ICC Men's Cricket World Cup

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India’s obsession with cricket peaks with home World Cup​

Reuters

NEW DELHI: The 13th edition of the 50-over World Cup got under way in Ahmedabad on Thursday heralding six weeks of high-octane action in a country madly in love with the game.

Cricket is considered a religion in India, which remains pretty much a one-sport nation despite the country’s improved performances in other sports.

The twice champions, who last won the title when they were hosts in 2011, are the financial engine of the game, wielding considerable clout within the world governing International Cricket Council (ICC).

India, led by Rohit Sharma, head into the tournament as the top-ranked one-day team and one of the tournament favourites, along with holders England and five-time winners Australia.

Cricketers in India enjoy rock-star status rivalled only by Bollywood actors, and earn the kind of money that remains a distant dream for most other sportspeople.

It also means they are under tremendous pressure to perform in big tournaments and that burden of expectation will only be heavier at their home World Cup.

Cricket is popular in every corner of the country, reflecting India’s genuine love for the game introduced by its former British rulers.

Several Indian cities have green parks where matches are played simultaneously - be it Azad Maidan in Mumbai or the ‘Maidan’ in Kolkata near Eden Gardens.

The franchise-based Indian Premier League has further helped the game deepen its roots in India and cricket’s position as the number one sport in the country looks safe in the near future.

 

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Bangladesh hope Shakib can inflict more World Cup misery on Afghanistan​

AFP

DHARAMSALA: Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan leads his side into their World Cup opener against Afghanistan in Dharamsala on Saturday with Tigers fans again looking to the all-rounder for match-winning heroics.

In the corresponding fixture four years ago, Shakib produced one of the best individual displays in men’s World Cup history, which dates back to 1975.

By scoring 51 and then taking 5-29 with his left-arm spin in a match Bangladesh won by 62 runs, the talented Shakib became just the second player after India’s Yuvraj Singh to post a fifty and enjoy a five-wicket haul in the same World Cup match.

Shakib was in superb form during the 2019 edition, seven times passing fifty as well as taking 11 wickets.

His runs and wickets helped power the Tigers to convincing wins over West Indies and South Africa, although there was a sense of what might have been for Bangladesh following narrow defeats by New Zealand and India.

And it was the memory of those losses that clearly still weighed heavily on Shakib’s mind when he spoke at Wednesday’s pre-tournament captains’ press conference.

“Now it’s time for us to put on a good show,” he said. “Our team is ready, and the country is expecting a little more than what we did previously.”

Afghanistan have won just one of their 15 World Cup matches since they joined the tournament in 2015 – a one-wicket thriller against Scotland in Dunedin eight years ago.

But they do have a relatively good head-to-head record against Bangladesh, with six wins from 15 ODI matches.

And two of those wins came in successive games in Bangladesh as recently as July, including a stunning 142-run success where Afghanistan openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz (145) and Ibrahim Zadran (100) both scored centuries.

Globetrotting T20 franchise spin star Rashid Khan has long been the -poster-boy for the team, with Afghanistan captain Hashmatullah Shahidi saying: “We have very good quality spinners and the conditions are suitable for us.”

But the skipper added: “I believe in this World Cup we will give a statement about the batting.”

And yet for all Afghanistan have long been a ‘feel-good’ story, the fact their women’s team have been effectively disbanded since the Taliban regained power in 2021 due to the regime’s strict interpretation of Islam, has led to questions over whether the men’s team should still be allowed to compete at international level.

Promoting the women’s game has long been a key condition for membership of the sport’s governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), but so far Afghanistan has escaped sanction.

 

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Ad spend of $3,600 a second: global brands set to splurge at ICC World Cup in India​

• Coca Cola, Emirates, Google among those vying for visibility in world's most populous nation

Faiza Virani

Top global brands are set to splurge millions for a glimpse of their names during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 in India with a 10-second advertising slot during matches costing up to INR3 million, or roughly $36,000, reported Bloomberg on Thursday.

Among the brands vying for airtime and visibility include Coca-Cola Co., Alphabet Inc.‘s Google Pay and Unilever Plc’s India unit, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, added the report.

