s Day in 2007 proving what entertainers they can be to fans and what threat they pose to their opposition. With games getting harder to come by for Associates, they will believe they have a point to prove with their performances.

William Porterfield (capt), Andrew Balbirnie, Peter Chase, Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Andrew McBrine, John Mooney, Max Sorensen, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson, Craig Young.

Kevin O’Brien. The image of a pink-haired Irishman thrashing a hapless England attack for a super-fast century will forever be etched in the annals of World Cup lore.

Ireland will be hoping he can rediscover that mojo.

- Kevin O’Brien

FIXTURES Feb 16: West Indies, Nelson Feb 25: UAE, Brisbane MARCH 3: South Africa, Canberra March 7: Zimbabwe, Hobart March 10: India, Hamilton March 15: Pakistan, Adelaide

- Akash Sarkar ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

76 Andy Bichel: 7-20 off 10 overs & 34* off 36 balls v

2003

England, Port Elizabeth. Match Impact: 13.94 England had a superb start, scoring 66 without loss in the first ten overs. Andy Bichel came in as the first change bowler and turned the tide singlehandedly. He took the wickets of Nick Knight, Michael Vaughan and Nasser Hussain in quick succession (Pressure-building Impact) to leave England at 74 for 3. Alec Stewart and Andrew Flintoff staged a recovery from 87 for 5 with a 90-run partnership, but Bichel took both of them out within a space of six deliveries (Partnership-breaking Impact). England ended at 204 for 8, seven of those wickets picked up by Bichel. Then, with Australia at 135 for 8 and staring at defeat, Bichel and Michael Bevan stitched together a crucial partnership (Partnership-building Impact) under immense pressure (Pressure Impact), to take Australia home with two balls and two wickets to spare.

This is the second-highest impact performance by

The final against India. Damien Martyn and Ricky

any player ever in the World Cup.

FLASH BACK

Ponting in to continue the work Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden started. Ponting took his time settling

Final: Australia v India

in, needing 74 balls for his fifty, with only one boundary

India had a good run through the tournament,

along the way. However, soon after that, things changed

but in the final, a nervous bowling line-up allowed

dramatically. Ponting hit two consecutive sixes off

the Australians to run riot. Put in, the openers

Harbhajan over deep midwicket; that was a harbinger

added a punishing 105. The real fireworks,

of the carnage to be unleashed. In the last ten overs,

though, started with Ricky Ponting and Damien

Ponting hit sixes at will. He took just 47 balls to go from

Martyn. The duo added an astounding 234 in

50 to 140, the highest score by a captain in a World Cup

30.1 overs to power Australia to the highest total

final. His knock made the match a one-sided affair.

in a World Cup final, 359 for 2. Rain halted play

New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg: Australia 359/2 in 50 overs (Adam Gilchrist 57, Ricky Ponting 140 n.o., Damien Martyn 88 n.o.; Harbhajan Singh 2-49) beat India 234 in 39.2 overs (Virender Sehwag 82, Rahul Dravid 47; Glenn McGrath 3-52, Brett Lee 2-31, Andrew Symonds 2-7) by 125 runs. MoM: Ricky Ponting

when India were 103 for 3 in 17 overs. After play resumed, Australia’s strike bowlers delivered, bundling out India for 234. It was Australia’s second consecutive World Cup title, and one that underlined their supremacy in world cricket.

77

Everyone in the team knew his role

mostly the same teams playing. During the 2003 World

During the 2003 World Cup, there was no chopping and

me before the World Cup and told me what he wanted

changing.

from me. He was clear that if Mohammad Kaif bats at

Cup, there was no chopping and changing.

When it came to me, Ganguly made sure … he spoke to

No. 7, he would play a maximum of 30-40 balls and he would have to score at a run a ball. He said that was

M o h a mm a d K a i f

equal to a century as far as he was concerned.

