The ICC World Cup 2015 just won’t be the same
The ICC World Cup 2011 ended with a bang on 2 April with host nations http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758. The tournament which began on the 19
February enthralled anyone and everyone who witnessed cricket’s premier event. Apart from living up to the excitement, the 2015 edition of the World Cup already has already earned a bad reputation with fans on the game, as the number of teams who will
participate will be reduced to ten.
The likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Netherlands-c753 will not feature in the tournament as they do not have the status of being a test playing nation. The reason behind the snub is so that the next World Cup is not as long and there is a better showcase
of quality teams.
While the decision seems to make sense on paper when it is applied to the teams being excluded, it is anything but wise. While it is understandable no one wants to see a team go through the entire tournament without recording a win, like the Kenyans and
the Dutch, the two sides did put in a few special performances that had even the neutrals on the edge of their seats.
The Dutch side surprised everyone when they scored a massive 292 run total against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013. The target had everyone hoping for an upset, but the English side raised their game in a fine display of cricket and won the match with eight deliveries to spare.
Canada almost caused one of the biggest upsets in the tournament’s history when they had Pakistan by the scruff of the neck. In an amazing series of events the Canadian bowlers had the former world champions bowled out for 184 runs.
The match took another twist when the heroic bowling of Pakistan captain http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Shahid-Afridi-c2482 turned the match on its head and the Canadian’s hope of a historic win were dashed by a margin of 46 runs.
The Dutch were involved in another thrilling match when they took on the Irish in their Group B match. With neither side able to qualify for the knock-out stage one would have expected a dry, dull affair, but it was anything but that as both sides produced
some inspirational cricketing performances in one of the best matches of the tournament.
In a match that had the ball travelling to the ropes an amazing 80 times, it was attacking cricket that the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 side of 1975 would have been proud of. Ireland chased down the 307 run target set by the Dutch in what was a memorable swansong for both
sides.
One has to feel nothing but sorry for the Ireland team however, as the team who carry the label of giant killers seemed to grow with every foray into the World Cup. The Irish beat http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 in the last edition of the World Cup and played what can only be
termed as the match of the series against England.
Having to chase a total of 328 runs in 50 overs, the Irish seemed to be out of the game at 111 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. Kevin O’Brien seemed h**l bent on having his name in the history books as he scored the tournament’s fastest century. The inspired
knock earned the Irish a historic win over the English and had even the neutrals praising the display.
So when it was said that it was ‘An absolute black day for sport’, one can only agree. The next World Cup will be without the likes of Ireland, which means that David will not have another chance to take on Goliath and have the world in awe as the underdog
defies the odds.
It is a harsh and cruel decision on the part of the International Cricket Council and already one can feel that the 2015 World Cup will be missing something.
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