Other companies such as Saudi Aramco, Emirates and Nissan Motor Co. are among the ICC’s list of official partners, the report said.

This is a 40% increase from the prices in the last World Cup in 2019, Jehil Thakkar, a partner at Deloitte India, said. “Demand for eyeballs is really strong,” Thakkar was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.

Brands are likely to spend about INR20 billion ($240 million) in advertisement spots on streaming platforms during the tournament, Thakkar estimated.

Cricket is by far the most popular sport in India, and attracts more than $1.5 billion in sponsorship and media spend a year, according to research from Jefferies, representing 85% of all such sports-related spending, the Bloomberg report said.

Amid an economic slowdown in China and its geopolitical tensions with Western economies, India’s burgeoning consumer market is emerging as a likely springboard for global companies looking for growth.

The South Asian nation is expected to drive a fifth of world economic expansion in the next decade and become a $10 trillion economy by 2035, added Bloomberg.

According to a report released in July by Deloitte Insights, the country has been enjoying a “Goldilocks moment” as it sees its “economic activity gaining momentum amid continuing global uncertainties,” and falling inflation rates.

The Indian economy is projected grow between 6% and 6.3% in FY2023–24 and have a stronger outlook thereafter. If global uncertainties recede, growth is expected to surpass 7% over th
e next two years, added Deloitte.

The roster of brands on display at the World Cup demonstrate a shift back to more traditional sectors such as consumer goods, automobiles and phones, added Bloomberg, as education technology and online betting companies that were once major sponsors cut back on spending amid debt and regulatory concerns.

The World Cup began in India today, and will go on until November 19. All 48 matches of the World Cup will be held across 10 venues including Mumbai, Lucknow Dharamshala, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Delhi, Chennai, and Bengaluru

Cricket’s flagship tournament is being hosted by India for the fourth time and will also witness a clash with arch-rival Pakistan on October 14.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s JioCinema had become popular for showing the IPL cricket tournament on its platform for free in the ongoing season.

Viacom18 – Reliance’s telecommunication arm – won IPL’s digital streaming rights from 2023 to 2027 for around $2.9 billion, rights which Disney previously held.

 

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Babar Azam sahab gets private Jet to travel .

Talent should get protocol

Talent should get protocol

 

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Conway and Ravindra hand England a thumping to kick off World Cup​

Henry and Santner were the stars with the ball, keeping England in check in the first half of a typically stirring New Zealand performance

Vithushan Ehantharajah
05-Oct-2023

New Zealand 283 for 1 (Conway 152*, Ravindra 123*) beat England 282 for 9 (Root 77, Henry 3-48, Santner 2-37) by nine wickets

Revenge for the final of the 2019 World Cup was never going to come in the first match of the 2023 edition. But a nine-wicket demolition of England in the Ahmedabad curtain-raiser will have provided New Zealand ample satisfaction. The defending champions have been battered, comprehensively, wearing what might end up being one of the most emphatic beatings of the tournament.

Pursuit of a target of 283 came with 82 balls to spare thanks to a brutal southpaw combination, with an unbeaten 152 from Devon Conway and an unbeaten 123 from Rachin Ravindra - ODI centuries number five and one, respectively. The former broke Martin Guptill's 88-ball record for the fastest 50-overs World Cup century by a New Zealander, bringing his up in just 83, before Ravindra went one ball better to become the country's youngest centurion in a global tournament at 23. Together, these two Wellington teammates now possess the Blackcaps' highest partnership in the tournament's history.

That their unbroken 273-run stand began at the start of the second over when Sam Curran snared Will Young down the leg side for a first-ball duck made it all the more remarkable. That was the last moment of jeopardy before Kiwi dominance prevailed, in the fastest chase of a 250-plus target in World Cup history. They even blitzed the boundary count 38 to 27.