In 2011, India had the advantage of playing at home and (MS) Dhoni, he is a clever captain, he used his

Yuvraj and I were the best fielders on the team. Some

spinners and part-timers very smartly. And Yuvraj made

of our seniors like Ganguly and (Virender) Sehwag and

all the difference. He is a match-winner, he has always

(VVS) Laxman, were not as good; some of them were

been one, and his bowling made a big difference too.

not agile and athletic, but they were keen to improve

With the bat, anyway, you don’t get better than Yuvraj.

their fielding. They were very committed. We knew we

It would have been nice to see him in the team for this

could bat and we could bowl, with (Javagal) Srinath,

World Cup too.

(Ashish) Nehra, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan (Singh), (Anil) Kumble … we had good understanding. The seniors had

But that sort of strategy isn’t going to work in 2015, and

been playing together for a long time, and that was the

it was like that in 2003 as well. In 2003, with (Sourav)

biggest plus.

Ganguly and John Wright, the ambition was to do well overseas. At home, we did well, that wasn’t the

The new fielding rules are a bit of a problem, because

problem.

we need to have five proper bowlers. That wasn’t the case then, and we played four bowlers and Rahul

Winning abroad was the target, and we had started to

Dravid kept wickets. We have a great batting line-up,

do well, except on that tour of New Zealand. We lost

I am confident they will do well, but the bowling is

matches, we started doubting things, and then at the

not coming along, and that could be a problem at the

World Cup, we lost a practice game, then didn’t do

World Cup.

well against the Netherlands and lost to Australia. But

2002, and we knew we had the ability.

Mohammad Kaif captained India to the Under-19 World Cup title in 2000, before playing 13 Tests and 125 ODIs for the senior side.

And we had solid plans. We knew who needed to do

As told to Shamya Dasgupta

then, we slowly started doing well. We had won some tournaments, like the NatWest Trophy in England in

what. We knew what positions we were expected to bat at and what role we needed to play. Everything was sorted. The first XI knew they would play, the others knew they wouldn’t. Most teams that win a lot have ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

78 WORLD CUP 2015

Two new balls and two powerplayS A round-up of all the rule changes for World Cup 2015 that aim to make the game more attractive to fans

H i m a n i s h B h at ta c h a r j e e

C

hange in rules, in any

if you scored a run a ball everyone said you

game,

to

had a tremendous strike-rate. Now they’re

disturb the conservative

saying you have to be 120-130. Same with

aficionados of the sport.

the bowlers. In the old days, Fanie de

But David Richardson,

Villiers got upset if he went for more than

the International Cricket Council’s chief

three runs per over. Now, bowlers only get

executive, believes that the rules are bent

upset when they go for more than six runs

only to enhance the competitive spirit of

an over. Yes, things have changed. But I

the sport, and, in the long run, make every

don’t necessarily think for the bad.”

is

bound

format more attractive for the fans.

The switch from the 60-over format to “We just might need to change our

the 50-over game in 1987, introduction of

perceptions,” he said at a press conference

cricket in coloured clothing, with a white

in Dhaka in March 2014. “In the old days,

ball and in the day-night format in 1992,

79

AB DE VILLIERS Batsmen will make the most of the new field restrictions.

addition of the Super Six round in 1999, the

Field restrictions

inception of the bowl out rule for knockout

This edition of the World Cup will be

games in 2007, and it being superseded by

the first to witness two sets of powerplay

the Super Over rule in 2011 – a lot has

overs instead of three. The first mandatory

changed since the first World Cup, or the

period of restriction will apply to the initial

Prudential Cup, as it was known as.

ten overs, when only two fielders can be placed outside the 30-yard inner circle,

At the end of the ICC’s board and

and the second one, a five-over slab, which

committee meeting on January 29, the

is called by the batting side before the 40th

sport’s governing body put a final stamp

over, will allow three fielders outside the

on the revised guidelines under which

ring.

the tenth edition of the World Cup, from February 14 to March 29, will be played.

When the powerplay overs are not on, a

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

80 WORLD CUP 2015 of providing pacers with a better chance of

Sub-continental teams, concerned over losing their spinners’ old-ball advantage, have opposed the idea of the two new balls maximum of five fielders can be deployed outside the inner circle.

