Story 2011 World Cup

[Jamee999]

The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup is finally here! A month and a half of high-quality cricket is almost ready to begin! Here are the groups (all seeds are based on April 2010 rankings):

GROUP A - HOSTED BY SRI LANKA

Sri Lanka [SEED 1]

South Africa [8]

Scotland [12]

United Arab Emirates [13]


GROUP B - HOSTED BY PAKISTAN

Pakistan [2]

India [7]

Kenya [11]

Namibia [14]

GROUP C - HOSTED BY INDIA

England [3]

Australia [6]

Zimbabwe [10]

Netherlands [15]

GROUP D - HOSTED BY INDIA AND BANGLADESH

West Indies [4]

New Zealand [5]

Bangladesh [9]

Canada [16]

PRE-CUP BUILD-UP
With Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Damien Martyn and Anil Kumble.

NK: Hello, gentlemen, and welcome to our pre-World Cup discussion. We'll start by looking at the teams, and then making some predictions. We will start in Group C - and the green and gold of Australia. Damien, you seem like the man to talk to about Australia, what are your thoughts?

DM:Cheers, Nick. Well, this has all the signs of a great Australian team, up top, Phil Jaques and Mike Hussey, two great batsmen, Huss hasn't had the greatest of ODI years this season, but he's a great batsman. Then Wayne Campbell at 3, of course, he's slotted in very well there, and it's amazing to think that he's still only 23! Then Shane Watson has been batting at four, which is where I think that Pup - Michael Clarke should be, but Clarke's at five, and then young Sam Marlowe's been batting at six, but I'm still not convinced about him, he opens the batting at domestic level, but because we have a packed top order, he's slotted in at six. However, this means that Punter misses out, and I feel that's a mistake, Ricky might be in his late thirties, but he's still a great batsman.
At Number Seven, we have Luke Ronchi, a very capable batsman, a good keeper, and a friend of mine from our state cricket days, and he may not be Gilly, but he's reliable, and I'd feel secure with him at seven.

NK: And then the bowlers..

DM: And then the bowlers, it's been tricky moving on from Glenn and Shane but our ODI attack has the big spearhead in Brett Lee, and with his fellow firebrand Shaun Tait alongside him, I wouldn't want to bat against them. With Shane Watto providing overs from Number Four, and young Ben Hilfenhaus breaking through, our seam attack is good, and with Malcolm Supple bowling leggies, on paper we have a very strong team. My one worry is with the depth though. After Ponting, we have three players who have never played International cricket in the squad - Adam Voges, Michael Daley and Allan Wise. If they aren't up to it yet, then an injury could cause us major, major problems...

NK: And now we'll take a look at their Group C and Ashes rivals, England! Our batting lineup is based around a very solid top four - Xavier Morgan, Mark Pettini, Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell. Then I think that Kevin Ainscow will make his international debut at five, over Fred Smith and Alistair Cook who haven't really impressed in the shorter form. Steve Harmison leads our pace attack, with Plunkett, Mahmood, Michael Cranshaw and David Price supporting him. It will be interesting to see who will support Harmison with the new ball. As this World Cup is in the sub-continent, look forward to seeing England's spin twins, leggie Nathan Corbin and left arm bowler Monty Panesar, Corbin's made a fantastic start to his ODI career, and Panesar's showed great promise, and has a great 09/10 season.

AK: I think that Corbin is a great prospect, and he's shown what he can do brilliantly in ODIs so far, averaging just under 23 in the game. However, like the Aussies, England lack depth, with bat and ball. They have the stars, your Morgans, Pietersens, Bells and Corbins, but if they fail, do England have what it takes?

NK: I think that's the question on all of England's lips. Just looking at the two other nations in Group C - Zimbabwe and Holland, do they have a chance?

MM: I don't think that they will cause upsets, but Zimbabwe have a very good opening batsman called Anthony Kidwell, he only averages 37 in ODIs, but has the talent to do so much more. I think it's a pretty bare cupboard barring him though.

NK: Thank you, Muttiah. My prediction for this group is that Australia will beat England in a tight clash, as hard as it is for me to say as that is.

Join us soon for our preview of Group A - Sri Lanka, South Africa, Scotland and the UAE.

 

[Pakistani Army]

WOW. Brilliant and detailed preview there Jamee. Best of luck with this story mate. I will be following this

By the way. What game will you be playing this on?

 

[Jamee999]

ICC III, on my Indian career.

 

[freddiw]

awesome awesome pres and start

good luck to india then but awesome work and keep it up

 

[Ollie_H]

Nice Work mate are Aussies really 6th?

 

[Jamee999]

PRE-CUP BUILD-UP

With Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Damien Martyn and Anil Kumble

NK: Now, on to Group A - Sri Lanka, South Africa, Scotland, Holland. This group is being hosted in Sri Lanka - and we'll start by looking at their team - Muttiah?