The defending champions looked to have reached a competitive total at the halfway stage. Joe Root's 77 stitched together a total of 282 for 9 after Tom Latham had won the toss and opted to bowl first. Yet it was a stuttering effort, thanks largely to Matt Henry's 3 for 48 dovetailing with 2 for 37 from Mitchell Santner, whose 10 overs did not feature a single boundary. The last player to manage that against England was Kuldeep Yadav in July 2018.

Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway put on an unbroken 273 for the second wicket•Getty Images

 

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Cricket World Cup: A quick guide to the 2023 tournament​

A QUICK GUIDE TO THE 2023 CRICKET WORLD CUP​

Cricket fever is back, with the World Cup about to start. If you don't know your one-day thriller from your five-day marathon, or England's chances of retaining the trophy, here's what you need to know.

The World Cup is the biggest international event of the cricket calendar​

This year's event is held from the 5 October to 19 November and, like the football version, it occurs every four years and is the tournament every country wants to win. There are 10 teams taking part from around the world, and millions of fans will watch the matches.

There are two parts to the tournament: a 'round-robin' stage and knock outs​

The World Cup starts with a "round-robin" stage where the 10 teams play each other once. A victory earns two points and the top four teams go through to the semi-finals. The first-place team will play the side finishing fourth, with second and third place playing each other. The winners of each semi-final will meet in the final on 19 November.

The format in the World Cup is different from the Ashes​

Matches will be 50 overs per team, with an over being made up of six balls. Whoever makes the most runs - which is the unit of scoring - wins. This tournament is separate from Test matches, like the Ashes series between England and Australia which are played over five days - or shorter T20 matches that last 20 overs for each side.

This competition is being held in India​

The tournament will be played across 10 venues in the country. Last time India hosted a 50 over World Cup was 2011, and they won. Each of the last three winners have been the hosts.

The hosts are the favourites to lift the trophy​

Top-ranked side and winners of the 1983 and 2011 tournaments, India, are considered the team to beat. Current holders England are also strong contenders, with five-time winners Australia and Pakistan the other countries tipped by the bookies. West Indies, who won the first ever edition in 1975 haven't qualified this time.

But there's been criticism over tickets and schedules​

Late changes to match dates, with some games being moved from its original slot have impacted fans' travel plans. And there have been complaints over ticket sales, with fans feeling it's been too difficult to get them.

Plenty of people will be tuning in​

In the UK, Sky Sports will be showing the matches, with highlights on Channel 5. There is ball-by-ball commentary on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds. The BBC Sport website and app will also host commentary, live text updates and in-play video clips.

 

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Pakistan vs Netherlands: Dutch win toss, send Pakistan to bat in World Cup opener​

Dawn.com
October 6, 2023

he Netherlands won the toss and elected to bowl first against Pakistan in the first game of the World Cup for both sides on Friday.

The match is being played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad.

Pakistan picked two frontline spinners in Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz alongside fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali.

The Netherlands, the only Associate side in the World Cup, have Roelof van der Merwe, Aryan Dutt, and Saqib Zulfiqar as their spin options.

Yesterday, team director Mickey Arthur said Pakistan will embrace the ultra-aggressive approach that has worked wonders for some of their World Cup rivals and add their own touch to it.

Speaking in Hyderabad, Arthur said the 1992 champions were good enough to claim a second title with a brand of cricket similar to that played by the likes of England and Australia.

“The players have embraced it. It’s going to take a little bit of time, but I always say there’s always two ways to skin a cat,” Arthur, who was in charge of Pakistan as coach from 2016 to 2019 before returning in April, told reporters.

“Our bowling attack is up there as one of the best and with runs on the board our bowlers can generally defend that. You watch England and Australia playing this brand of cricket. Our guys will follow that.

“There’s no doubt about that. They’re good enough to do that. But we’re playing a brand that we call the Pakistan way. We’re playing a brand that’s very particular to Pakistan and suits our team dynamic.

“That’s a brand that we’re going to hopefully win the World Cup with.”

Arthur hopes his players will have two wins under their belts before they face old rivals India in the eagerly-awaited World Cup blockbuster.

Arthur said his team will, however, be focused on the Netherlands rather than India.