Two new balls Law 5.1.2 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 Playing Conditions reads “Each fielding team shall have two new balls for its innings, to be used in alternate overs, i.e. one from each end.”

This rule was introduced in October 2011, taking over from the previous procedure of changing the ball only after 34 overs.

India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, possibly concerned over losing out on their spinners’ old-ball advantage, opposed the idea right from its onset. But the proposal was passed with the intention

having a go at the top-order batsmen early on, and at the same time, making sure the ball remains hard till the end of the innings, so batsmen can make good contact even at later stages of a match.

The Decision Review System (DRS) While the Hot Spot technology won’t be used, the Real-Time Snickometer – which was not available in the 2011 edition – will be in play.

The process for reviewing leg-before wicket decisions via the ball-tracking technology will also be used in the tournament. The 2.5-metre rule though, is now set at 3 metres, beyond which not out decisions cannot be overturned by the television umpire.

Slow over-rate Captains will not carry any ‘strikes’ against their name for slow over-rate into

WORLD CUP FACTS The 1983 World Cup was the first to introduce the 30-yard fielding circle.

81

the World Cup. The existing rule states

Higher prize money

that if a captain is involved in two slow

The ICC, in November 2014, announced

over-rate offences in the same format

a 20% increase in prize money for the

within 12 months, he will serve a ban for

2015 World Cup. The winners will now

the next match in the same format. But as

take home $3.975 million, but if a team

per the new rule, captains will enter the

remains unbeaten, that would rise to more

tournament with a clean slate.

than $4m.

Super Overs in knockout round

Overall, a total of $10 million, in contrast

In 2011, the ICC replaced the bowl-out system with the Super Over, a one-over

to the prize money of $8.01 million in the 2011 edition, will be up for grabs.

eliminator, as the method of determining the winner in the knockout stage of a

The team on the losing side of the March 29 final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground

tournament in case of a tie.

will receive $1.75 million, while the two In November last year though, the ICC

losing semifinalists will each get $600,000.

announced that if the 2015 World Cup final

The four losing quarter-finalists will pocket

is tied or if the match is a no-result, then

$300,000 each, while the winners of each

the teams will be declared joint winners.

group match will get $45,000 per match.

But in their most recent release, they reverted to the idea of having a Super Over decide the winner in case of a deadlock at

All six teams eliminated in the first stage will get $35,000 each.

the end of the match.

WORLD CUP FACTS The 1987 event, held for the first time in the subcontinent, was the first to involve neutral umpires.

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82

2007

Niall O’Brien: 72 off 107 balls v Pakistan, Kingston.

Match Impact: 11.48 A surprise name for highest impact performance at the World Cup, Niall O’Brien’s runs against Pakistan were pure gold. Having kept Pakistan to 132 runs, Ireland were under pressure. Coming in at 15 for 2, Niall, the wicketkeeper, built steady partnerships even as wickets fell. He was the fifth Irish batsman out, but of the 108 runs on the board then, 72 were scored by him. Niall’s brother Kevin completed the formalities for a memorable upset.

Almost 54% of Ireland’s total was scored by Niall.

Final: Australia v Sri Lanka Australia were at their rampant best in the tournament, defeating every side they encountered. Sri Lanka, meanwhile, reached the final after consistent performances. On that April 28 in Barbados, after rain delayed the start, Adam Gilchrist (149 off 104 balls) lit up a gloomy day with some astonishing hitting, taking Australia to 281 St Patrick’s Day. An Irish cultural celebration, parades, free-flowing Guinness. And that was even before minnows Ireland beat Pakistan in their maiden World Cup. Dave Langford-Smith sent back Mohammad Hafeez early and Boyd Rankin had the measure of Younis Khan.

