The Cricket Thread

[radioactivenerd]

2007 Cricket World Cup

All right i KNOW there are LOTS of people here that are from asia and australia and caribbean - theres GOTTA be a world cup thread!!!!
Starting in just over a week is WEST INDIES VS PAKISTAN
My pick? West Indies (you didnt think id ACTUALLY support pakistan did you )

For the world cup though, i cant see my india going TOO far, unless Tendulkar has some sensational performances, and ganguly plays like he did against sri lanka in 1999 (183).
I dont want australia to win, since shane warne and steve waugh retired I'm not too fond of their team. South Africa is a team that really deserves to win it, and has deserved to win it almost every single world cup since 1992, except 1996. They just get fucked over each time.

Winners:
1. The Proteas
2. India

Top Scorers:
1) Herschelle Gibbs
2) Ricky Ponting

Top Wicket Takers:
1) Shane Bond (If NZ get far in the tourney, which they probably will)
2) Shaun Pollock

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Groups:

1) Group A:

Australia, South Africa, Scotland, Netherlands

2) Group B:

India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bermuda

3) Group C:

England, New Zealand, Kenya, Canada

4) Group D:

West Indies, Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Ireland

 

[Italian Tsar]

I've added a poll. People are very excited here, and I think India have a real good chance this time around.

Australia will miss Warne (but who wouldn't ), while South Africa may also miss a proven spinner. Pakistan is decimated by injuries (Shoib, Asif, Razzaq out) but if anything, that makes them more dangerous. Sri Lanka have a wonderful squad and in my book are one of the favourites. New Zealand are the dark horses, but do they have the wherewithal?

If its not India, then Windies all the way!!!!

 

[GreatKalu]

Haven't watched a game in a while. I haven't been following proceedings lately either. From the infamous five to the pathetic showing as hosts, South Africa have always come short when it matters. I really hope I'm wrong when I say I don't think things will change anytime soon.

But please, an update. On paper, are the Aussies still clear favorites?

 

[radioactivenerd]

Haven't watched a game in a while. I haven't been following proceedings lately either. From the infamous five to the pathetic showing as hosts, South Africa have always come short when it matters. I really hope I'm wrong when I say I don't think things will change anytime soon.

But please, an update. On paper, are the Aussies still clear favorites?

Not as clear as theyve been for the last few years. The West Indies have a good team, and Lara is playing as well as he was when he was 23. Stats go against the host of the WC though.
Aussies are still realyl good, and probably still the best team, but are beatable by a good team now (which wasnt the case at ine point). Shane Warne has retired, and the WC will be Glenn McGrath's last tournament. I doubt he would be that effective, but I said the same thing about Zidane.
South Africa have a great new young team, with a 26 y/o captain that is a better captain than Cronje if thats possible. I dont know if you heard about a game some time ago, when Aussies made 434 and Sth Africa chased it and made 438 and won. IN A ONE DAY INTL.
Theres definitely potential for all these teams to do well.. I havent seen any Sri Lankan team games, so I really cannot speak to that, but Tsar says therye good, and im sure he knows what hes talking about.
But yeah without Shane Warne and Steve Waugh, Aussies arent AS strong as they were. Not because theyre a bad team, but just because its hard to replace such influential people.

 

[GreatKalu]

Yeah, I know Graeme Smith's fantastic when he + Gibbs are in form. If I'm not mistaken, I thought their weak point during the last WC was their bowling. Aside from Pollock, any other impressive bowlers? Also, their legendary fielding seemed to have been lost during the last WC.

I didn't know about the Aussie match. Must have been an epic chase. I remember in '99 when the lost by 1 or 2 runs against the Aussies Also another epic.

Lara in form?! Damn ... I got to watch the WC. How's Tendulkar been playing lately?

 

[WILL2K]

Used to follow cricket during my stay in Sri Lanka my years back. I was there celebrating for Sri Lanka when they won the World Cup in 95 >? . Later i began to suppor Aussie team . Fav. players were Mark Waugh and Steve Waugh bros , Warne the spinning legend as well as Glenn McGrath. They kicked butts back then , won the world cup in 99 .

