The 2023 Cricket World Cup

by Duty281 Mon 18 Sep 2023, 1:09 pm

First topic message reminder :

After the drama-free finish to the 2019 Cricket World Cup, the 2023 Cricket World Cup will finally get under way on the 5th October, having been initially delayed by Covid and then threatened by a Pakistani boycott.

England are the defending champions, and they're also the reigning T20 World Champions. Doubleplusgood, eh? They're looking to be the first nation to win consecutive ODI World Cups since the Aussie vintage of 1999-2007. Biggest adversaries to that are likely to be India, who haven't won a major global competition since the 2013 Champions Trophy, but will no doubt be heartened by the knowledge that the last three ODI World Cups have been won by a host nation.

Five-time winners Australia can never be ruled out, while Pakistan are fueled by a burning motivation to win the World Cup in the homeland of their greatest rivals. New Zealand have made the last two finals - losing the last on boundary count, would you believe? - and will hope to make the final step this year.

South Africa will presumably think they're due to win something, as they've not won a global competition since the 1998 Champions Trophy, while the Afghans will believe they can spin anyone into submission. Bangladesh will be hoping to make a sizable impact at the ODI World Cup for the first time.

Sri Lanka breezed through qualifying and will be encouraged by making the recent Asia Cup final, even if they did get hammered in said final. The Netherlands round off the ten teams after performing minor miracles in qualification, which of course means the West Indies, the winners of the first two ODI World Cups, will be missing out on this tournament for the very first time.

The ten-team format for the World Cup remains as simple as ever. Ten teams all play each other once, and the top four teams in the group at the end of it go through to the semi-finals, where it becomes a straight knockout. 48 matches total. There will be reserve days for the three knockout matches and, if necessary, Super Overs. But you can't win games on boundary count anymore...

Fixtures:

Tournament Odds:

Squad Lists (Teams have until the 28th September to finalise their squads):

by king_carlos Thu 05 Oct 2023, 1:45 pm

A bit of a bonus for England. That's a pretty rubbish ball after a poor first over from Woakes. There's shape for Surran early as you'd expect but his line is way off there. It's the early break they needed.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 1:51 pm

Woakes not bowling the right length....too full or short and offering pace

the length for a seamer is short of a length and into the pitch
Floated up stuff is totally not on

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 1:56 pm

Yeah, a bad couple of overs from Woakes. I'd haul him off, but looks as though England are sticking with him.

Curran doing very well in the battle against Conway.

by king_carlos Thu 05 Oct 2023, 1:57 pm

Very good from Surran at one end. Bang on the money.

Woakes has been uncharacteristically all over the shop in his first two overs though. He needs to find his radar or I'd presume they will look at either a burst from Wood or an offie against the left-handers.

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:08 pm

New Zealand flying, Wood's first ball gets sent to the fence. And a six later on! England in trouble.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:09 pm

Wood too fast...that's what the batter need..pace

Got to you 4 spinners and bowl slow dollies like Santner was hanging....Eng have 40 overs from them available

by king_carlos Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:19 pm

Yep, time for spin at both ends. The RRR is nearly 5s though so they will have to bowl very well to exert much pressure. A poor end to their innings and start to NZs should cost them here. NZ have been disciplined with bat and ball though. That's what this group of Black Caps players are so good at. Low error count and stick to a game plan excellently.

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:21 pm

Henry gave a good exhibition of where to bowl, but England have been mostly too full or occasionally too short.

Going to be very tough to pull it back from here. The win predictor (36%?) being way too generous at the moment.

Think this one might be done, to be honest. Thought England would have troubles in the group stage, they usually do, but not this early.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:25 pm

it's crazy to carry on with Wood
Eng are not seeing(/ not learning what works

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:29 pm

6 overs, 65 runs, no wickets from Woakes and Wood in the first 11 overs of the innings. That ain't gonna cut it.

This one is playing out the string now, bar a ridiculous spell from Rashid.

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:31 pm

Time for Adil Rashid. Hopefully he's Adil Rashid Khan today.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:35 pm

6 overs for 66 bonus runs from Wood & Woakes at the top is like not watching or learning at all from what was going on in the first inning.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:42 pm

If ali doesn't drop short he will get a wkt soon

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:44 pm

Moeen serving up half-volleys and Rashid bowling full tosses.

It's a bad day.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 2:57 pm

Eng did not hit the gorund running
BUT
it's not a 100m dash but rather a decathlon
Eng need to protect NRR now

by GSC Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:05 pm

It can only get better! (starting tomorrow)

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:10 pm

GSC wrote:It can only get better! (starting tomorrow)

When does this World Cup start then? The final warm-up today has been a little one-sided. Whistle

by king_carlos Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:14 pm

It's been largely woeful from England since Buttler got out. Very disappointing indeed with the ball. Presumably they went bowler heavy in the squad as they have concerns in that area. Then they went batting heavy in this XI. I'd hope that Topley returns against Bangladesh.

