Game Breakers

Game Breaker means a player who has the ability to break open the game for his team with either bat or ball. If we look at such players from the remaining teams in the World Cup, it gives us a fair idea of why Aussies are some distance ahead of the rest of the pack.

Aussies have Hayden, Ponting, Gilchrist, Symonds, Tait and McGrath in my mind as six players who have the extraordinary ability to change the course of the game in their favour. From other teams, we have Smith,Gibbs,Boucher and Pollock (SA), Jaysuriya, Sangakara, Murlitharan and Malinga (SL), Oram, Styris and Bond (NZ), Lara and Gayle (WI) and Pietersen and Flintoff (ENG). With six of these in their ranks, Aussies are clear favorites.

Clearly this also tells us what four teams are going to make it to the semis. In my mind, its going to be Aussies vs SL and NZ vs SA. I would love WI to be there but somehow they need Gayle to fire big time if they are to make it. England lack the interest to be consistent performers and they might win a game or two against these sides but will not make it through.

Though the Aussies look good, I think they are definately beatable. Some tips are:

a. Attack their bowlers - it's a different ball game after that. McGrath is hittable (do not go by reputation) and dominate Hogg and Watson (they cannot be allowed to settle)

b. Get Hayden and Ponting early or else suffer.

An astounding Saturday

First of all, it was about time I got back to blogging after an enjoyable trip to India. Last weekend was an important World Cup weekend and a shocking one. India lost to Bangladesh and more surprisingly Pakistan lost to Ireland. I was a bit wary of Bangladesh and had told a couple of friends that this might not be a cakewalk. I have seen them improve over the years and any country which starts playing test cricket is always going to be richer for the experience.
They played better cricket and deserved to win and not for the first time does Indian team has its back to the wall and face a must-win game against the rampaging Lankans. I thought India played a poor game and were never allowed to play freely.
In the other match, Pakistan lost to Ireland in the biggest upset ever. I knew Irish could give a good fight as they have a very good support staff and a lot of their players have graduated from the county circuit. I seriously wanted Pakistan to win because as a lover of the game, I want to see close and tough games in super 8's stage and Ireland will never be able to produce this kind of game consistently. It's also tragic for Inzamam to bid farewell this early. What transpired later is utterly shocking. I felt deeply sad for Bob Woolmer because he was a very good coach and very involved with the game and whatever followed was difficult to digest. This weekend was indeed eventful but we could have done without some of the drama