Written by APOHAKC on 17.04.2007 at 17:59

Go England...
Beat South Africa today

Thank you for the good wishes - we need them .

^^ Sadly England are 141-8 right now.... If they can somehow get to 190

And it got worse and now we are out of the competition

Not much of a surprise though.
We still haven't got any idea how to play one day cricket..
South Africa palyed really well and made England look more usless than usual .

Well, the rest of the results are academic now, we have our 4 semi-finalists. The remaining matches will only affect the placement order, so I suppose it would still be worth a team's while to win, since they won't want to play Australia in the semi-finals!

I saw the entire match in the pub yesterday. And man were England made to look utterly pathetic by South Africa. And damn Smith could do NO wrong with his bowling changes. Hero of the day of couorse Andrew Hall with a well-deserved 5 for.

Semi's will be really good. Sri Lanka vs Australia in the finals as far as I'm concerned.. Sri Lanka just beat Ireland by batting only 10 overs.

Written by Himann on 18.04.2007 at 20:38

Semi's will be really good. Sri Lanka vs Australia in the finals as far as I'm concerned.. Sri Lanka just beat Ireland by batting only 10 overs.

Seems like the semis will be
Australia - South Africa
and
Sri Lanka - New Zealand.

Australia - New Zealand final anyone?

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 20.04.2007 at 00:42

Written by Himann on 18.04.2007 at 20:38

Semi's will be really good. Sri Lanka vs Australia in the finals as far as I'm concerned.. Sri Lanka just beat Ireland by batting only 10 overs.

Seems like the semis will be
Australia - South Africa
and
Sri Lanka - New Zealand.

Australia - New Zealand final anyone?

I wouldn't be surprised if New Zealand get to the finals they have been playing really well.

Australia should win though whoever they play.
I just can't see anyone beating them , unless something really strange happens.

All three of the other teams have the capability to beat Australia, there's no doubt about it. New Zealand may not be as talented a team, but they work exceptionally well as a unit and also are blessed with Fleming, one of the best tactical captains ever to walk the field. Sri Lanka, even though they were rather comprehensively beaten in the Super 8s stage by the Aussies, will be lifted with the returns of Malinga, Vaas and Murali and also will be out to avenge their earlier loss. The same goes for South Africa, as they will be sorely disappointed with the meek way they surrendered the top ranking to the Aussies, and there is no love lost between the teams. The business end of the tournament should be incredible!

Written by Judas on 20.04.2007 at 07:08

All three of the other teams have the capability to beat Australia, there's no doubt about it. New Zealand may not be as talented a team, but they work exceptionally well as a unit and also are blessed with Fleming, one of the best tactical captains ever to walk the field. Sri Lanka, even though they were rather comprehensively beaten in the Super 8s stage by the Aussies, will be lifted with the returns of Malinga, Vaas and Murali and also will be out to avenge their earlier loss. The same goes for South Africa, as they will be sorely disappointed with the meek way they surrendered the top ranking to the Aussies, and there is no love lost between the teams. The business end of the tournament should be incredible!

I agree. This could be hard fought semi finals next week. But still I think Australia will make it to the final, and I even think that they will become the first nation to win three successive world cups. Because that is what they are aiming at and you know what AUssies are like once they've set themselves a goal to achieve.
Luckily England are out. Imagine them reaching the semis and maybe even becoming world champions, that would have been totally undeserved. I always compare England in ODI to Germany in football, no matter how crap they play they might still come out tops. But luckily that wasn't the case this time around

who won in WC in cricket or it still goes on?

Written by Bad English on 20.04.2007 at 11:20

who won in WC in cricket or it still goes on?

It is still going on... I think there are two more fairly meaningless games and then it will down to the semi-finals.

Written by Bad English on 20.04.2007 at 11:20

who won in WC in cricket or it still goes on?

The final is on April 28.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 20.04.2007 at 12:58

Written by Bad English on 20.04.2007 at 11:20

who won in WC in cricket or it still goes on?

The final is on April 28.

This tournament are longer how WC in Football

@hanna - yeah in Caribain islanbds ppl of course thay wanna stay longer and if cricket federation pay why not

Written by Bad English on 20.04.2007 at 13:40



This tournament are longer how WC in Football

@hanna - yeah in Caribain islanbds ppl of course thay wanna stay longer and if cricket federation pay why not

Exactly - if I was in Barbados and someone else was paying I wouldn't hurry back either.
The England team seemed to have other ideas - they have been knocked out of the competition now.
Althought they do have one more game to play.

Well, last night's game was an absolute walloping. Australia smashed their way to 348/6, helped along thanks to Hayden's 103, Ponting's 66 and Watson's hyperspeed 65, before bowling the Kiwis out for just 133, with only Fulton managing a respectable 62.. A 215-run defeat is not something that's going to just be 'wiped away' as Stephen Fleming said, that's going to hurt for a while. To be fair, the NZ attack was without Bond and Oram (who also adds a lot to the batting), but jeez, that was all one-way traffic!