MM: The world number one one-day team open up with Kumar Sangakkara, the best wicket-keeper batsman in the world and Upul Tharanga, a young talent with a very nice ODI fifties to centuries conversion rate, a key skill for an opening batsman. Captain Mahela Jayawardene is at three, so much experience, a very good leader, and a great batsman. Chamara Silva usually comes in at four, he was so close to twin Test centuries in that great Eden Gardens Test of 2009, but he's not found his feet in ODIs yet, one century in sixty-three innings and I feel he's being selected on his Test performances. Tillakaratne Dilshan is our Number Five, and a specialist batsman, not a 'keeper, and Michael Vandort is at Number Six.
Then Thilan Samaraweera bats at seven, but his off-spin is more useful to us in ODIs, Chaminda Vidanapathirana takes the first change from eight behind opening bowler Surappulige Malinga and I think that Harshan Samath is going to take the new ball on his ODI debut, he's a very, very fast bowler. Nishan Komasaru is the lead spinner, and his left-arm spin will be integral to our World Cup push. Our reserves all have international experience, allrounder Hasantha Fernando, spinner Singa Indrasiri, Lasith Malinga and Hasantha's cousin, seam bowler Dilhara Fernando. I do not think that our batting is as strong as some other teams, but our bowling is the best attack in the world. And that's why we're the world leader in ODIs and are top seeds.

AK: South Africa will be looking to pose a threat to Sri Lanka. At the top, captain Graeme Smith and wicket-keeper AB De Villiers open the innings, two of South Africa's better batsmen, and key to their World Cup push. The old workhorse Jacques Kallis is the next man in, at 3, and Nicholas van Woerkom, a fine batsman follows him at 4. Craig Knox is at 5, fine test batsman, but is yet to pass 20 in his five ODI innings. Then comes Warryn Hauptfleisch, still quite new to international cricket, but I've seen the natural batting ability and flair that he has. Ashwell Prince bats at 7. Quinton Friend is the Number Eight and seam bowler, but most of his international success has come in Twenty20 Internationals.
Rory Kleinveldt has impressed at the domestic level for the Titans, and I would bowl him first change. Lonwabo Tsotsbe will open the bowling with his left arm express pace, and Ugasen Govender will open from the other end. I think that Dale Steyn, Monde Zondeki and Heinrich Le Roux will miss out from the same attack. Jean-Paul Duminy is the back-up batsman.

NK: Who are their spin bowlers?

AK: South Africa haven't got a decent spinner, and they have taken none to this World Cup!

NK: Wow, that's certainly a risk. I'd like to talk about someone else in this group, Gavin Hamilton of Scotland. He's 36 now, but is still the heart of Scottish cricket, and he's a very useful bowler and lower order batsman. He probably won't be able to cause any upsets, but he'll keep the Sri Lankans and South Africans on their toes.

MM: I predict that Sri Lanka will win this group, through a fantastic bowling performance!

NK: Join us after the break for a look at Group D - West Indies, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Canada! Join us then!

 

[Pakistani Army]

Very very good preview so far Jamee. Looking forward to the Group D preview. Nice presentation.

 

[Jamee999]

PRE-CUP BUILD-UP

With Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Damien Martyn, Anil Kumble and special guest Shiv Chanderpaul.

NK: Welcome back. We are now going to look at Group D which is being hosted by India and Bangladesh and features the West Indies, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Canada.

DM: New Zealand's batting starts strongly, with Peter Fulton and captain Stephen Fleming giving the batting a strong start and then with Lou Vincent and all-rounder Jacob Oram, but then it gets inconsistent, Timothy Weston is at five, but he has problems getting a big score, and then one of Craig McMillan and Brendon McCullum takes the remaining slot. Mat Sinclair is the other reserve batsman. There are four allrounders in the squad, Oram, off-spinner and lone turner William Charlton, James Franklin and Kyle Mills, two of the first-choice seamers combine with specialist Mark Gillespie. The reserve seamers are Shane Bond, Warren McSkimming and Darryl Tuffey. The main problem that New Zealand has is their reliance on Jacob Oram, he's the key to their batting, and very important to their bowling as well, if he was to get injured, or have a poor match, then New Zealand will find it very tough.

NK: Cheers, Damien. Now, to look at the West Indian squad, we've got a special guest. The captain of the West Indies - Shiv Chanderpaul!

SC: Thank you Nick, it's nice to be here. The whole squad is really looking forward to this World Cup.

NK: Would you like to just go over the squad and the roles players will play?

SC: Sure. Chris Gayle and Phil Tosh open our innings, a partnership that is really developing, Phil is still just 23 and is growing into a great talent, while Chris has established himself as one of the best batsmen in the world. I come in at three, followed by our batting all-rounder and one of two spinners, Ryan Hinds. He's had a great year with the ball this year, and has shown his talent with the bat. Ryan's one of our men to watch this tournament. Rammy Sarwan bats at 5, with Marlon Samuels after him. Our wicket-keeper, Carlton Baugh is at 7. Our first change bowler (and number eight bat) is Dwayne Bravo, and he comes on after Darren Sammy and Jerome Taylor. The final member of our first choice eleven is spinner Dave Mohammed. Wavell Hinds is our reserve batsman, and Jermaine Lawson, Corey Collymore provide back-up seam, along side Bajan Ryan Nurse, who is new to international cricket.

