Quote:
Originally Posted by TheRox
I follow all sports, cricket included.
Of all the sports I played, batting in cricket I found the most satisfying...there is a combination of power and mental thinking involved.
No real good teams out there, South Africa have that pace attack but inconsistent otherwise; INdia have good and capable batting (esp tendulkar, who remains...probably one of the greatest sportsmen ever, he's classy, consistent, and old, and still scores more than anyone), but India have bowling problems -- no good pace bowlers.
Pakistan is always a wild card, they had good pace bowling as per usual, until they got banned for illegal deeds. Their batting is always hit and miss.
Australia has really fallen; too many 20 20 shots...ujnable to complete 50 over cricket or test cricket. Bowlers have lost their lustre too. Where is Brett Lee? is he injured?
NZ...is NZ, they're fun
England is doing really realy well !!! <--- I think england might be an unusual wild card for the world cup...they're batting and bowling is excellent.
I'd say either England or India for WC...if I had to decided, I'd say India will crumble under pressure, though they are playing at home where their powerful batsmen (Yuvraj Singh, Dhoni, Pathan, Sehwag, Tendulkar) can be devastating in 50 overs. Singh, Pathan, and Sehwag are especially devastating. So can Pakistani and Australian batsmen, on flat tracks.
England have been doing it though -- on form they're good!
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Nice analysis. I think this might be one of the less predictable 50-over world cups of the recent past. It's hard to argue that there is one favorite or dominant team out there; my money is on SA or India to bring the trophy home. England is definitely coming of age in the last few months, so it'll be interesting to see how they perform in the subcontinent. You can't ever discount Pakistan or Australia, either - both have boatloads of experience on these sorts of pitches.
Either way, we're in for an exciting few months, with WC followed by the IPL !