Tonight should be a great match - one of the greatest batsmen ever to grace the game, Brian Lara, has announced his retirement, and this will be his last match, against a lacklustre England, who will also be playing for pride since their coach of 8 years, Duncan Fletcher, is resigning. Barbados is traditionally a good hunting ground for Lara, and I think we can expect some fireworks!

Pretty good batting preformance from Australia, and crap (IMO) bowling from the New Zealand side. There was sometihing like 3 or 4 NBs in one over!! Thats very costly in limited over matches, specially against a very good batting side. Watson was impressive, very fast in getting his runs and hit the majority of Australia's sixes. Didnt show any leg pain or discomfort out there too which is a positive.

Didnt get to see NZ's innings though... doesnt really matter, Australia won.

Wow amazing game between England and West Indies.. England win by 1 wicket.. 2 runs from 2 balls to get and they made it. Brian Lara retires though.. Thats sad!!

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:26

Wow amazing game between England and West Indies.. England win by 1 wicket.. 2 runs from 2 balls to get and they made it. Brian Lara retires though.. Thats sad!!

Yes - that was a bit close at the end.

It was a shame that Brian Lara got run out with only 18 runs scored.
It would have been nice for him to go out with at least a 50.

Written by hanna of steel on 22.04.2007 at 01:33

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:26

Wow amazing game between England and West Indies.. England win by 1 wicket.. 2 runs from 2 balls to get and they made it. Brian Lara retires though.. Thats sad!!

Yes - that was a bit close at the end.

It was a shame that Brian Lara got run out with only 18 runs scored.
It would have been nice for him to go out with at least a 50.

Yeah he should have retired after the test series against England after the wc as he originally planned to do.. Yeah he should have somehow got at least a 50..

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:53

Written by hanna of steel on 22.04.2007 at 01:33

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:26

Wow amazing game between England and West Indies.. England win by 1 wicket.. 2 runs from 2 balls to get and they made it. Brian Lara retires though.. Thats sad!!

Yes - that was a bit close at the end.

It was a shame that Brian Lara got run out with only 18 runs scored.
It would have been nice for him to go out with at least a 50.

Yeah he should have retired after the test series against England after the wc as he originally planned to do.. Yeah he should have somehow got at least a 50..

Marlon Samuels, I hate you. You denied me the last opportunity to watch one of the most destructive batsmen ever to play the game.

Admittedly, the game was amazing, probably the best game so far of this World Cup along with the Sri Lanka v South Africa one, with Chris Gayle setting the tone magnificently, Marlon Samuels wiping the smiles off all our faces, then restoring them in a half-hearted sort of way with his own innings, and for England, Michael Vaughan finally getting some form, Kevin Pietersen showing why he's feared by every team, and Paul Nixon crafting another valuable knock at the death. Despite not following the script Lara would have written, it was certainly a cracker! Brian Lara, we salute you.

OK, now we focus on the final three games. New Zealand v Sri Lanka on Tuesday, then Australia v South Africa on Wednesday, and the big one, the final, on Saturday.

Written by Judas on 22.04.2007 at 11:37

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:53

Written by hanna of steel on 22.04.2007 at 01:33

Written by Himann on 22.04.2007 at 01:26

Wow amazing game between England and West Indies.. England win by 1 wicket.. 2 runs from 2 balls to get and they made it. Brian Lara retires though.. Thats sad!!

Yes - that was a bit close at the end.

It was a shame that Brian Lara got run out with only 18 runs scored.
It would have been nice for him to go out with at least a 50.

Yeah he should have retired after the test series against England after the wc as he originally planned to do.. Yeah he should have somehow got at least a 50..

Marlon Samuels, I hate you. You denied me the last opportunity to watch one of the most destructive batsmen ever to play the game.

Admittedly, the game was amazing, probably the best game so far of this World Cup along with the Sri Lanka v South Africa one, with Chris Gayle setting the tone magnificently, Marlon Samuels wiping the smiles off all our faces, then restoring them in a half-hearted sort of way with his own innings, and for England, Michael Vaughan finally getting some form, Kevin Pietersen showing why he's feared by every team, and Paul Nixon crafting another valuable knock at the death. Despite not following the script Lara would have written, it was certainly a cracker! Brian Lara, we salute you.

OK, now we focus on the final three games. New Zealand v Sri Lanka on Tuesday, then Australia v South Africa on Wednesday, and the big one, the final, on Saturday.

Yeah I wish the finals were happening a bit earlier but its an understandable schedule. Very drawn out and long wc this time.. At least I didn't notice that the last few world cups..