Conway and Ravindra have taken advantage of the poor bowling excellently though. Ravindra potentially nailing a starting spot when Williamson returns.

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:28 pm

Conway to a century. He's in sparkling form.

The bowling hasn't been good, but it is a really good batting pitch and 282 was well short. Just been a very flat performance from England.

by GSC Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:29 pm

I guess we knew England weren't going to win that many games on the strength of their bowling Vs batting in this tournament but this has been a disappointing effort even so. More pressure on the batting to fire from here on

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:32 pm

New Zealand should get a push on and try to win this in the next ten overs. NRR could be important with an anticipated tight race for the semis, and potential rain ruining games.

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 3:46 pm

Saw it happening with Conway, not with Ravindra so much, but that's a special ton for him. 200 partnership, too. I think the only chance England have had was the narrow run-out miss on Conway very early on. Since then, a procession.

England did lose three of their nine games in 2019's group stage, but none as badly as this, it's fair to say.

by alfie Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:05 pm

I did say I wasn’t too sure about the England bowling… Didn’t see this coming though ! Don’t suppose anyone has picked “NZ , T” for this match in PJ’s competition Smile

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:16 pm

Fair play to New Zealand. No Williamson, no Southee, no Ferguson, no Bracewell, no problem. Might not see a bigger partnership all tournament. Feel sorry for Young who got a first-baller!

England were well short of par with the bat, and the bowling effort was dismal and the game was pretty much lost in 10 overs, with Woakes setting the tone. Root did his job with the bat, the 'anchor' role if you like to call it that, but none of the explosive batsmen around him truly delivered, and there were some dreadful dismissals. Can't say anyone bowled well.

Henry, Conway and Ravindra were all sublime for New Zealand.

England's next game is against Bangladesh. It's must win. England were 1-1 after two in 2019, and they need to be the same again, because 0-2 is starting to look like home time. Would get Stokes back in if he's fit, and Topley over Moeen as well. Hopefully it is just a blip, but it was an utterly abysmal performance.

New Zealand, who have taken a big step towards the semis, have the Dutch next and will surely go 2-0.

by **Afro** Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:21 pm

Well that was a pretty crap way to start the WC but fair play to NZ.

What a change around from the recent series

by alfie Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:29 pm

Well it is only one game…but the disappointing way nearly all the batsmen got out rather carelessly , coupled with the innocuous show from the bowlers , does suggest this England side might not be as good as their reputation and record proclaimed. All is not lost but I’d want to see not just a win against Bangladesh but a much tighter effort all round. Wonder if they went in to this one just a little over confident ?
Stokes looked a bit hobbly walking around at the end there. Not a promising sign.

As for NZ : one swallow, etc . But I always reckon they are a likely semi finalist in these competitions and this start (especially with several key players missing) will have them full of confidence going on from here.

Hope the games on day two attract better crowds !

by king_carlos Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:54 pm

That's an absolute pummelling. Some very tame dismissals with the bat. Malan wafting, Bairstow chipping, Brook skying, Mo swiping, Livi clothing.

Then an even more concerning lack of accuracy with the ball. Surran's opening spell was about it. Woakes was all over the shop with the new ball. Wood showed the sort of inaccuracy he seemed to have removed from his game. Dilly and Mo weren't finding their length.

NZ deserve credit. Their big three bowlers all bowled well. Santner was very smart with his pace and Henry is bowling superbly. Then Conway and Ravindra punished the bowling ruthlessly.

It was very poor from England though. I hope to see the extra bowler picked in Mo's place against Bangladesh. Topley would be my choice.

by KP_fan Thu 05 Oct 2023, 4:55 pm

It's the bowling effort that should worry Eng
They had the luxury of 4 bowlers who if had bowled well Eng would have lost respectably

Well means lob/ toss it slowly on the length ...that's it
Slow bowlers need to do a lot of practice in nets
And fast bowlers need to practice as many variations of slow balls as they ever have tried.
Well done NZ.....hit the ground running like a well oiled machine .
Picked right team, used the bowling conditions well and when they had Eng on ground in first 10 overs with the.bat...absolutely and ruthlessly crushed them without taking the foot of the throat even an iota.

Totally unexpected magnitude of end result

by **Pal Joey** Thu 05 Oct 2023, 9:09 pm

alfie wrote:I did say I wasn’t too sure about the England bowling… Didn’t see this coming though ! Don’t suppose anyone has picked “NZ , T” for this match in PJ’s competition

Two rungs off with a C. Should have gone harder! Smile

by Duty281 Thu 05 Oct 2023, 10:49 pm

Pakistan-Netherlands tomorrow. Pakistan usually start World Cups poorly, but it would be a mammoth shock if the Dutch turned them over.

