It
will be said to bid farewell to the other nations. Like many neutrals, I was
willing Afghanistan to register their first World Cup victory but they were
well beaten by all except Pakistan and, improbably, India who for much of their
match at Southampton looked in danger of losing. South Africa delivered too little
too late and I was at Cardiff to see them make heavy weather of overcoming
Rashid Khan and co despite all their star names. Imran Tahir’s joyful wicket
celebrations were amusing but AB was sorely missed!
West
Indies may have bounced and bludgeoned their way to beating Pakistan but the
short ball was something of a one-trick pony. For all the Cottrell salutes and
enormous six-hitting, they demonstrated why they needed to qualify for a place
in the tournament itself. Improved fielding would be a start. Gibson and Gayle
were a joke and when The Boss knelt in instalments to catch Rahmat Shah we all
laughed out of surprise. Pakistan never really recovered from that early
reverse at Trent Bridge but it was a pleasure to watch Babar Azam and Mohammad
Amir at their best. Sri Lanka gave us a few smiles along the way and Bangladesh
had the excellent Shakib al Hasan to thank for keeping them in the hunt for a
top-four position with just a few matches to play.
Generally
speaking most of the global superstars have fulfilled expectations. Bumrah,
Sharma, Warner, Starc, Shakib, Williamson, Archer and Root have all done well
while Roy, Morgan, Finch and du Plessis have produced a few big innings. However,
only some of the above are still participating in the competition. Who will
make it all the way to the final?
Watching
the Aussies desperately chasing the challenging South African total of 325,
they were clearly concerned at the prospect of facing England again, this time
in the semi-final. A few weeks ago, Aaron Finch struck 100 and the strike
partnership of Starc and Behrendorff blunted the substantial threat of the
English engine room (Ben Stokes excepted), but Eoin Morgan’s men are unlikely
to roll over as easily this week. For starters, Jason Roy will be back in the
side and there surely there won’t be as many silly shots played by those
further down the order.
Nevertheless,
Australia possess potential matchwinners themselves in the form of Finch, David
Warner and Glenn Maxwell, with Steve Smith in the Joe Root role of steady
accumulator, but will this be enough? I still feel that England have greater
strength all the way from one to eleven which should take them to next
weekend’s showdown.
Despite
winning seven of their nine, India still don’t look like world-beaters. Jasprit
Bumrah may be a shoo-in for a place in any fantasy XI, Rohit Sharma has struck
five centuries and, well, Kohli is Kohli, but that’s where the list of
world-class performers ends. Their
semi-final opponents New Zealand probably have only one: Kane Williamson.
However, their team of canny swing bowlers, seasoned batsmen and competent
all-rounders always looks dangerous and took them to the final last time of
asking. They just look even more in need
of runs than India at the moment and that could be their undoing at Old
Trafford. So for me it has to be that dream final of England v India.