“We’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves,” said Arthur. “First of all, the boys love being in India, which is fantastic.

“The pressure of a World Cup is always massive. But I think our boys are in a really good place.”

Pakistan appointed Arthur in April this year for a second stint, doubling up on his job with Derbyshire in the English county championship.

Meanwhile, Netherlands all-rounder Bas de Leede said his team have done their homework to try and counter star fast bowler Shaheen in their match on Friday.

The Dutch side will face Shaheen for the first time as the left-armer missed Pakistan’s 3-0 ODI series win against them last year with a knee injury.

De Leede hopes his team can negate the threat of Shaheen more successfully than they fared against Australia’s Mitchell Starc, who took a hat-trick in a rained-off warm-up match in Thiruvananthapuram.

“Shaheen has been a focus point for us in our preparation and also our analysis,” De Leede said on the eve of the match.

“So, hopefully we’re going to play him better than we did against Starc the other day.”

Shaheen will partner fellow quick Haris Rauf after 20-year-old Naseem Shah, the third member of Pakistan’s feared pace attack, was ruled out of the tournament with a shoulder injury.

“Obviously Shaheen and Haris Rauf are two quality pacers, something we don’t face too often is left-arm swing. It was a little bit of a wake-up call for us against Mitchell Starc the other day.”

De Leede said they have a reasonable idea of what to expect from Pakistan.

“Obviously, having played Pakistan last year in Rotterdam in three ODIs, it’ll be nice to sort of be familiar with the team and the players and stuff, having played them before.”

Pakistan team: Fakhar Zaman, Imamul Haq, Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf.

The Netherlands team: Vikramjit Singh, Max O’Dowd, Colin Ackermann, Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Scott Edwards, Saqib Zulfiqar, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Aryan Dutt and Paul van Meekeren.

 

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INNINGS BREAK
2nd Match (D/N), Hyderabad, October 06, 2023,

Pakistan
(49/50 ov) 286

Netherlands

Netherlands chose to field.
Current RR: 5.83
• Last 5 ov (RR): 34/2 (6.80)

 

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Today's match

 

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Pakistan
286

Netherlands
(36.3/50 ov, T:287) 178/8

Netherlands need 109 runs in 81 balls.

Current RR: 4.87
• Required RR: 8.07
• Last 5 ov (RR): 25/3 (5.00)

 

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2nd Match (D/N),

286

(41/50 ov, T:287) 205

Pakistan won by 81 runs

 

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NEWS

Rizwan at his jovial best after Pakistan beat Netherlands​

Pakistan begin "unfinished business from 2019" with win seemingly tighter than 81-run margin suggests

Shashank Kishore
06-Oct-2023

Mohammad Rizwan was at his jovial best soon after Pakistan began their quest for "unfinished business from 2019" with a win over Netherlands that seemed far tighter than the 81-run margin would suggest.

He spoke of the warm hospitality, a familiar home-like feeling, the excitement of playing in different cities on his first tour of India among other things. The one that stood out was, of course, his effusive praise of Saud Shakeel, who he believes has the potential to be a "superstar".

In only his seventh ODI, Shakeel scripted Pakistan's turnaround from 38 for 3 with a century stand with Rizwan. Shakeel was the aggressor, stroking a 32-ball half-century that Rizwan enjoyed from the best seat in the house, the non-striker's end.

Such was the captivating effect Shakeel's knock had on him that Rizwan stopped talking plans and strategies halfway through their partnership, instead just reveling in Shakeel's spell of batting that took the game away from Netherlands after they were rocked early.

"If Saud maintains the hard work he's doing, then Pakistan will have found themselves another superstar," Rizwan said. "Because he's a bit different in the way he's gifted. While I plan or discuss batting with Babar Azam in a partnership, when I bat with Saud I tell him I'm not planning anything with him, because the way he plays his shots get him runs anyway.

"If he plays like he normally does, he'll be fine and score quickly. But he has gifts that make him a different kind of superstar. We had said that we'd start to plan after 33 overs for the final stages of the innings. But then he got out a little short of 33 overs, and so did I (laughs)."