Rankin returned 3 for 32, Andre Botha sent back Imran

FLASH BACK

Nazir and Inzamam-ul-Haq in a spell that read 8-4-52, and all Ireland needed was to chase down 133. A steady head from Niall O’Brien despite wobbles around him took Ireland over the line in 41.4 overs with three wickets in hand. It was the Irish green that won the day. The party went on just that much longer, and for a while, everyone wanted to be Irish that March 17.

for 4 in the allotted 38 overs. Sanath Jayasuriya (63) and Kumar Sangakkara (54) kept Sri Lanka in the chase till the 20th over, but once they were dismissed, the chase fell apart. Sri Lanka managed just 215 for 8 in 36 overs, giving Australia a 53-run win by Duckworth-Lewis method and their third title in the fading light.

Brief Scores: Kensington Oval, Barbados: Australia 281/4 in 38 overs (Adam Gilchrist 149, Matthew Hayden 38, Ricky Ponting 37; Lasith Malinga 2-49) beat Sri Lanka 215/8 in 36 overs (Sanath Jayasuriya 63, Kumar Sangakkara 54; Michael Clarke 2-33) by 53 runs (D/L method). MoM: Adam Gilchrist

83

The worst few days of my life

sent back to bowl in the Ranji Trophy. But Rahul bhai

We needed something positive, and winning the World

As it turned out, I was in the squad, and slowly started

T20 helped all of us recover from the loss

to bowl better, but wasn’t in the team for the three

(Dravid) had told me that I would be playing in the World Cup, so I was confident.

matches we played before returning home. Munaf

Ir f a n P a t h a n

(Patel), Zaheer (Khan) and Ajit (Agarkar) were all

That World Cup just didn’t work out for us.

tournament finished. I still don’t know how to describe

bowling well, so I didn’t get a chance. And then our that experience, of losing to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

We had prepared well, played quite a bit of cricket in

and crashing out. For two nights we didn’t step out of

the lead-up to the World Cup. We visited West Indies in

the hotel. Those were the longest two nights for all of

2006 and won the Test series. We had a full tour there,

us. We didn’t feel like doing anything, going anywhere,

which we felt would have helped us get used to the

meeting anyone. I think it took me more than two

conditions there. Then we went to South Africa as well.

weeks to fully realise what had happened. It was the

I thought our team was a strong one with a lot of very

worst few days of my life.

experienced players and a lot of quality. We also had a lot of camps just before. So the preparation was quite

It’s not an excuse, but I do feel that the format of that

good. Unfortunately, it just didn’t work out for us once

tournament made it difficult for a team to come back

the World Cup started.

after a loss. I don’t know what would have happened if we hadn’t won the first World Twenty20 later that

As many might remember, I was sent back home from

same year. We needed something positive, and winning

South Africa (in December 2006) because I wasn’t

the World T20 helped all of us. But the memories of

bowling well. It was a strange time for me. I think I

that World Cup – I still don’t like talking about that

was batting beautifully then and the team was keen

World Cup.

on having me as a frontline batsman. I got runs against good bowlers in South Africa. I got my first first-class century on that tour as well, against Morne Morkel,

Irfan Pathan was a seam-bowling allrounder who played 29 Tests and 120 ODIs for India.

Nantie Hayward, Alfonso Thomas and others. I was at my best as a batsman, but not as a bowler. So I was

As told to Shamya Dasgupta

WORLD CUP FACTS Herschelle Gibbs became the first batsman to hit six 6s in an over in an international match in 2007. The unfortunate bowler was the Netherlands’ Daan van Bunge.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

84 ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP 2015 WORLD CUP 2015

On the road – Arundhati Sridhar

City Overview – Brisbane

A day in ...

Dunedin

Like nearly every major city of note, life in Brisbane choreographs itself around a river. The Brisbane river, as it is quite simply called, runs through the city, its every bend creating small pockets of independent urban villages, each with a personality of its own. The river itself is lined with plenty of Readconstructed the full article on strategically walkways to explore the wisdenindia.com - ON THE ROAD

Afternoon: With one of the most textured histories in the country, marrying strands of Scottish and Maori cultures, the city of Dunedin deserves an Read the full article on introduction that brings it all together. The Toitu h a wisdenindia.com - ON THE ROAD

Queensland’s state capital is Australia’s third-largest city, but one that has often been accused of being “the world’s largest country town”, for its laidback pace and townie vibe. But from being a penal colony and dumping ground for murderers, rapists and repeat offenders, to becoming one of Australia’s most photogenic and liveable cities, Brisbane has had one of the most remarkable turnarounds.

