World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

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Kizyr
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World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

Post by Kizyr »

Hey everyone! So... for the past few weeks I've been spending a lot of my free time following my favorite sporting event of the... um... period of every four years (is there a specific term for this?). The 2015 Cricket World Cup is going on in New Zealand and Australia. So far there have been ups and downs, and some really great matches in there.

So, the main ESPN site for following everything is here: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc-cricket ... 09587.html
but I'm using other means to watch the games live (when I can... the time zone difference means matches start anywhere between 5pm and 1am, and these are ODIs so they go on for 6-8 hours).

Anyway! A few details... The CWC is between 14 teams (10 Test nations -- these are the main cricket-playing countries -- and 4 Associate nations). It starts with two groups of 7, and the top 4 teams from each group progress to the Quarterfinals, after which it's single-elimination. These are also ODI matches, meaning they're 50 overs and take about 6-8 hours of play (the shorter version, T20, takes about 3 hours, and the longer version, Tests, are 5-day series).

As for me, my favorite teams are Bangladesh (if you can't tell from my signature) and South Africa (if you noticed the links on LunarNET's homepage on the bottom-left). Bangladesh is a bit of an underdog -- it's a Test nation, and is often at the bottom of the rankings, but there are a lot of strengths in the team. South Africa is a stronger team which I like primarily because of their skill, great players, cohesion as a team, and sportsmanship.

So, right now we're nearly at the end of the Group stages and about to go into Quarterfinals after another 6-7 matches. But here are some of the highlights of the tournament so far:
  • BANGLADESH BEAT ENGLAND AND WILL GO ONTO THE QUARTERFINALS!!! Ok I had to start out with that one. Last weekend, Bangladesh beat England just barely by 15 runs. On top of their two other victories (versus weaker teams -- Afghanistan and Scotland), this gives them enough points to go through to the Quarterfinals for the first time in history. Meanwhile, England, the country which invented cricket, is knocked out of the tournament after four losses. Believe me, I was cheering so hard Monday morning. This is such an exciting turn of events.
  • South Africa is still assured of breaking through to the Quarterfinals, but admittedly there was an embarrassing loss the other day to Pakistan. But I'm always a Proteas fan no matter what, so I'm still behind them all the way. (The team unfortunately has a reputation of choking at the quarter/semi stage...)
  • Of the stronger teams, New Zealand is doing amazingly well. They're basically the Germany of this World Cup: several strong players, strengths on both offense (batting) and defense (bowling and fielding), and thus far they haven't made any critical mistakes. They're going to go into the Quarters undefeated and likely will continue all the way to the Finals at this rate.
  • Of the "underdog" teams, Ireland is also doing fantastic. They're an Associate nation, but they've won against West Indies, Zimbabwe, and the UAE (the first two are Test nations, the third is another Associate). I really like the Irish team, though, and I'm in support of them getting full Test status in the very near future -- once the ICC finally realizes that this is not supposed to be some exclusive elitist sport here... but I digress. Anyway, Ireland is not out of the woods -- they need to beat Pakistan (which is possible -- Pakistan is notoriously inconsistent and lost many of their best players to various scandals in the last several years) in order to make it through.
  • ...India is also doing well. I'm not an India fan though (cheering for either India or Australia feels like cheering for the Yankees), even though I begrudgingly have to admit that they have several great players.
Ok, that's it for now. There are also several players in this tournament I'm watching, but that gets into a little too much detail than I want to get into. KF
~Kizyr (they|them)
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Re: World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

Post by Sonic# »

It's a quadrennial!

I don't have much to contribute. I find it to be a really fascinating sport, but it's not one I follow. If you were to recommend an upcoming match to watch, which one would you pick?
Sonic#

"Than seyde Merlion, "Whethir lyke ye bettir the swerde othir the scawberde?" "I lyke bettir the swerde," seyde Arthure. "Ye ar the more unwyse, for the scawberde ys worth ten of the swerde; for whyles ye have the scawberde uppon you, ye shall lose no blood, be ye never so sore wounded. Therefore kepe well the scawberde allweyes with you." --- Le Morte Darthur, Sir Thomas Malory

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Re: World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

Post by Werefrog »

I'm rooting for Gryffindor like I always do.

