Yorked!!! – By Chetan Narula.
Onto the World Stage: A Preview.
Cricket’s premier event, the ICC World Cup 2007, is just eleven days away and the excitement in the sub continent air is enough to give you goose bumps, even though the action is on the opposite end of the world. The West Indies are hosting this quadrennial event this time as the most coveted trophy in world cricket moves to the American continent for the first time ever. Not surprisingly the calypso beat is already in rhythm.
So is it going to be better than the last edition hosted in South Africa in 2003? Well that’s a high standard to beat, especially as the previous two editions in England in 1999 and in the Indian sub-continent in 1996, were termed as failures in terms of managing the event given its gargantuan proportions, the latter termed a near disaster. Serious questions have always been raised every time before any major event, more so with cricket because as the ICC s global drive moves into high gear, they are breaking new ground literally. Plus comments from somebody as esteemed as Michael Holding, begs you to ponder over this question time and again.
But as much as I would like to talk about the stadiums and grounds being developed and the nature of the pitches, et all, this is not about it. Because there is a change in the wind this time around. The question which goes unanswered every time around for the past four world cup editions at least, or rather the question nobody bothers to spend time over can no longer be denied it’s due. Who is going to win this year’s cricket world cup? No the answer is not Australia. Surprised? I guess so. But that is exactly why every other point becomes irrelevant.
This article will not discuss why the Aussies won’t win a third consecutive champions’ crown. The essence of this article series is to discuss the teams participating in the event and their chances. Where they have gone wrong in their selections and what are their strong points. And no, I am not going to begin with the favourites. It is going to be a countdown to the dissection of the teams, as to who amongst them in my opinion is going to lift this year’s trophy.
Since the purpose of this article series is clear, I will be utilizing the remaining few lines discussing the fortunes of the minnows who are just there to add up the numbers, Scotland, the Netherlands, Bermuda, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ireland and Canada. Frankly speaking, counting two test playing nations among them seriously puts the name “World Cup” in a quandary. The point being that how many of these teams will be progressing as the top two teams from their respective groups, pitted against the might of the remaining test playing nations. None would be a consensus everywhere you would go.
This then seriously questions the grouping system being used in this edition of cricket’s premier tournament. Is it merely to increase the number of matches and generate even more revenue? From this far off, yes it appears only that. How else do you justify including four teams who don’t even play cricket on a regular basis to be playing in the world cup? This in itself labels the globalization efforts of the ICC as a sham. Vicious circle of questions, isn’t it?
Eleven days, and we will start getting the answers.
Onto the World Stage: A Preview.
Cricket’s premier event, the ICC World Cup 2007, is just eleven days away and the excitement in the sub continent air is enough to give you goose bumps, even though the action is on the opposite end of the world. The West Indies are hosting this quadrennial event this time as the most coveted trophy in world cricket moves to the American continent for the first time ever. Not surprisingly the calypso beat is already in rhythm.
So is it going to be better than the last edition hosted in South Africa in 2003? Well that’s a high standard to beat, especially as the previous two editions in England in 1999 and in the Indian sub-continent in 1996, were termed as failures in terms of managing the event given its gargantuan proportions, the latter termed a near disaster. Serious questions have always been raised every time before any major event, more so with cricket because as the ICC s global drive moves into high gear, they are breaking new ground literally. Plus comments from somebody as esteemed as Michael Holding, begs you to ponder over this question time and again.
But as much as I would like to talk about the stadiums and grounds being developed and the nature of the pitches, et all, this is not about it. Because there is a change in the wind this time around. The question which goes unanswered every time around for the past four world cup editions at least, or rather the question nobody bothers to spend time over can no longer be denied it’s due. Who is going to win this year’s cricket world cup? No the answer is not Australia. Surprised? I guess so. But that is exactly why every other point becomes irrelevant.
This article will not discuss why the Aussies won’t win a third consecutive champions’ crown. The essence of this article series is to discuss the teams participating in the event and their chances. Where they have gone wrong in their selections and what are their strong points. And no, I am not going to begin with the favourites. It is going to be a countdown to the dissection of the teams, as to who amongst them in my opinion is going to lift this year’s trophy.
Since the purpose of this article series is clear, I will be utilizing the remaining few lines discussing the fortunes of the minnows who are just there to add up the numbers, Scotland, the Netherlands, Bermuda, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Ireland and Canada. Frankly speaking, counting two test playing nations among them seriously puts the name “World Cup” in a quandary. The point being that how many of these teams will be progressing as the top two teams from their respective groups, pitted against the might of the remaining test playing nations. None would be a consensus everywhere you would go.
This then seriously questions the grouping system being used in this edition of cricket’s premier tournament. Is it merely to increase the number of matches and generate even more revenue? From this far off, yes it appears only that. How else do you justify including four teams who don’t even play cricket on a regular basis to be playing in the world cup? This in itself labels the globalization efforts of the ICC as a sham. Vicious circle of questions, isn’t it?
Eleven days, and we will start getting the answers.
2 comments:
Good job Chechu!!!
but i wont write off punter's men yet.....they will surely rise back!! As far as minows are concerned, i would be keen on bangladesh's performance in this world cup.....i don't expect them to make it to the big stage but i won't be surprised if they pull out some surprise......
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