Morning: Dunedin, much like the rest of New Zealand, finds itself surrounded by places of incredible scenic beauty. Make the most of the crisp morning air and indulge in an hour-long drive from the heart of the city towards the very tip of the picturesque Otage peninsula. At the end of a winding trail lies the Royal Albatross Centre at Taiaroa Head, which houses the world’s only mainland breeding colony of Royal Albatross. Pick from the many tours the centre offers, and enjoy the morning surrounded by wildlife.

Eden Park, Auckland One of the semifinal venues for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, New Zealand’s largest, most iconic stadium has a special association with World Cups in general, holding the record for being the only ground to have hosted two Rugby World Cup finals. This, in some sense, explains its diamond-shaped layout, something that continues to make field placements a nightmare for all cricket captains.

MC Melbourne Now one of the most iconic sights in world sport, it is hard to believe that the mighty MCG was not always on such … firm ground. What was originally called the Melbourne Cricket Ground in 1846, a public parkland situated further downstream from its current location, was constantly prone

85

Cricketer’s Quote: Adelaide

For the cricket fan: New Zealand Cricket Museum, Wellington Located within the picturesque Basin Reserve, the New Zealand Cricket Museum is a well-curated, succinct introduction to cricketing history in the country. Organised chronologically by decade, it houses rare pictures, newspaper clippings, letters, scorecards and interactive digital instalments that walk one through the many changes that cricket has seen – from the equipment, to the stadia, to the rules. Though the collection is limited, the memorabilia on display – like the original 1743 Addington bat – is sure to delight the cricket buff.

“Whenever I get to a new city, one of my favourite things to do is explore it by foot or by bike, especially given that most cities in Australia are extremely intimate and walkable. But of them all, Adelaide probably has some of the prettiest cycling tracks I have come across. And the walks around are just as scenic.”

– Greg Chappell

A visit to the museum can be clubbed with a match, Read thean fulloffarticle on earn yourself a or you can go on day and wisdenindia.com - ON THE ROAD

CG ourne to flooding when the Yarra would breach its banks. The flooding was so severe that the club had bigger worries than the lack of effective drainage, and it wasn’t uncommon to find them advertising for the return of the dressing rooms that had taken a swim down the river.

Hagley Oval, Christchurch The idyllic feel of the Hagley Oval, flanked by grassy banks and the lone gentle pavilion, belies the enormity of its symbolism in the recent history of Christchurch. Following the earthquake that hit the city in February 2011, the ground has gone from being a mass of rubble at Lancaster Park to a worthy venue for the World Cup opening match at Hagley Park, a triumph of no small measure.

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86

2011

AB de Villiers: 107* off 105 balls v West Indies, Delhi. Match Impact: 10.53 In a tournament where Kevin O’Brien scored a 50-ball century and Andrew Strauss scored 158, AB de Villiers’ innings against West Indies was the highest impact performance. After West Indies were bowled out for 222, South Africa were tested

by Kemar Roach and Sulieman Benn. De Villiers walked in at a high-pressure situation at the end of five overs, at 20 for 2, and put together a 119-run partnership with Graeme Smith and an unbeaten 84-run stand with JP Duminy to take South Africa home with seven wickets and seven overs to spare.

Final: India v Sri Lanka The 2011 edition pitted two Asian giants against each other. Before an adoring crowd at the Wankhede, Mumbai, India made a solid start, sending both openers back with 60 on the board.

