2007 - The Disappointing World Cup

As the World Cup moved to West Indies , everyone was excited.  ICC was trying to expand the reach of the game and no  better place than West Indies which was very close to North America , the hotbed for consumption and where marketing would definitely help in getting television revenues.  So they thought and it was upto all the elements  to prove it wrong.   The spectators who were denied of their customary accessories ( in West Indies they come in droves and with music and beer ) and tickets were priced ridiculously high which negated the prospect of having good crowds.   The weather had to be favorable for the tournament to succeed and it was not.  India and Pakistan  had to to at least progress to the S - 8's and they did exactly the opposite.

People from subcontinent who were living in America had already booked their tickets to watch their respective team matches and they were hugely disappointed with the first match between India  and Bangladesh.  Watching on TV at uncomfortable timings,  Indians were in for a rude shock when the strong batting line up on paper was found wanting against the Bangladesh slow bowlers.  When Tamim Iqbal started blazing away at the Indian seam attack , the damage was done and Indian dream of moving past the 1st round was shattered. 

The other team which ICC expected to get through was Pakistan and they had an early setback with the mystery death of their coach Bob Woolmer .  When they lost to West Indies in the first match, they had a must win game against Ireland and their batting was found wanting once again in the face of good swing bowling.

With India and Pakistan out of the tournament, the only team which remained among the super powers was Sri Lanka and they did not disappoint.   The West Indies board was hoping that Chris Gayle's team would come through to the semi finals and they belied their initial promise and expectations to lose some of their crucial encounters.   The semi final line up was not too great to read and the favourites Sri Lanka and Australia easily won their matches . 

The final was characterised by Adam Gilchrist's golf ball gloves ( to get a better grip !!! ) century.  Again a big century in the final by an Australian made the match a cakewalk for Australia but not before rain interrupted drama and D/L methods being used.  Sri Lanka had too much to chase like India in 2003 and they were found wanting in the finals .  It must be said though that Srilanka have made it a habit of reaching the qualifying stages of the World Cup without much ado and are one of the top ODI teams in the world. 

This is a world cup where I hardly remember any match in great detail , this is possibly because of the ridiculous timings of the matches and weather not being very favourable for cricket. Mcgrath's  man of the series award was a reward for his tireless , hardly acknowledged match winning efforts ( possibly in his entire career !! ) .  ICC as expected was blamed for the long , boring, dreary , damp World Cup and they were not the only one to lose revenue.  ESPN Star the official broadcasters were left in shambles after this dismal tournament and hoped for the other ICC events of 20-20 etc to bail them out. 

As expected after such a huge loss, the cash cow had to be milked again and the World cup moved back to India, Pakistan , Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to improve the balance sheets.  The ODI format is  in danger of becoming  extinct due to the 20-20 fever and this could be the last chance of resurrection and redressal. However the millions hope that the 28 year itch ends this time and we break some established myths of  home teams not winning the tournament