Sunday, April 29, 2007
Veni Vida Vici
What can you say? They were unstoppable, unbeatable, invincible, they came they saw, they remained unbeaten,they conquered. Congrats to Australia for winning Cricket World Cup 2007. No one else was in their class.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Semi-Final
After what has seemed like an eternity of cricket, the CWC has finally reached the semi-finals stage. I can see why many questioned the length of the tournament now as the Super 8 segment stretched on way beyond the tolerance and concentration of the average cricket fan.
The semi-finalists were indeed decided days ago but we were forced to endure a few meaningless games by teams playing for pride but who were really yearning to return home after the odyssey that was CWC 2007.
We predicted correctly way back at the beginning of the Super 8 who the semi finalists would be. Hooray for us! Still one would have thought that the likes of the West Indies would have given one of the other teams a run for their money. However the West Indies team never came close to contending and endured a string of drubbings by the eventual semi-finalists.
So onto the semi-finals.
Match 1: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand. Could be a close match. I think New Zealand has over-achieved this tournament to be honest and I think reality will hit home here as New Zealand should be outclassed by Sri Lanka. In the super 8s Sri Lanka easily won the match up and I expect them to do so again assuming Vass, Malinga and Muralitharan are healthy.
Match 2: Australia vs South Africa. I'm predicting an upset here. Australia has just been too good this tournament brushing aside all opposition. I say the buck stops here. They are due to have a bad day and I think it'll happen on Wednesday.
That means a prediction of Sri Lanka vs South Africa in the finals. Who will win? We'll check back in after the semis.
The semi-finalists were indeed decided days ago but we were forced to endure a few meaningless games by teams playing for pride but who were really yearning to return home after the odyssey that was CWC 2007.
We predicted correctly way back at the beginning of the Super 8 who the semi finalists would be. Hooray for us! Still one would have thought that the likes of the West Indies would have given one of the other teams a run for their money. However the West Indies team never came close to contending and endured a string of drubbings by the eventual semi-finalists.
So onto the semi-finals.
Match 1: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand. Could be a close match. I think New Zealand has over-achieved this tournament to be honest and I think reality will hit home here as New Zealand should be outclassed by Sri Lanka. In the super 8s Sri Lanka easily won the match up and I expect them to do so again assuming Vass, Malinga and Muralitharan are healthy.
Match 2: Australia vs South Africa. I'm predicting an upset here. Australia has just been too good this tournament brushing aside all opposition. I say the buck stops here. They are due to have a bad day and I think it'll happen on Wednesday.
That means a prediction of Sri Lanka vs South Africa in the finals. Who will win? We'll check back in after the semis.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Semifinalists decided
South Africa's demolition of England has determined the 4 semi-finalists for the series with a full 4 more matches left to be played. Of only academic interest now will be the West Indian games vs England and Bangladesh. Sri Lanka should win handily over Ireland tomorrow as well. The only semi-significant game may be that of New Zealand vs Australia on Friday as the top two teams battle in what may be a snapshot of the final.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Super 8 - bye bye windies
Still 7 more matches left to be played in an extremely lengthy Super 8 phase but by and large the semi-finalist have been determined. Well at least 3 of the four have been anyways.
New Zealand, Australia and Sri Lanka look set to be in the semi finals while South Africa and England battle for the 4th spot.
What about the West Indies you say? Well 4 losses in 4 Super 8 matches have left the home side one from the bottom in the points table. Even supposed minnows Bangladesh appear to be playing better than the Windies at the moment.
So well what can one say about the Windies side who came through their preliminary round unbeaten only to be trashed soundly by superior teams in the Super 8? Well I can make some excuses here:
I just think the team was under prepared and just isn't as good as we would all have liked to think. Talent and potential wise maybe we are up there but performance wise lately we have been playing at or below the minnow level. Why? Well for one the effort given by the team is definitely lagging.
No wonder its reported that a gun was pulled on certain Windies players at a nightclub last week. That fan was probably just as disgusted as most fans are by the lackadaisical approach by our squad not even making the last four games competitive.