 

[Passion for *9*]

All I know about cricket is that there's a thing, no... two things, called wickets that are guarded by Batman.... Batsmen ? .... Whatever

Boring stuff to the German eye.

 

[GreatKalu]

All I know about cricket is that there's a thing, no... two things, called wickets that are guarded by Batman.... Batsmen ? .... Whatever

Boring stuff to the German eye.

Yes ... Batsmen as in plural

Initially, I wasn't blown away by it ... but the technique + strategy involved in the game is hugely addictive (to me at least) especially after I played it.

 

[Passion for *9*]

^^^ If someone took it upon himself to explain the rules in really really REALLY simple terms, I might start taking an interest

 

[Passion for *9*]

^^^ Then again... you probably want this thread to remain P4*9*-free + for all the right reasons

May the best win

 

[Italian Tsar]

The Aussies just got swamped 0-3 by New Zealand and lost to England in the tri-series that took place a few weeks back But then, they were missing Ponting and Gilchrist against New Zealand.

Brett Lee is out of the WC (injury), and though Symonds himself is carrying an injury and is not expected to play until the later stages of the competition, Ponting has backed him and picked him. McGrath's been a shadow of his former self lately, but I wouldn't write him off for the world.

Lara's been conserving himself for some years now, choosing which series to play and which to skip. That's something Sachin hasn't done, and though he looks in decent nick, the irreversible decline into mediocrity has started for him. Dravid is at his peak, Saurav is in terrific form and India's Chief of Selectors, Dilip Vengsarkar, has publicly announced that Virender Sehwag was included at the insistence of Dravid. I only hope we don't regret it. But I honestly don't understand the constant exclusion of Laxman from the ODI squad

Smith better than Cronje? Now, common man, you can't be serious Cronje was tainted, but the guy was a genius. As you know, SA are not as strong as they used to be - no Rhodes, no Klusener, no Donald, no Kirsten..... The current bunch is doubtless talented, but I have this feeling that Smith is a little too brash in his decisions.

But South Africa have a decent batting order. Smith and De Villiers at the top, Kallis at no.3, Prince, Gibbs, Kemp, Boucher and Pollock to follow. And Ntini and Pollock are a great pair, though Smith seldom gives the new ball to Pollock. He prefers Steyn

Do I sound a bit full of myself? I am sorry if I do, its just that its been a while since I wrote about Cricket

 

[radioactivenerd]

^^^ Then again... you probably want this thread to remain P4*9*-free + for all the right reasons

May the best win

Hah I would actually love some P49 and some Sin Paola controversy in this thread - ill post something with a simple explanation of rules in a bit.
Not just for you, but so we can get some other non-cricket-country dwellers just a little excited.

 

[radioactivenerd]

Lara in form?! Damn ... I got to watch the WC. How's Tendulkar been playing lately?

Lara has had a phenomenal return to form in the past couple of years. He made a huge splash by scoring his 375 in 1993-94, but ran into some rough years a bit after that. That record stood for 10 years, till Matthew Hayden came over and bettered it with a 380 in 2003-2004.
Lara responded in the VERY next series that he played, and took Haydens record and bettered it, almost at will, to 400 not out. Still holds the record to this day, and it seems like he wants to retire with it.

Class

 

[Passion for *9*]

Hah I would actually love some P49 and some Sin Paola controversy in this thread - ill post something with a simple explanation of rules in a bit.
Not just for you, but so we can get some other non-cricket-country dwellers just a little excited.

Nah, I know when to bow out gracefully... LOL... at least most the time. I've READ the rules many a times but without being able to watch matches any explanation seems too theoretical to me to get a real grasp of it.

But thanks -in advance- for your efforts

 

[GreatKalu]

^^^ If someone took it upon himself to explain the rules in really really REALLY simple terms, I might start taking an interest

Don't know what you already know + I'm not sure if I'm the right person to be explaining rules. Just looked it up and
wikipedia explains the rules pretty well.