Mahela Jayawardene (108) carried the innings and some late hitting helped Sri Lanka post 274 for 6. The Indian openers made a poorer start, sent back by Lasith Malinga after 31. Virat Kohli (35)

Five wickets for 31 runs and an unbeaten fifty against Ireland – the first to get a five-for and a half-century in the same World Cup match. One century and four fifties for India. Four Man of the Match Awards. Man

FLASH BACK

of the Tournament, with 362 runs at 90.50 to go with 15 wickets at 25.13. World Cup champion. 2011 was Yuvraj Singh’s tournament, his all-round showing game after game – we would only later learn of the trying circumstances and the overwhelming odds under which these performances came – enthralling his many fans at home and guiding his team to a much-awaited title.

and Gautam Gambhir (97) steadied the rocking ship, adding 83 for the third wicket, but it was to be the MS Dhoni (91 off 79 balls) show. The Indian captain added 109 with Gambhir, finishing things off with a memorable six over long-on to take India to a World Cup win after 28 years. Jayawardene became the first batsman to end up on the losing side after scoring a century in the final.

Brief scores: Wankhede, Mumbai: Sri Lanka 274/6 in 50 overs (Kumar Sangakkara 48, Mahela Jayawardene 108; Zaheer Khan 2-60, Yuvraj Singh 2-49) lost to India 277/4 in 48.2 overs (Gautam Gambhir 97, MS Dhoni 91 n.o.; Lasith Malinga 2-42) by six wickets.

MoM: MS Dhoni

87

It was one of those life-changing moments It was impossible to control emotions and it seemed totally acceptable for adults to behave like children

live each and every second of it. While some players shouted and some cried, others were keen to go ahead with the victory lap in front of an ecstatic Wankhede crowd. *** Something else that made the World Cup triumph really special was the fact that many of my teammates

S a c h i n T e n d u lk a r

dedicated the achievement to me. I felt overwhelmed.

Once we had finished with the awards ceremony and

I have to confess that I did not actually see what millions of Indians saw with ecstasy and delight that night. I did not see my ultimate dream being fulfilled, the moment I had waited to savour since making my debut in November 1989. The reason was that when Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit the winning six at the Wankhede Stadium, I was with Virender Sehwag in the dressing room, praying. I wasn’t asking God to help us win. All I wanted was that God should do what was best for us, for Indian cricket and the Indian cricket team.

the lap of honour, the scene of action moved to our dressing room. I opened the first bottle of champagne and subsequently made a point of getting it signed by all my teammates. It now has pride of place in the cellar at my house.

We tried to make the most of the moment in as many different ways as possible. We took countless photographs. First it was the players, then we took some with Gary (Kirsten), who had just served out his last match as India coach. Paddy Upton and Mike Horn,

***

both important members of our support unit, soon

Frankly, at first it was difficult to take in that we had won the World Cup. It was almost as if there was still

joined in and it seemed totally acceptable for adults to behave like children.

a match left in the tournament. But when I ran onto the ground and embraced an emotional Yuvi (Yuvraj Singh), it was impossible to control my emotions. It was one of those life-changing moments and we wanted to

Excerpted from Playing It My Way, Sachin Tendulkar’s autobiography.

WORLD CUP FACTS Kevin O’Brien, his hair dyed pink in aid of charity, hit the fastest World Cup century, in 50 balls, in Ireland’s memorable win over England in Banglalore in the 2011 edition. He made 113 in 63 deliveries.

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88

Then there were XI

One super team of the world’s best participating in 2015 World Cup - Shashank Kishore

Brendon McCullum New Zealand’s captain brings a mixture of brute force and timing to the table. He has spearheaded a remarkable turnaround through his ability to lead from the front and galvanise a team that has faded away after promising starts at previous editions. New Zealand are in red hot form, and McCullum, the leader, has blown attacks away – his strike rate is over 115 in the past year – led a rearguard effort, rescued the team out of a tight corner and instilled belief in his outfit.

A favourite pastime of a cricket aficionado – and a debate most likely to descend to agonising pedantry and assume the most unparliamentary, Warnereque of proportions – is an attempt to pick a unique XI – the best, the greatest, in this decade, of all-time, between the summer solstice of 1983 and Sachin’s 16th birthday....

