Eoin Morgan’s form is cause for concern, as is Michael Clarke’s fitness, James Faulkner’s too, Pakistan have had their first internal disciplinary squabble and South Africa may still be figuring out who they should play in the No 7 spot.
Can the Cricket World Cup just start already?
Thankfully, barring rain in Christchurch or Melbourne tomorrow, that will indeed be the case. Sri Lanka and New Zealand kick off proceedings in Christchurch and a few hours later England will play Australia at the MCG.
The respective host countries are strong favourites to emerge victorious on the opening Saturday of a six-week-long tournament and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they were to be sharing the MCG turf again on March 29.
The Australians look very strong this year, notwithstanding the problems surrounding Clarke and Faulkner.
The Australian captain – despite a useful outing in a warm-up match on Wednesday – won’t be a part of proceedings at the MCG tomorrow, with coach Darren Lehmann explaining the team’s management were going to follow the medical advice regarding their fragile skipper to the tee.
That means Clarke will be available for next Saturday’s match against Bangladesh at the Gabba as had been stipulated two months back. Faulkner, who was apparently doing laps of the MCG yesterday, should be back a week later.
He is arguably more important to Australia’s chances of annexing the title than Clarke – with his ability to bowl at the “death” and keep his composure with the bat at the same stage of the innings.
New Zealand find themselves in a different spot than they’re used to going into a tournament – no one regards them as a dark horse any more, instead they’re fully fledged favourites, with power, experience and their characteristic nous running throughout the squad.
“How the players and support staff handle that tag of being one of the favourites, especially early on, will be crucial to determining how well or how badly this campaign goes,” wrote their esteemed former captain Stephen Fleming in a column for the International Cricket Council’s website.
“Much of the pre-tournament chat in the media has centred around the idea that the team has momentum but for me that is the most over-used word in sport, and cricket in particular,” Fleming added.
“Past successes – or so-called momentum – count for nothing if you are 10 for two or the opposition is 200 for no wicket; more important is confidence. Confidence to know your gameplan and to stick to it, confidence in your ability to adapt if the situation demands it, and confidence in yourself and your teammates to deliver under pressure.”
South Africa may well heed those words. They have failed badly when the pressure has been applied by the opposition in previous tournaments and while they once again look a powerful unit, at the back of everyone’s minds there is thought about how they will react once the pressure builds. Will they fold or forge ahead?
AB de Villiers carries great belief in his players, but the onus is on the individuals to match their captain’s belief. In many respects South Africa’s World Cup doesn’t start until the quarter-finals. They should stroll through Pool B, before the ghosts of World Cup failures past start to haunt their thoughts before that knock-out match in March.
What about the other contenders?
India and Sri Lanka can’t be dismissed even though conditions don’t suit them. They are both excellent tournament teams, who know how to traverse the many pitfalls a six-week-long competition can throw up.
Unfortunately whatever intrigue there is about the World Cup will have to be saved for those quarter-finals.
This year’s, as in the last three editions of the competition, is an interminable event, requiring the patience of a saint to get through.
There should be some good stuff, but in four weeks’ time. - The Star