Note: Two types of competitve games. Test Matches and One Day Internationals (ODI). The WC is all about ODIs. An over is 6 legal bowls made by the bowler + received by the batsmen. Each team is given 50 overs to bat in an ODI.

I was busy typing away and never thought I was going to finish or put the important points across. So, ask where you're in doubt and we'll try and clear it up. I think its the most efficient + effective route of action.

Sure you should stick around + become the first continental European I know who knows a little more about cricket than the obvious

 

[Passion for *9*]

^^^ I've read all that... Now try to picture yourself having read the rules of the game in football a couple of times but having never seen a football match. That's my problem... cricket is a very abstract rather than concrete concept to me... LOL...

I'm out

 

[GreatKalu]

Thanks for the updates Arun.

 

[ORez]

I gave up on cricket after England '99. Man did Pakistan kick ass and then lose so dramatically in the final. I still remember predicting every game till the last ball, but my luck ran out in the Final.

My mid-terms are up and I am fixing my UCL team, that speaks alot how much I'll be following it. Thanks for opening a thread here, I'll follow it up all here.

Btw, South Africa have a really good chance, or New Zealand and Windies might just pull a Porto-Monaco on the big guns.

Pakistan has a really poor chance, since the two in form bowlers are not going, thanks to their 'Borriellioness' :/ Anyways, I can only fancy the batsmen like Mohammad Yousaf, Younis Khan, Inzi-baba and Shahid Afridi pull one out of the hat.

Pakistan Zindabad.

p.s. Do post the pools here please

 

[Sasha]

If someone could tell me who the underdog is, I'll be rooting for them.

 

[Italian Tsar]

Thanks for the updates Arun.

You're welcome, mate

p.s. Do post the pools here please

Done. In the first post

If someone could tell me who the underdog is, I'll be rooting for them.

That will be either the West Indies or England. Depends on which side you're in actually

 

[GreatKalu]

Lara's been conserving himself for some years now, choosing which series to play and which to skip. That's something Sachin hasn't done, and though he looks in decent nick, the irreversible decline into mediocrity has started for him. Dravid is at his peak, Saurav is in terrific form and India's Chief of Selectors, Dilip Vengsarkar, has publicly announced that Virender Sehwag was included at the insistence of Dravid. I only hope we don't regret it. But I honestly don't understand the constant exclusion of Laxman from the ODI squad

Sachin en route to being mediocre? I won't believe it until I see it I probably watched 2-3 games with Sehwag and Laxman (I think the test series against Australia in India ... 2003, I think) where Laxman single handedly carried India in both innings (in Bombay I think) with 300+ runs in the first inning. His blend of consistency, power and technique was nice to watch and am really surprised he hasn't made himself a regular in the ODI team.

Have always preferred Dravid (despite the criticisms over his run rate) over Ganguly but that's because the later's almost never in form. Glad to hear he's doing good. Haven't seen Dilip ... is he Tamilian?

 

[radioactivenerd]

Sachin en route to being mediocre? I won't believe it until I see it I probably watched 2-3 games with Sehwag and Laxman (I think the test series against Australia in India ... 2003, I think) where Laxman single handedly carried India in both innings (in Bombay I think) with 300+ runs in the first inning. His blend of consistency, power and technique was nice to watch and am really surprised he hasn't made himself a regular in the ODI team.

Have always preferred Dravid (despite the criticisms over his run rate) over Ganguly but that's because the later's almost never in form. Glad to hear he's doing good. Haven't seen Dilip ... is he Tamilian?

Nope Dilip Vengsarkar is from Maharashtra - he was a batsman, used to play in the 80s. I for one REALLY hope Sehwag can prove them wrong and blast a century or two. sehwag playing well is *almost* as effective as sachin playing well. Plays quick, and takes the game to the opposition.

Warm up matches started today, and theres a HUGE upset on the cards already. my pick to win it all, South Africa are down to 105/8 against minnows IRELAND.

South Africa 105/8
H Gibbs 21
A Hall 20*

Ireland
D Johnson 4/26
Langford-Smith 3/31

 

[acerвιc wιт]

We've lost 5 or 6 in a row. Just lowering our favourites tag

Roy should be back to face SA. Australia's week point is our bowling attack. I can't believe they opted to overlook Stuart Clarke at the expense of Mitchel Johnson or Tait. Though with Lee's injury he is in.