NK: Thank you very much for your time Shiv, and good luck in the World Cup. The West Indies start their matches against Bangladesh in Dhaka on the 11th February. Shiv Chanderpaul everyone!

MM: I'd quickly like to mention a member of the Bangladeshi squad, opening bowler Mashrafe Mortaza. He's got an ODI average of under 30 in over 70 games, easily the best of the Bangladeshi attack, and will pose problems to anyone who doesn't take his bowling seriously. A real threat.

NK: Indeed, Mortaza is a very good seamer. Join us after this break for a look at Group B - holders Pakistan against their fierce rivals India, what a battle! And we also take a look at the ICC's One Day International World XI, picked using their rankings. Join us then!

 

[freddiw]

GREAT detail and pres keep it up
KUTGW

 

[Jamee999]

PRE-CUP BUILD-UP

With Nick Knight, Muttiah Muralitharan, Damien Martyn and Anil Kumble

NK: Hello and welcome to the final part of our World Cup 2011 build-up. We are now talking about Group B - being hosted in Pakistan. This group consists of holders Pakistan, India, Kenya and Namibia.

MM: Pakistan are weaker than four years ago when they were victorious in the Caribbean, but they still have a strong team. Imran Farhat and Taufeeq Umar have made a very strong partnership at the top of the order, with captain and number three batsman Mohammad Yousuf following them up, Pakistan's best batsman. Hasan Raza is at four, and I think that Sufyan Munir will slot in at number five for his ODI debut. Wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal bats at six. This is where the batting ends though with the specialist bowlers starting with Rao Anjum taking the new ball from 8, along with Umar Gul. Samiullah Khan's left arm bowling is first change along with Mansur Anwar, and Danish Kaneria provides the spin element. Younis Khan and Kashif Naved are the reserve batsmen, with Waqar Ahmed and Rizwan Akbar backing-up the seamers. The Pakistani bowlers are their strength, but their batting lineup is very fragile.

DM: I agree, that batting lineup is very, very fragile as once the openers have gone, two quick wickets fall and suddenly it's almost one out means all out for the last two specialists.

NK: Here is the Indian squad:

NK: Would you care to guide us through that squad, Anil?

AK: Sure, Nick. Virender Sehwag and Cole Muzamdar (the kid of the Indian squad at just 20) are the two opening batsmen, Muzumdar's not had a wonderful season in his first year of ODIs, but has shown the talent that he has. Captain Rahul Dravid is the number three, one of the most experienced players in the world, and the number four batsman, Sachin Tendulkar, is a year younger at 37, but has played more international cricket, and currently has over 39,000 international runs. Totally different at number five though, with 21-year old Tahir Ghandi, who's come into his own in his sophomore year, moving up to the Number Five slot in both forms of the game. Number Six is Hemang Badani whose late recall to the ODI side and grasping of the six spot in ODIs from Yuvraj Singh (who still holds the spot in Tests, having moved from opening with the emergence of Muzadar) is not popular all over India. The Number Seven and wicket-keeping spot is being babysat by Amkit Srivastava, who made his Test and ODI debuts against Pakistan last month when Mahendra Dhoni broke his rib in a warmup match. Srivastava held the fort well, and Dhoni is expected to be ready for cricket by India's final group game, against Kenya. As I mentioned, Yuvraj Singh is the backup batsman.
Madhusudan Acharya is the lone all-rounder, and one of two spinners, but the other, Piyush Chawla's batting has shown great promise this year. Munaf Patel and Inesh Raul are the opening bowlers, with Debasis Mohanty on-call if the pitch is good for the seamers, and Sreesanth providing back-up.
This is a very strong Indian squad.

NK: Agreed, I think that India will win this group, beating Pakistan in Lahore.

DM: And now for a special, feature, the ICC World XI. This has been selected using the official ICC One Day International Player Ratings.

NK: The number you see in brackets represents the player's rating he has gained in One Day International performances.

1. Graeme Smith - South Africa [781]
2. Phil Jaques - Australia [733]
3. Sachin Tendulkar - India [694]
4. Anthony Kidwell - Zimbabwe [688]
5. Mohammad Yousuf - Pakistan [684]
6. Chris Gayle - West Indies [684]
7. Kumar Sangakkara - Sri Lanka [653]
8. Jacob Oram - New Zealand [536/796]
9. Thilan Samaraweera - Sri Lanka [314/915]
10. James Franklin - New Zealand [139/838]
11. Munaf Patel - India [51/900]


NK: Certainly a formidable team, and that shows some of the players to watch out for in this World Cup. Join us on February 9th in Columbo to watch the opening match of this World Cup in Group A - Sri Lanka vs the UAE. We'll see you then!

 

[kookaburra69]

Great start mate,like the presentation

 

[freddiw]

awesome pres and writing KUTGW

 

[Highlander999]

Great work so far mate

 

[icyman]

I got one question-Why isn't India playing their Group matches at home ?

 

[Jamee999]

I think I'm going to stab someone, was writing the report for the first game, went to look at the first name of a UAE batsman, game crashes, and now I've got back in it's picked different squads for the teams :@