Wisden India took up the fool’s errand in all earnestness, looking to build a fantasy XI from the players participating in the ICC World Cup 2015.

The World Cup hosts the most experienced at the top of their game, the young rookies hungry to prove a point, the old warhorses on their last lap – the 15 best cricketers from every country. To whittle the choice down to the 2015 World Cup XI, in batting order, we looked at ability, experience of playing in cricket’s biggest extravaganza (minimum of five matches) and current form, and we chose from teams most likely to make the quarterfinals.

The composition of the side is simple: Seven specialist batsmen, including MS Dhoni, captain and wicketkeeper; one allrounder in Shahid Afridi, who can be relied on to bowl ten overs on most days; three out and out pacers; and a spinner in Daniel Vettori for variety. If the pitch demands an extra seam bowling option, Angelo Mathews, the Sri Lanka skipper at the 2015 World Cup, would walk into the side in place of Afridi. Else, Afridi, more experienced and higher impact, would pip Mathews’s industry.

Hashim Amla Amla’s never-ending thirst for runs and the ease with which he makes them is godly. He became the fastest to get to 5000 ODI runs, in just 101 innings, eclipsing Virat Kohli’s record. One can but be awed by those flicks and the punch through the off side. And with 19 ODI tons in 104 innings – five of those centuries came in 2014, two more this year – Amla’s conversion rate is the best in international cricket. What are the odds of that figure just getting better at the 2015 World Cup?

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Virat Kohli If The King believes Kohli is the boss in the shorter format, need we say more? The swagger is hard to miss; the timing even better and his ability to nonchalantly put up tall totals make him one of the modern-day marvels. Hot-headed and temperamental at times, Kohli’s in-yourface attitude stems from his ability to walk the talk. Nineteen of his 21 centuries have come in an Indian win, and 14 while India were chasing.

He averages 64.26 at a strike rate of 92.84 while chasing, better than his average of 51.5. Why wouldn’t you want him on your side?

Kumar Sangakkara With 1256 runs in 28 innings, Sangakkara was the highest ODI run-getter in 2014.

Artistic, elegant and with a penchant for big runs, while also bringing tactical acumen, his value to a side can’t be understated. Given the form he’s been in, even as he gets ready to sign off, 2015 could be Sangakkara’s best World Cup yet.

AB de Villiers Is there anything on the cricket field that AB de Villiers can’t do?

When he isn’t keeping wickets, he effects runouts with ease, makes difficult catches look like child’s play, scores centuries off just 31 balls, plays audacious reverse sweeps for six against bowlers who hurl the ball in at close to 150 clicks, and, more importantly, reminds his teammates that the ‘chokers’ tag is a thing of the past.

ISSUE 7, FEBRUARY 2015

MS Dhoni (capt, wk)

MS Dhoni, ranked among the best ODI finishers of all time, will come in at No. 6. What the men coming above him start, he can finish.

He has proved orthodoxy and methods have little value in the game if the results aren’t there to back it up. Who better than the captain of the defending World Cup champions and India’s most successful ODI captain to lead you team?

90

Shahid Afridi

Mitchell Johnson

James Anderson

Afridi is like a ticking time bomb with both bat and ball, one that goes Boom Boom when you least expect it. A handy legspinner who is guaranteed to give ten overs most times, he’s also the one a captain would look towards to pull a team out of a sticky situation.

From being someone the Barmy Army dismissed as the one who “bowled to the left and right”, he’s turned into a bowler whose very name on the team-sheet can give his team a psychological advantage. A pace of close to 150 kph, ability to swing the ball both in the air and off the pitch makes him dangerous even on the most docile wickets. In home conditions, he could be the X-factor for his side.

England’s only representative in this XI, he is the secondmost experienced bowler when it comes to World Cup, having been part of campaigns in 2003, 2007 and 2011. Generally a parsimonious bowler, he has signalled a return to form after a considerable injury layoff. In Australia, expect him to swing the new ball and run riot.