Whens the WC actually start?

 

[radioactivenerd]

We've lost 5 or 6 in a row. Just lowering our favourites tag

Roy should be back to face SA. Australia's week point is our bowling attack. I can't believe they opted to overlook Stuart Clarke at the expense of Mitchel Johnson or Tait. Though with Lee's injury he is in.

Whens the WC actually start?

First game is March 13 West Indies Vs Pakistan
Australia's first game is March 14th, Vs Scotland. Some start to the world cup for scotland.
And Stuart Clark is in the squad.
This is the squad:
Ricky Ponting (c)
Nathan Bracken
Stuart Clark
Michael Clarke
Adam Gilchrist (wk)
Brad Haddin (wk)
Matthew Hayden
Brad Hodge
Brad Hogg
Michael Hussey
Mitchell Johnson
Glenn McGrath
Andrew Symonds
Shaun Tait
Shane Watson

The only weak point in you rbowling is Brad Hogg. Batsman from the sub-continent love a slow little tweaking left-arm spinner

Pace is decently well covered with McGrath, Watson, Clarke and Bracken. Sure its not McGrath, Lee and Warne, but hey - noone wants Australia to win AGAIN.

Pakistan are the disasters in the pace bowling dept. Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami have been ruled out thru 'injury' (read drug abuse).

 

[GreatKalu]

Any chance there are streams showing the games?

 

[RATM]

This is a pretty open World Cup.I think the two best teams have contested the finals in the last two World Cups so hopefully the same happens in this one.Pakistan and Australia were the best in '99 and India and Aussies in 2003 (although you could make a good case for South Africa in both if they weren't such chokers).A run-down of the top sides:


Australia:

The Aussies are still the favourites but by not as big a margin as it was thought of previously.I always knew that their bowling wasn't all that(simply because the current line-up has mostly performed in conditions which favour them).Mcgrath is still VERY good but he's 37.I'm really not too convinced with the other bowlers though simply because the conditions in this World Cup are different than in '99 or 2003.The pitches will be slower,flatter and the Aussie bowling,particularly the more inexperienced ones,I don't think they'll react too well when they are put under pressure or take a beating.No problems in batting though-pretty solid and reliable.

India:

Good,solid,experienced batting lineup but the form of Sehwag is a BIG BLOW.The guy can really change the complexion of any one-day match if he stays 10-15 overs on the pitch.Don't know what happened to Ashish Nehra or Balaji,I thought they were both good bowlers and had performed well.Can somebody here update me on their situation????Nehra was one of the best Indian fast bowler I know of who can bowl the best in the final overs.He was pretty versatile.The form of Irfan Pathan is a big blow as well-the guy is simply irreplacable when he's on form.I don't know how Sreesanth or Zaheer will perform in the tail-end overs.They can pick up a wicket but I think they will go for runs.Good,experienced spin bowlers in Harbajhan and Kumble + handy part-time bowlers.

Pakistan:

They haven't had a succesful or consistent opening batting pair since Amir Sohail and Saeed Anward in the 90's.They have a pathetic opening pair now + their keeper is awful both with the gloves and the bat.They had a minimal chance before but after the injuries of Abdul Razzaq,Shoaib AKhtar and Mohammad Asif (the best in-form bowler in the world IMO)...even a semi-final place would be considered a huge achievement now.Strength is their middle-order batting.

West Indies:

I hope Lara wins this WOrld Cup esp. considering the troubles this side had to endure and their past glory.Chris Gale can be explosive as an opener but apart from Lara,not much else stands out in this team.However,they perfrom well at home and with an explosive crowd and LUCK,they're outsiders for this world cup.Main strength is that they don't have much individual brilliance but COLLECTIVELY they all help each other out.