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Kizyr
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Re: World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

Post by Kizyr »

Sonic# wrote:It's a quadrennial!
I don't have much to contribute. I find it to be a really fascinating sport, but it's not one I follow. If you were to recommend an upcoming match to watch, which one would you pick?
Well, the next game that could actually affect the outcome is the final group stage match (after that it's the quarterfinals and all single-elimination). That one is Ireland vs. Pakistan: Ireland is an underdog team, an Associate nation, but one that's already beaten two other Test nations this tournament. Pakistan is a Test nation, but they're awfully inconsistent and have lost many of their best players to various scandals over the last several years. An Irish win means that they make it into the Quarterfinals, the only Associate nation to do so this tournament, and will send Pakistan home; a Pakistan win means that they make it into the Quarterfinals and knock Ireland out. So, this one is pretty high-stakes.

Ireland vs. Pakistan starts on Saturday 3/15, at 11:30pm EDT, and will probably continue until about 7:30am (as I said, the time zone difference is a bit of a pain).

Also, I'm watching the New Zealand vs. Bangladesh game right now, and while the Tigers got off to a slow start (and it's a slow pitch anyhow), they're really picking it up in the last few overs -- boundaries left and right, Mahmudullah (their star batsman) put up another 100 runs, and it looks like they'll get more than 270 runs by the end of their innings. Mortaza (one of their star bowlers) is resting and not in this game, but 270 may still be feasible for them to defend. I won't be able to catch NZ's innings, but here's hoping I wake up to another surprise like with the England match {^^}. KF

EDIT: Oh, and I swear if anyone says the "you gotta know what a crumpet is..." line, they get temp-banned... Not that I can't take a joke, just that people say that *every* *single* *time*.
~Kizyr (they|them)
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Kizyr
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Re: World Cup 2015 (Cricket)

Post by Kizyr »

Ok, so it's been an incredible 2 weeks, with both highs and lows. The quarterfinals and semifinals are done, and the final match is starting tonight at 11:30PM Eastern -- between New Zealand and Australia. I'm rooting for New Zealand to win this, since they've been in excellent form all tournament, and I really like seeing their skill and teamwork on the field.

Anyway, a few things that have happened lately:
  • Bangladesh unfortunately got knocked out by India in the Quarterfinals. It was a long-shot, but the only thing I'm a little upset about is that there was a critical umpiring decision during India's innings (a no-ball and free-hit was declared when it looked like it should've been an lbw [an out]). While it probably wouldn't have changed the ultimate decision, Tigers fans are usually pretty miffed about it.
  • The South Africa vs. New Zealand semifinal game was amazing, and the most exciting one of the entire tournament. It literally came down to the last two balls: New Zealand's Grant Elliott was at the crease, and they needed 5 runs off the last 2 balls to win, meaning they needed one boundary to be hit. Elliott knocks one to the stands for a six to win the match for New Zealand. Now... I'm a Proteas (South Africa) fan so I'm a little bummed by their loss, but I have to admit that NZ played a very solid game and I can't be too upset by the outcome. They're both really skilled teams, and they both gave it their all. I'll still support South Africa of course, but I have to give respect to NZ. You can catch the commentary and watch highlights here, by the way: http://www.espncricinfo.com/icc-cricket ... commentary
  • India got knocked out by Australia in the semis. I'm ambivalent about this one, since (a) it wasn't that close a match once India's middle order fell, and (b) I don't really care for either of those teams. Still, New Zealand and India were the only two teams to go undefeated the entire tournament and have yet to face one another, so it could've made for a more interesting match had India made it out of the semis instead.
So that's all! Once again, New Zealand vs. Australia is tonight at 11:30PM Eastern. I'll probably go to bed early and get up around 4:00am to watch the last half of the game, and cheer on the Black Caps. KF
~Kizyr (they|them)
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