Dale Steyn Perhaps the most complete bowler of the generation, Steyn will go down in the pantheons of South African cricket as one of the greats. Few inspire the awe he does when in full flow. The sprint, the release, the wrist action, the banana swing and yorker make him a stand out, one who can intimidate the opponents. In many ways, his mannerisms and ability is a throwback to the West Indian era where the fast bowlers ruled the roost and had the ability to keep the batsmen in their tracks, not by words, but just with their action.

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Daniel Vettori The New Zealand veteran – he has been a part of World Cup campaigns since 1999 – has been plagued with injuries to his back, knee and ankle. But months of rigorous training and commitment has brought him back into contention for perhaps one last shot at glory.

One of the best left-arm spinners in the modern day, Vettori’s ability to fox the batsman in the air, as much as he can off the pitch, makes him a tough proposition.

12th man:

Angelo Mathews Tactful, proactive and aggressive, Mathews had a terrific 2014 as captain and player, leading Sri Lanka to their fifth Asia Cup title, among other ODI honours against England and Pakistan. In all this, he brought up his first ODI century, against India in a series Sri Lanka would lose.

His emergence as a leader and an allrounder makes him vital in any World XI side.

WORLD CUP ’15 SUPER XI

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ZIMBABWE

92

POOL B

Strengths

While they aren’t expected to set off quakes at the 2015 World Cup, Zimbabwe have a few players on whom they firmly place their hopes. Hamilton Masakadza, Brendan Taylor and Elton Chigumbura form the crux of their batting, and if they can get going, they can reach a total that the likes of Tinashe Panyangara and Tendai Chatara can realistically hope to defend. In Sean Williams, left-arm spinner, and Solomon Mire, the medium-pacer, Zimbabwe also have two useful allrounders. Crucially, Dav Whatmore is a vastly experienced coach who won the World Cup with Sri Lanka in 1996. He has rung in the changes and Zimbabwe could finally turn a corner.

Weaknesses

When they drew blanks in the Test and one-day tour of Bangladesh, the batting line-up’s propensity to collapse was apparent. At the World Cup, Zimbabwe will face attacks far tougher than Bangladesh, and building partnerships will be key to their survival. They also haven’t played preparatory ODIs for the tournament. Their last ODI was against Bangladesh in December 1, and the build-up has consisted of domestic cricket, an ‘A’ series against Canada and a training camp in Dubai.

“By 2023 we want to be contending for the World Cup. That’s the aim. It’s not an aim that’s unrealistic. It’s achievable. We’ve got a long-term view on this.”

- Alastair Campbell, Zimbabwe Cricket managing director World Cup history

Zimbabwe have played in eight World Cups so far, but they peaked in the 1999 and 2003 editions, making the Super Six stage on both occasions. In 1999, they beat the likes of India and South Africa, along with Kenya, on their way past the group stages, while in 2003, they posted totals in excess of 300 against Namibia and Netherlands, on their way to the next stage.

SQUAD Elton Chigumbura (capt), Sikandar Raza, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Chamu Chibhabha, Tafadzwa Kamungozi, Hamilton Masakadza, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Craig Ervine, Solomon Mire, Tawanda Mupariwa, Tinashe Panyangara, Brendan Taylor (wk), Prosper Utseya, Sean Williams.

Watch out for

At 31 years of age, and 14 years into his international career, Hamilton Masakadza will make his World Cup debut. Inexperience, form and injuries over the years meant he had to be left out of previous World Cup squads.

He has been in good form in domestic one-dayers. As an opener, the starts he provides will be instrumental in Zimbabwe’s fortunes. He averaged 35.46 in 2014, including half-centuries against Australia and South Africa in the tri-series. More of the same is expected.

FIXTURES Feb 15: SOUTH AFRICA, HAMILTON Feb 19: UAE, NELSON Feb 24: WEST INDIES, Canberra March 1: PAKISTAN, BRISBANE March 7: IRELAND, Hobart March 14: INDIA, AUCKLAND

- Manoj Narayan

Almanack

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