As teams enter the home straight in
preparation for next year's World
Cup, it seems that three of the big
names are in an advanced state of
readiness and a fourth is primed for
an early exit(England).
Alastair Cook may well believe that
Graeme Swann's assertion, "England
doesn't have a cat in hell's chance
of winning the World Cup", is not
helpful, but that doesn't mean the
comment isn't as accurate as one of
Swann's probing offbreaks.
While India, Australia and South
Africa are at an advanced stage of
preparation, just tinkering with
line-ups, England are in disarray.
Firstly, they seem unsure of their
strongest line-up and secondly, they
stubbornly adhere to an outdated
approach to ODI batting. Against
India, the style they produced
seemed to revolve around avoiding
eating a late dinner.
Far from being unhelpful, Swann's
comments could result in the shake-
up England needs, if the selectors
are prepared to take heed. However,
one of Swann's proposed changes
was to do with Cook and it's rare
that a leader is demoted at this late
stage in proceedings.
Not noted for their adventurous
exploits, the England selectors are
unlikely to make drastic alterations,
and as long as Cook remains
captain, the team is stuck with their
current batting approach. In other
words, Swann's prediction is
unlikely to be proved wrong.
Meanwhile, two of the leading
teams, India and Australia, are in
good shape partly because of strong
leadership. Despite MS Dhoni's
obvious flaws as a Test captain, he's
an excellent leader in the shorter
forms of the game. Nevertheless,
he'll have to overcome some of the
team's perceived shortcomings to
win back-to-back World Cups.
Though they are the defending
champions, there are lingering
doubts about India's ability on
bouncy pitches. Is the batting up to
it and do they have the pace
bowling firepower to utilise these
conditions? The seam bowling will
suffice in New Zealand's more
friendly conditions but in Australia
they may be found out. If India can
survive long enough they might be
rewarded with a semi-final against
Australia at the SCG; that would be
their best chance of consecutive
final appearances.
_________________________________________________
The winner is likely to come from
the trio of Australia, India and
South Africa, with captaincy
playing a role in any success,
whilst West Indies is the dark
horse
Australia will be desperately
hoping Michael Clarke can remain
fit for the competition. His dodgy
back is now causing him regular
problems, and coming at the end of
a tough season, the World Cup will
stretch his resilience as well as his
hamstrings.
Australia have an explosive batting
line-up but a weakness on turning
pitches that was exposed by lowly
Zimbabwe. If Australia's fearless
stroke-makers David Warner, Aaron
Finch, Shane Watson, Mitchell
Marsh and Glenn Maxwell fire, then
300 will be standard fare. There's
no other team in the competition
with that amount of firepower
(especially upfront) and Australia
shouldn't have to worry about
pitches that are spin-friendly
during a home World Cup.
South Africa are a good side,
although not surprisingly they're
missing the monumental dual
contributions of premier allrounder
Jacques Kallis. His absence has
tilted the balance slightly and there
is now an unwieldy reliance on AB
de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Faf du
Plessis to score heavily, and on Dale
Steyn to strike regularly. Bowlers
like Morne Morkel and Wayne
Parnell can be wildly inconsistent
and a bad day in a knockout match
can spell doom. And it's in the
knockout stages where South Africa
still has a lot to prove in big
tournaments. Under the more
relaxed leadership of de Villiers
this may yet happen but it didn't
eventuate at the last World T20.
The winner is likely to come from
the trio of Australia, India and
South Africa, with captaincy playing
a role in any success, whilst West
Indies is the dark horse. As for
England, captaincy is likely to play
a part in the dark days ahead, and
the outstanding feature of their
World Cup trophy cabinet is likely
remain a 39-year-old piece of velvet
carpet.
preparation for next year's World
Cup, it seems that three of the big
names are in an advanced state of
readiness and a fourth is primed for
an early exit(England).
Alastair Cook may well believe that
Graeme Swann's assertion, "England
doesn't have a cat in hell's chance
of winning the World Cup", is not
helpful, but that doesn't mean the
comment isn't as accurate as one of
Swann's probing offbreaks.
While India, Australia and South
Africa are at an advanced stage of
preparation, just tinkering with
line-ups, England are in disarray.
Firstly, they seem unsure of their
strongest line-up and secondly, they
stubbornly adhere to an outdated
approach to ODI batting. Against
India, the style they produced
seemed to revolve around avoiding
eating a late dinner.
Far from being unhelpful, Swann's
comments could result in the shake-
up England needs, if the selectors
are prepared to take heed. However,
one of Swann's proposed changes
was to do with Cook and it's rare
that a leader is demoted at this late
stage in proceedings.
Not noted for their adventurous
exploits, the England selectors are
unlikely to make drastic alterations,
and as long as Cook remains
captain, the team is stuck with their
current batting approach. In other
words, Swann's prediction is
unlikely to be proved wrong.
Meanwhile, two of the leading
teams, India and Australia, are in
good shape partly because of strong
leadership. Despite MS Dhoni's
obvious flaws as a Test captain, he's
an excellent leader in the shorter
forms of the game. Nevertheless,
he'll have to overcome some of the
team's perceived shortcomings to
win back-to-back World Cups.
Though they are the defending
champions, there are lingering
doubts about India's ability on
bouncy pitches. Is the batting up to
it and do they have the pace
bowling firepower to utilise these
conditions? The seam bowling will
suffice in New Zealand's more
friendly conditions but in Australia
they may be found out. If India can
survive long enough they might be
rewarded with a semi-final against
Australia at the SCG; that would be
their best chance of consecutive
final appearances.
_________________________________________________
The winner is likely to come from
the trio of Australia, India and
South Africa, with captaincy
playing a role in any success,
whilst West Indies is the dark
horse
Australia will be desperately
hoping Michael Clarke can remain
fit for the competition. His dodgy
back is now causing him regular
problems, and coming at the end of
a tough season, the World Cup will
stretch his resilience as well as his
hamstrings.
Australia have an explosive batting
line-up but a weakness on turning
pitches that was exposed by lowly
Zimbabwe. If Australia's fearless
stroke-makers David Warner, Aaron
Finch, Shane Watson, Mitchell
Marsh and Glenn Maxwell fire, then
300 will be standard fare. There's
no other team in the competition
with that amount of firepower
(especially upfront) and Australia
shouldn't have to worry about
pitches that are spin-friendly
during a home World Cup.
South Africa are a good side,
although not surprisingly they're
missing the monumental dual
contributions of premier allrounder
Jacques Kallis. His absence has
tilted the balance slightly and there
is now an unwieldy reliance on AB
de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Faf du
Plessis to score heavily, and on Dale
Steyn to strike regularly. Bowlers
like Morne Morkel and Wayne
Parnell can be wildly inconsistent
and a bad day in a knockout match
can spell doom. And it's in the
knockout stages where South Africa
still has a lot to prove in big
tournaments. Under the more
relaxed leadership of de Villiers
this may yet happen but it didn't
eventuate at the last World T20.
The winner is likely to come from
the trio of Australia, India and
South Africa, with captaincy playing
a role in any success, whilst West
Indies is the dark horse. As for
England, captaincy is likely to play
a part in the dark days ahead, and
the outstanding feature of their
World Cup trophy cabinet is likely
remain a 39-year-old piece of velvet
carpet.