Where do we go from here? Well the team goes home after the Super 8. Oh wait they are home so I guess they just go their separate ways and enjoy the money they made while losing. In terms of rebuilding, fans have heard the same mantra chanted by the board and the players for over 10 years now. Instead of rebuilding we seem to be digging a deeper and deeper hole. Hopefully at some point the players and management and WICB will take responsibility for their roles and the Windies can actually become competitive again but for now I wouldn't hold my breath waiting. We're just not a good team. A so it go I guess!
New Zealand, Australia and Sri Lanka look set to be in the semi finals while South Africa and England battle for the 4th spot.
What about the West Indies you say? Well 4 losses in 4 Super 8 matches have left the home side one from the bottom in the points table. Even supposed minnows Bangladesh appear to be playing better than the Windies at the moment.
So well what can one say about the Windies side who came through their preliminary round unbeaten only to be trashed soundly by superior teams in the Super 8? Well I can make some excuses here:
- We got a bad schedule and ended up playing games against Australia and New Zealand back to back.
- The squad wasn't prepared.
- Big Questions about captaincy or rather the captaincy was poor
- Definitely a lack of strategy was shown in things like taking the power play late in the game against South Africa to not even attempting to slog until too late will watching the run rate skyrocket as we chased a total against New Zealand.
- The team has deficiencies in both its batting and bowling departments.
- We should have batted first vs South Africa
- Questions about squad and team make up like why replace an opening bowling with a batsman who will bat at number 8?
I just think the team was under prepared and just isn't as good as we would all have liked to think. Talent and potential wise maybe we are up there but performance wise lately we have been playing at or below the minnow level. Why? Well for one the effort given by the team is definitely lagging.
No wonder its reported that a gun was pulled on certain Windies players at a nightclub last week. That fan was probably just as disgusted as most fans are by the lackadaisical approach by our squad not even making the last four games competitive.
Where do we go from here? Well the team goes home after the Super 8. Oh wait they are home so I guess they just go their separate ways and enjoy the money they made while losing. In terms of rebuilding, fans have heard the same mantra chanted by the board and the players for over 10 years now. Instead of rebuilding we seem to be digging a deeper and deeper hole. Hopefully at some point the players and management and WICB will take responsibility for their roles and the Windies can actually become competitive again but for now I wouldn't hold my breath waiting. We're just not a good team. A so it go I guess!
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Another upset
Well,well,well, Bangladesh whipped South Africa today as they went back to their giant killing ways. I think 1 billion Indians are right now thinking their loss wasn't too bad. Ok, maybe not, but surely there is a little comfort to be derived in knowing Bangladesh beat the no 1 team.
All of a sudden the 4th spot in the super 8's is wide open with 6 million West Indians fancying their team chances. Come Tuesday the West Indies /South Africa game should be filled with intensity. I say the hungrier team will come out winners.
Back to those Bangladeshis who are really living up to the Tiger nickname.They played beautifully today and totally deserved the victory. West Indies, beware the Tigers because as we are seeing no game is a sure win.
All of a sudden the 4th spot in the super 8's is wide open with 6 million West Indians fancying their team chances. Come Tuesday the West Indies /South Africa game should be filled with intensity. I say the hungrier team will come out winners.
Back to those Bangladeshis who are really living up to the Tiger nickname.They played beautifully today and totally deserved the victory. West Indies, beware the Tigers because as we are seeing no game is a sure win.
Thursday, April 5, 2007
Betrayed
Prime Minister, Dr Ralph Gonsalves has come out swinging aganst the poor performance displayed by the West Indies cricket team in the the current ICC Cricket World Cup being played in the West indies.
Speaking to members of the media last Monday, Dr Gonsalves said the team's performance had amounted to to a betrayal of the Caribbean people whom he said have done so much to to make the World Cup in the Caribbean possible.
"I like speaking on these terms and I know when I speak this way, I will be criticized as a politician for putting my mouth in the business of cricket," Dr Gonsalves said
"But I am speaking here not so much as Prime Minister, certainly not as Chairman of Caricom, I am speaking as Ralph Gonsalves, a Caricom citizen and a cricket follower and lover."
Dr gonsalves said everyone in the region have organised themselves for the big occasion, except the players.
"The media have mobilized themselves and the people of the region. The police and defense services have done an excellent job. The immigration authorities, the health personnel, the civil society, and ordinary citizens who have volunteered have been of a high quality throughout the region." Dr Gonsalves said.