Rizwan bats at a pivotal position, No. 4, one that Pakistan hadn't entirely nailed down leading into the World Cup. One game in, it's one position that should perhaps be written in stone. Rizwan's T20 batting can at times invoke a sense of anguish within those who follow him closely, but there's a proper method to his ODI approach that resonates calmness and comfort within the dressing room.

It's one that he feels has come about because of a firm understanding of his game that stems from putting himself through conditions-specific training which, in turn, helps him develop a sense of assessing conditions quickly.

"Cricket is condition specific. Sometimes within a match itself, conditions change," he explained. "Sometimes it starts off as a flat pitch, then starts seaming [under lights]. Sometimes it takes turn. Prior to coming here, I'd phoned Saeed Anwar. He spoke of the same thing, how it's important to read conditions well.

"It's not like pitches are always flat in India, yes, it's good for batting but there is some help for spin and seamers. If you watched England versus Bangladesh, it seamed and swung a great deal. You saw today, how Haris Rauf was breathing fire and hitting some late seam movement. So we have to train specific to conditions."

The jovial nature of Rizwan's demeanour was put to the test when he was asked innocuously what he thought of the misfiring top order, particularly Fakhar Zaman. He has a highest of 33 in 11 innings since his 180 not out against New Zealand, the third of his back-to-back hundreds between January and April.

"Yes, it's a good question," he started with a laugh. "But you also have to understand, the last two years, the reason for us becoming No. 1 was our top three. Just before the Asia Cup, Fakhar Zaman was named the ICC Player of the Month. Before that, Imam had hundreds upon hundreds. We think this is an opportunity for the middle order to showcase its form. And now the middle order is also performing.

"The good sign for Pakistan is now we're not only dependent on the top three, with contributions from the rest of the top seven coming too. I think proper teams don't depend on one or two players. It's much better when the whole team performs, so we're happy with how it's working out."

Is there any area that he feels Pakistan haven't quite hit top gear?

"Yes, one challenge, one box we haven't ticked. Fielding," he said. "It's gotten better, today we were very good, but I feel we need to go that level. If you have to become champions, we have to do champion things. We have to still improve further."

 

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Following that game was a ride, so typical Pakistani team being mercurial as always.

Congratulations for this win and look forward to India Pakistan game

Cheers!

 

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Gill down with dengue, but not yet ruled out of India's World Cup opener vs Australia​

"We'll wait to take a decision at the last minute we possibly can," Rahul Dravid says

Shubman Gill is unwell, having tested positive for dengue, but hasn't been ruled out* of India's opening World Cup game against Australia in Chennai on Sunday as initially thought.

Addressing a press contingent two days out from the game, head coach Rahul Dravid said, "He [Gill] is certainly feeling better today than he was yesterday, so that's a positive, but the medical team is monitoring him on a day-to-day basis, so we'll see," Dravid said. "We've got 36 hours to go, so we'll see how that goes. We'll see whatever decision they take. But yeah, he's feeling a little bit better today than he was yesterday."

Asked to confirm if Gill would or wouldn't play the game, Dravid said, "The medical team hasn't ruled him out as yet. We'll keep monitoring on a day-to-day basis. We've got 36 hours. We'll wait to take a decision at the last minute we possibly can. We'll see how he feels day after tomorrow."

In case Gill isn't fit in time, Ishan Kishan is likely to open the innings with captain Rohit Sharma. Another option is KL Rahul.

Gill, who did not attend India's training sessions at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday and Thursday, is the leading run-getter in ODIs this year with 1230 runs at an average of 72.35 and a strike rate of 105.03. In his last four ODIs, he has hit two centuries and a half-century, two of those knocks coming against Sunday's opponents, Australia.

Kishan has three half-centuries in five ODIs as an opener this year, to go with an impressive 82 against Pakistan from No. 5. Rahul, who made a comeback from injury during the Asia Cup, last opened in an ODI in August 2022, against Zimbabwe. Overall, he has opened 23 times in ODIs, scoring 915 runs at an average of 43.57.