It's Open For All...

In the last two world cups everyone knew that only an upset can deny Australians the cup. Such was Australian dominance over world cricket that even Australian fans would have got bored with lack of competition. The 2007 world cup was a disaster on all counts and everything possible has been written about it. But this world cup is going to be different. After many years as many as five teams have realistic chance of winning the coveted cup. India, Austarlia, South Africa, SriLanka and England are my pick. Has anyone taken the name of Pakistan! It is going to be a memorable world cup. It will hold imagination of far more fans than earlier. You rarely find such an open tournament in any sport.

Indians are leading the pack. They are favourites to win the trophy & no one should doubt it. India has a batting line-up which any team will envy. At the top they have Sachin, Sehwag & Gambhir, in middle order Yuvraj, Raina/Kohli & in lower middle order they have Dhoni & Yusuf. God! in subcontinent's conditions these are some batsmen. Any line-up, in which talents like Raina & Kohli are fighting to get a place in starting eleven, has to have some of the greatest talents around. India's pace bowling is a bit of concern. Its the weak link of the team. Apart from Zaheer there's no one you can count on. Nehra, Munaf & Sreeshanth they all can be great on a given day but there is an equal chance of everything going all wrong for them. Thankfully spin department is well covered for India. There is nothing to say about Harbhajan. We all know what he can do with the ball & his batting form has been big bonus for India in recent times. Ashwin is a very good limited over cricketer. He has great variations & bowls really well in crunch times like power plays & death overs. Chawal was a surprise pick for me. I thought Pragyan Ojha was a better bet. Perhaps Chawla's batting has tilted the balance in his favour. He bowled well in the practice game against Australia. Anyways I don't think he will get a chance in the playing eleven unless someone gets injured. This superbly talented team will be led by, most calm & assured captain playing in this world cup, Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Not just talent, this team has the belief that it can come out of any situation & this mental approach make them a team which can go all the way.

Next on my list is Australian team. Many of you would not agree with me. Some will say South Africa, some others will say SriLanka. Austarlians may have lost some of their greatest players over the years but they are still the number one team in One day International. They know how to win big matches & this gives them some edge over other teams. On paper their batting looks really good. But apart from Shane Watson, at the top, everyone is on the look out for form. Their best batman, Ponting, had an awful Ashes & is coming out of an injury. Their vice captain Clarke is also short on confidence. Loss of Mike Hussey due to injury has added to their batting woes. Their bowling selection is quite interesting. They have picked five fast bowlers when other teams are packing their sides with spinners. Lee, Tait, Bolinger, Johnson & Hasting are the five fast bowlers. They have lone specialist spinner in Jason Careza. Picking five quick bowlers seems sound decision when you look at their spin talent pool. They are calling it aggressive move but for me they had no other option but to go for faster men. This team may have lost their aura of invincibility but they still are able beat a side like England 6-1. Is any one out there to discard this Australian team!

At number three on my list is co host SriLanka. On slow low turf this team can suffocate the opposition with it's spinners. They have an explosive opener in Dilshan. In middle order they have two really gifted players Sangakara & Jaywardhane. In lower middle order they have an able allrounder Mahroof. Pace bowling will be led by Malinga. He is an asset for the team. He can get you back in a match from nowhere. In spin department legend Murali will get support from Herath & Mendis. With some great talent aided by home advantage can take this team through.


At number four comes South Africa. It can be surprising to all of you that I placed this team at number four. This team is hugely talented.It has all the areas covered to make them the champions. It has a batting line-up which can match the best in the business. The batting line-up includes Smith, Amla, Kalis, Deviliers & Duminiy. This team has best pace attack in the world which includes Steyn, Morkel, Tsotsobe & Parnel. Their spin attack includes Botha & rookie Imran Tahir. This team has one of the greatest allrounders ever, Kalis, who provides great balance to the team. With such talents why have I placed this team at number four! The only reason is that this team lacks big match temperament. We have seen on so many occasions how this team has chocked & lost some crucial games. If this team performs to its potential on those crunch moments it will go all the way.

I placed England at number five. Of the five teams I think England would not make it to the semis. The main reason is that it lacks impact players. When I say impact player I mean a player who can change complexion of a match in a span of few overs. In English team only Peterson has this ability. England is a great test team but when it comes to shorter version it lacks the X factor. But this is the world champion side in twenty20 format. So you never know.

With these five teams I would like to add the name of Pakistani team for their ability to surprise even themselves. Unpredictability is nature of this team. So you can never write this team off.

With so many teams in fray we can hope for a cracking world cup this time.

Crazy Cricket

So we are just 11 days away from one of the biggest sporting event in the Indian subcontinent to get started. Come February 19 & entire subcontinent will be submerged in cricket. what makes cricket such a huge sport in our part of the world? Why Indians, Pakistanis, SriLankans, Bangladeshis are crazy about this sport? Why not soccer, hockey or any other sport! Above all cricket is not an easy sport to understand. Its Lbws, powerplays, silly points, forward shortlegs, UDRS & endless other things make it one of the toughest sport to understand. Then how billions of people, many of whom are illiterate, get hold of this sport?

The answer is simple. Why do kids follow any sport? Kids see someone making a name for him/herself & they want to be like him/her. Has any sport, apart from cricket, produced that someone in the subcontinent. Apart from few exceptions you wont find that someone in a sport other than cricket. Yes, there have been Bhutia, Saina, Paes, Bhupati, Vijendra & others who have exceptional talents. They made our country proud. But have they done what Sachin Tendulkar has done in the past two decades! Can anyone inspire a generation to take up a particular sport like Sachin did! In simple words any sport needs legends & victories to catch the attention of a nation. Cricket is the only sport which has consistently produced legends & victories in the subcontinent.

India, Pakistan & Srilanka are highly rated cricket teams in the world. Bangladesh too has shown improvement. All the subcontinent teams have some of the worlds best players. Sachin, Akaram, Imran khan, Jaisurya, Murali are just few names who have graced these teams. These teams have given their people numerous occasions of joy which other sports have failed to do. This keeps cricket heads & shoulders above other sports in subcontinent.