He said these were done to make the ICC Cricket World Cup a first class affair, the best ever, "and we are playing at home and the cricketers seem to be performing with no sense of commitment or even dignity."
According to Dr Gonsalves, over US$750 million were spent by the governments in the region to make the ICC cricket world cup a reality in the Caribbean.
"That is why I used the word that the people of the region feel betrayed and there must be a corrective by these players," Dr Gonsalves said.
Dr Gonsalves said his criticism was not aimed at any of the players,the coaches, selectors or the West Indies Cricket Board, but he was making a plea for the players to lift their game.
"I think that the players are professional persons of quality and I am sure that they are playing for more than money. But if they are playing for more than money they must show us on the field that is what is happening. I am not making any statement to to them in any individual way, save and except to say this, and frankly speaking we deserve better from our team, we expected much more" Dr Gonsalves said.
"To tell you that I am let down is to put it mildly"
Dr Gonsalves,however, said he is still hopeful the team would make it to the semi final stage, even though it was doubtful but still possible.
"All I am asking, I am pleading for those involved to lift their game" Dr Gonsalves said.
Speaking to members of the media last Monday, Dr Gonsalves said the team's performance had amounted to to a betrayal of the Caribbean people whom he said have done so much to to make the World Cup in the Caribbean possible.
"I like speaking on these terms and I know when I speak this way, I will be criticized as a politician for putting my mouth in the business of cricket," Dr Gonsalves said
"But I am speaking here not so much as Prime Minister, certainly not as Chairman of Caricom, I am speaking as Ralph Gonsalves, a Caricom citizen and a cricket follower and lover."
Dr gonsalves said everyone in the region have organised themselves for the big occasion, except the players.
"The media have mobilized themselves and the people of the region. The police and defense services have done an excellent job. The immigration authorities, the health personnel, the civil society, and ordinary citizens who have volunteered have been of a high quality throughout the region." Dr Gonsalves said.
He said these were done to make the ICC Cricket World Cup a first class affair, the best ever, "and we are playing at home and the cricketers seem to be performing with no sense of commitment or even dignity."
According to Dr Gonsalves, over US$750 million were spent by the governments in the region to make the ICC cricket world cup a reality in the Caribbean.
"That is why I used the word that the people of the region feel betrayed and there must be a corrective by these players," Dr Gonsalves said.
Dr Gonsalves said his criticism was not aimed at any of the players,the coaches, selectors or the West Indies Cricket Board, but he was making a plea for the players to lift their game.
"I think that the players are professional persons of quality and I am sure that they are playing for more than money. But if they are playing for more than money they must show us on the field that is what is happening. I am not making any statement to to them in any individual way, save and except to say this, and frankly speaking we deserve better from our team, we expected much more" Dr Gonsalves said.
"To tell you that I am let down is to put it mildly"
Dr Gonsalves,however, said he is still hopeful the team would make it to the semi final stage, even though it was doubtful but still possible.
"All I am asking, I am pleading for those involved to lift their game" Dr Gonsalves said.
Sunday, April 1, 2007
More blows
As I type this West Indies are 162-7 chasing Sri Lanka's 303. No doubt they are crashing to their third straight super 8 loss and truth is each one seems worse than the previous. What a far cry from the team that played so well in that game versus Pakistan when almost everything seemed to go just right. Back then I wondered how long that form would last given the mercurial nature of the team and unfortunately didn't have to wait too long.
The blame has been attributed to everything from amateurs playing in a professional world, lack of mental strength,to poor coaching methods. Whatever the reasons,fans are disgusted by the lack of fight over the last few games as they watch a semi final spot slip away. West Indian fans better start choosing an alternate team to cheer for the tourney since it looks like bye bye for the guys in maroon.
It's All Fools Day and you would think Windies would pretend to be a champion team for just one day.
The blame has been attributed to everything from amateurs playing in a professional world, lack of mental strength,to poor coaching methods. Whatever the reasons,fans are disgusted by the lack of fight over the last few games as they watch a semi final spot slip away. West Indian fans better start choosing an alternate team to cheer for the tourney since it looks like bye bye for the guys in maroon.
It's All Fools Day and you would think Windies would pretend to be a champion team for just one day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)