Right, any tips for the semi-finals?

I'm going with Sri Lanka to beat New Zealand, because New Zealand's creaming by Australia was more comprehensive than Sri Lanka's, and also because of the Murali factor. I'd say SL have a better batting lineup, and can survive losses of early wickets better because of the class of Jayawardene, Sangakkara and Silva in the middle-order. NZ don't really have anyone of that calibre. The bowling is probably similar, because Shane Bond and Chaminda Vaas sort of cancel each other out, Dilhara Fernando/Farveez Maharoof (depending on who plays) can either bowl brilliantly or like idiots, same with James Franklin/Michael Mason, Malinga has it over Oram, and Murali has it over Vettori (but not by much). All in all, SL should win. At least, I hope SL win...

Australia should win against the South Africans. The Proteas are still haunted by what happened in 1999, not to mention the way they were dispatched in the Group Stage. It will be a great game, there's no doubt about it. I can't be bothered writing another analysis thing, but in short, I think South Africa are going to choke yet again.

Australia v Sri Lanka final for me, replay of 1996, and what a game that one was!

I'd say a New Zealand Vs South Africa Final
And i think South Africans will have there revenge this year and mind you Gibbs might take the catch to dismiss the last aussie batsman to level things

Okay so Sri Lanka in the finals. Rightly deserved win.

Although I can't understand the way people play Murali... you gotta go after him from the first ball and hit him out of the attack and not try and defend him. Oh, okay so he was cleared of chucking by the ICC in a lab, but judging from a couple of deliveries yesterday, especially the doosra, he was CLEARLY chucking it at times.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 25.04.2007 at 11:31

Okay so Sri Lanka in the finals. Rightly deserved win.

Although I can't understand the way people play Murali... you gotta go after him from the first ball and hit him out of the attack and not try and defend him. Oh, okay so he was cleared of chucking by the ICC in a lab, but judging from a couple of deliveries yesterday, especially the doosra, he was CLEARLY chucking it at times.

Jayawardene's knock was one of the best structured centuries I've seen in recent years in an ODI. He took it slow at the start, really playing himself in, then slowly built it up before exploding at the end. Upul Tharanga played pretty well too at the top of their innings, with Chamara Silva and Tillakaratne Dilshan contributing nicely in the middle-to-end stages. New Zealand had bowled decently until the final 10 overs, when they lost the plot. When it was their turn to bat, they looked good for a while, especially when Styris was sending the ball into the stands, but then it all fell apart, thanks to Murali. Let's not overlook Lasith Malinga's great bowling either, his spell at the beginning of the innings was nothing short of demonic. In the end, a well-deserved place in the finals for the Sri Lankans! New Zealand prove to be, yet again, one of the "nearly-there" teams.

I agree when you say that on several occasions yesterday the doosra appeared 'chucked', I was just watching the highlights and it's so clear that the ICC regulations were changed pretty much just for him. No wonder Bishan Singh Bedi despises his bowling... Although he is a cut above the rest even without the doosra, that much is clear.

For the second semi, COME ON AUSTRALIA!

EDIT: Whoa, Himann, your team gave you a pretty awesome birthday present!

And once again a clinical endeavour by the men in green and gold. I am surely gonna miss that man McGrath, what an opening spell, and to finish with 3 for 18 in 8, great. Top wicket taker this WC at the moment with 25 followed by Tait and Murali with 23 and then Hogg with 20.

People please do read the following: http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/wc2007/content/current/story/292396.html


I can't wait till Saturday. Hopefully Australia will take revenge for 1996 and thus become the first team ever to win THREE World Championships on the trot. I will be in the pub sporting my Aussie shirt

@Marcel: That is indeed a fine article, befitting one of the greatest, if not the greatest, pace bowlers that we have seen in a long, long time.

Last night's match was not a contest. It was a walloping. Australia resembled a pitch roller, and the South Africans were the blades of grass getting pummeled. The Proteas batting self-destructed miserably, and once they started the collapse themselves, quality bowlers like the Australians needed no second invitation to help themselves to wickets. Once they were bowled out, it was quite academic. South Africa do not have an attack that can collapse the world's strongest batting lineup (in reality).

I'm definitely backing the Aussies for the final. Sure, the Sri Lankans are a quality outfit, but it will take something truly monumental to upset the green and gold juggernaut. Come on Aussie!

I am absolutely gutted with this final
Now i hope the Aussies win it( ) cause i dont want a subcontinental team to win the cup more than once....

Written by Valar on 26.04.2007 at 15:42

I am absolutely gutted with this final
Now i hope the Aussies win it( ) cause i dont want a subcontinental team to win the cup more than once....

I surely hope you are excluding India from that sentiment! India should win the cup every time...