Paxter Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 Nice payback for NZ in the first match of the WC! And a rather insipid start for the reigning champs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ljkeane Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 I was going to start a new thread but England's performance somewhat drained my enthusiasm. Just in general there seems to be a pretty low level of hype for this tournament. In England it feels bit anticlimactic coming only a couple of months after the end of the Ashes (with the intervening period filled with the Hundred which I actively avoid) but I don't get the impression that there's a lot of enthusiasm for it elsewhere either. I suppose that win might up the hype levels for fans in New Zealand who were probably a bit concerned it was a tournament too far for a number of their players coming in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 5, 2023 Author Share Posted October 5, 2023 (edited) It's hard to really get excited about any ICC tournament these days - there are so many of them. Edited October 5, 2023 by Paxter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 That was a very comprehensive victory for New Zealand and I'm sure they took particular satisfaction from it being England that were their opponents. It always looked likely to be an under-par total but Conway and Ravindra looked like they could have chased down a much larger one. New Zealand always seem to be able to lift themselves when it comes to a tournament. 2 hours ago, ljkeane said: I was going to start a new thread but England's performance somewhat drained my enthusiasm. Just in general there seems to be a pretty low level of hype for this tournament. In England it feels bit anticlimactic coming only a couple of months after the end of the Ashes (with the intervening period filled with the Hundred which I actively avoid) but I don't get the impression that there's a lot of enthusiasm for it elsewhere either. I suppose that win might up the hype levels for fans in New Zealand who were probably a bit concerned it was a tournament too far for a number of their players coming in I think it doesn't help that it's such a long tournament with an interminable group stage. Clashing with the rugby world cup is also likely to distract some attention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLastWolf Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 SA lift it Fingers Crossed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 6, 2023 Share Posted October 6, 2023 Netherlands almost threatened to cause an upset against Pakistan with a good bowling performance but they needed more than a couple of their batsmen to contribute in the run chase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 8, 2023 Author Share Posted October 8, 2023 India nearly slipped on a banana skin there with three ducks early, but have recovered nicely courtesy Virat and KL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 10, 2023 Author Share Posted October 10, 2023 Second time SL have passed 300 in this World Cup only to be easily humbled. How the 50-over game has changed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ljkeane Posted October 10, 2023 Share Posted October 10, 2023 11 minutes ago, Paxter said: Second time SL have passed 300 in this World Cup only to be easily humbled. How the 50-over game has changed... Yeah, also Sri Lanka just don't seem to be very good any more which is a shame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 10, 2023 Author Share Posted October 10, 2023 8 minutes ago, ljkeane said: Yeah, also Sri Lanka just don't seem to be very good any more which is a shame. Yes, they are now ranked no higher than 7th or 8th across the three formats. Some of it is due to mean-reversion after the golden generation retired, but some of it is also due to mismanagement akin to what we have seen in the West Indies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted October 10, 2023 Share Posted October 10, 2023 38 minutes ago, Paxter said: Yes, they are now ranked no higher than 7th or 8th across the three formats. Some of it is due to mean-reversion after the golden generation retired, but some of it is also due to mismanagement akin to what we have seen in the West Indies. They also had to come through the qualifying tournament because they hadn't been in the top 8. Go back 20 years and tell people that Sri Lanka and West Indies would be in a qualifying tournament for the world cup while Afghanistan and Bangladesh qualified automatically and they would have thought you were crazy. In other news, cricket is apparently going to be in the 2028 Olympics. It feels a bit unnecessary for the men's game, I'm not sure the sport really needs another global tournament and I'm generally not keen on most of the big team sports being in the Olympics. I guess it might be more beneficial for the women's game? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 10, 2023 Author Share Posted October 10, 2023 14 minutes ago, williamjm said: In other news, cricket is apparently going to be in the 2028 Olympics. It feels a bit unnecessary for the men's game, I'm not sure the sport really needs another global tournament and I'm generally not keen on most of the big team sports being in the Olympics. I guess it might be more beneficial for the women's game? Feels like a thinly-veiled attempt to increase the subcontinent TV audience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IheartIheartTesla Posted October 12, 2023 Share Posted October 12, 2023 That is exactly right (IOC wanted cricket to tap that market, while LA wanted flag football and baseball/softball, now we have all 3). One of the arguments given is that this will catapult cricket to the world stage, much like basketball after the 92 Olympics when NBA viewership stop up after. That sounds a bit of a laughable proposition to the 'rest of the world'. Anyway, this World Cup seems to be a bit slow to warm up. Too much cricket is a thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ljkeane Posted October 14, 2023 Share Posted October 14, 2023 This isn't going to be a competitive total for Pakistan. This World Cup has really failed to take off so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLastWolf Posted October 15, 2023 Share Posted October 15, 2023 Australia, wake up do something *stick prod Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IheartIheartTesla Posted October 15, 2023 Share Posted October 15, 2023 England making a meal of their chase. Nothing against them, but it would be wonderful if Afghanistan were to finally win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLastWolf Posted October 15, 2023 Share Posted October 15, 2023 Wow 2 hours ago, IheartIheartTesla said: Afghanistan were to finally win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 16, 2023 Author Share Posted October 16, 2023 That was the upset the tournament needed. Puts more possible results in play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IheartIheartTesla Posted October 17, 2023 Share Posted October 17, 2023 And now the Dutch have beat South Africa. Finally, it is shaping up to be an interesting tournament, with a few of the top teams not guaranteed to progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paxter Posted October 20, 2023 Author Share Posted October 20, 2023 Australia back into the mix with a much-needed win against Pakistan. Going to be a tight contest now for the three non-India slots at the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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