With the World Cup well into its second week, some trends have begun to emerge. Here’s a look at a few of them...
Where are the 400+ totals?
The World Cup, we were informed, would see myriad runs. But the reality has been different with bowlers more than holding their own against all the predicted doomsday scenarios. Early starts (bilateral matches start 30 minutes late in England) and heavy overhead conditions have all contributed to an even contest between bat and ball.
The short stuff
Pitches in England have known to assist swing. But a few countries — led by West Indies — have found joy by using the short ball. The top-orders of Pakistan and Australia were eviscerated by this method. Other bowlers capable of express pace have since used the West Indian template to find joy on the extra grassy surfaces up and down Blighty.
Water, water everywhere
England’s rainy weather and its love affair for cricket continues thanks to a predicted deluge of rainfall in June. The wet weather has already claimed three matches (most number of abandoned World Cup matches in history) and the forecast, especially for the India-New Zealand game, is grim to say the least.
All-rounders striking it rich
Ben Stokes. Andile Phelukwayo. Shakib Al Hasan. Nathan Coulter-Nile. You get the drift, the all-rounders have been one of the shining lights so far. While the likes of Jason Roy, Rohit Sharma and Matt Henry are in early contention for MVPs, they have cornered their fair share of glory in the first two weeks.
bails fail to fall
The ICC are unperturned but a few captains and bowlers have expressed their displeasure with the curious case of the LED bails. They seem wedded to the grooves and if there are more instances of bails not falling down, expect the bowlers to start striking. One hopes that such a situation doesn’t present itself during the semifinals or final.