South Africa:

Good,batting lineup and all can play well on their day but apart from Kallis-I'm afraid there's not one more consistent World-Class batsmen in their side.I know Gibbs can be explosive but in terms of consisteny,Kallis is head-and-shoulders above any batsman in that team. A true master.The pitches in the Windies will be slow and the grounds will be small so not to sure about South African bowling.SHaun Pollock is brilliant but I'm not too sure about Ntini.Conditions will be different than they are used.Nel,Ntini are capable of taking wickets but they are also capable of being very expensive.Shaun Pollock is the only reliable bowler that can keep the runs VERY tight.

England:

Very good,solid side when they're all playing but not much depth so any regular out will prove to be a blow.Even when they won the Ashes series at home against Australia,they still weren't considered a good one-day side.I think that is because apart from Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pieterson they don't have anyone that can really accelerate the pace of a game and you really need that in one-days.Matthew Bell and Paul Collingwood are very good players-hard to get out but none can force the pace and that's why they're much better Test Players than they are ODI players.Loss of Simon Jones will prove to be a blow,he's fast and quick in the air and can reverse-swing the ball-a technique which is priceless when bowling in slow,flat pitches.Don't put too much thought on their recent triangle series win against Australia.They will meet entirely different conditions in the Windies.They WILL have to play Matthew Hoggard though.

Sri-Lanka:

Too many mediocre players mixed with World Class.Rely too much on Jayasuria,Jayawardene and Muralitharan.A semi-final would be a good achievement.

New Zealand:

The dark-horses.I think they have a better side now than they have had in the previous 3 World Cups.They will need their full,fit side to have any chance in this competition though.Won't be surprised at all if they reached the semi-finals.

 

[acerвιc wιт]

First game is March 13 West Indies Vs Pakistan
Australia's first game is March 14th, Vs Scotland. Some start to the world cup for scotland.
And Stuart Clark is in the squad.
This is the squad:
Ricky Ponting (c)
Nathan Bracken
Stuart Clark
Michael Clarke
Adam Gilchrist (wk)
Brad Haddin (wk)
Matthew Hayden
Brad Hodge
Brad Hogg
Michael Hussey
Mitchell Johnson
Glenn McGrath
Andrew Symonds
Shaun Tait
Shane Watson

The only weak point in you rbowling is Brad Hogg. Batsman from the sub-continent love a slow little tweaking left-arm spinner

Pace is decently well covered with McGrath, Watson, Clarke and Bracken. Sure its not McGrath, Lee and Warne, but hey - noone wants Australia to win AGAIN.

Pakistan are the disasters in the pace bowling dept. Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami have been ruled out thru 'injury' (read drug abuse).

Hoggy... never been one of my favourites though we really don't have anyone else to select as a spin bowler. It was out of him and Craig White though White's struggled, not so much with the bat. He is a gun with the bat in his hand. I just can't understand the select of Watson???????
He is a disgraceful player.
Though its a the Caribbean. Fast bowlers dream pitch.

 

[radioactivenerd]

New Zealand:

The dark-horses.I think they have a better side now than they have had in the previous 3 World Cups.They will need their full,fit side to have any chance in this competition though.Won't be surprised at all if they reached the semi-finals.

I think these guys have a fantastic team, and a great captain. Its a pity Chris Cairns isnt there any more. With him in this team, they could be world beaters . This is definnitely the best ever side theyve sent to a WC and it is good enough to win it all with a bit of luck. Oram and Fleming are absolute rocks in the batting, and Bond is a phenomenal bowler.

Stephen Fleming
Shane Bond
James Franklin
Peter Fulton
Mark Gillespie
Brendon McCullum (wk)
Craig McMillan
Michael Mason
Jacob Oram
Jeetan Patel
Scott Styris
Ross Taylor
Daryl Tuffey
Daniel Vettori
Lou Vincent

Theyve have good results in the past too. And this is another one of those teams, that you feel really deserve to do well. Theyve been hard working, and never met with much success. Id be happy to see them reach the latter stages.
RATM, where you from dude?

 

[acerвιc wιт]

If NZ can get Oram back on board they can go all the way.

 

[ORez]

If someone could tell me who the underdog is, I'll be rooting for them.

Certianly the Kiwis...! They have the potential to kick ass this time, lets see.