No rain expected. Crowd anticipated to be low numbers again. Hardly any Pakistani fans will be in attendance, and the overall ticketing organisation has been a shambles.

Still don't understand why the hosts are not appearing until the 5th game.

Good to see Buttler was honest in the post-match interview. Said England were 50 short of par, and he also said batting became easier under lights, so it'll be interesting to see if that's a theme of the tournament as it goes on. Hopefully, if it does become easier, it won't be as sizable an advantage as the 2021 T20 Coin Toss World Cup.

England's NRR has been savaged by the loss, sitting at below -2. They need six wins from eight to ensure it doesn't matter.

by alfie Thu 05 Oct 2023, 11:27 pm

Pal Joey wrote:
alfie wrote:I did say I wasn’t too sure about the England bowling… Didn’t see this coming though ! Don’t suppose anyone has picked “NZ , T” for this match in PJ’s competition

Two rungs off with a C. Shoulder have gone harder!

Yes well done there , PJ. You (and Olly and eirebilly ) picked NZ , and off to a good start thumbsup

by guildfordbat Fri 06 Oct 2023, 12:40 am

Duty281 wrote:
GSC wrote:It can only get better! (starting tomorrow)

When does this World Cup start then? The final warm-up today has been a little one-sided.

Mainly for Carlos - you can’t win the World Cup on the first day but you can lose it.

by **Pal Joey** Fri 06 Oct 2023, 1:26 am

guildfordbat wrote:
Duty281 wrote:
GSC wrote:It can only get better! (starting tomorrow)

When does this World Cup start then? The final warm-up today has been a little one-sided.

Mainly for Carlos - you can’t win the World Cup on the first day but you can lose it.

Confucius say: team can lose first two game in World Cup; yet still win gold in end... an eat their chocolate too. Need some luck though...

by **Good Golly I'm Olly** Fri 06 Oct 2023, 8:54 am

Disappointing performance from England, but hopefully one they can learn from and will get a little fire in their belly. No need to panic just yet, but two wins needed in the next two games for sure.

NZ look well on track for their usual do well in the group stuff before losing in a powder puff effort against the Aussies in a knockout game...

by Marky Fri 06 Oct 2023, 10:19 am

Amazing start from the Netherlands, bowling first and having Pakistan 3 down inside 10 overs

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 11:03 am

Yeah, very good start, however Rizwan and Shakeel have rebuilt things nicely and taken Pakistan over 100 for no further loss.

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 11:56 am

Timely dismissal of Rizwan and Pakistan are 182/5, with two new batsmen at the crease and just two from the tail.

Two in one over! 188/6 and this game is very alive.

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 12:59 pm

Ah, one of the more chaotic run-outs you'll ever see. LBW appeal against Shaheen (turned down), Nawaz starts a run but turns back to the non-strikers end, shy at the stumps, misses, deflects off the bowler, Pakistan try to run an overthrow, direct hit at the keeper's end, Nawaz out by a fair bit.

267/9.

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 1:11 pm

286ao, useful last wicket stand. Pitch is slow and tacky, so certainly not the easiest to bat on, although we'll see if that alters under lights.

Netherlands giving themselves a chance with that excellent effort in the field, but it's certainly an uphill task.

by king_carlos Fri 06 Oct 2023, 2:21 pm

Netherlands well in this but it will be tough against the Pakistan bowling attack.

I love watching Shaheen bat. There's something gloriously chaotic about it. One of those bowlers who bats like he's an all-rounder just waiting for the second skillset to take flight. Everything is done with such panache but doesn't quite come off.

by king_carlos Fri 06 Oct 2023, 2:50 pm

RRR already comfortably above 6. It feels like Pakistan are doing the smart thing here and just allowing the rate to drift up without really pushing for wickets. Once there's pressure from the rate Netherlands will need to take a risk and they can then bring the strike bowlers back.

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 3:06 pm

This partnership giving the Dutch a chance - 98/2 after 20. de Leede striking nicely, and I was going to say Singh is providing a nice anchor, but he's just launched a six off Shadab!

Like many of the lower-ranked teams, the Dutch are eating up a few too many dot balls and not quite rotating the strike enough. But they're still in with a shot here.

by dummy_half Fri 06 Oct 2023, 3:09 pm

Netherlands 100-2 after 20 overs - very competitive game so far. Worms very close together, Netherlands having lost one wicket less at this stage

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 3:42 pm

Well, it's all over now after a fair fight. Singh picked out a man in the deep, then Haris Rauf knocked over two new batsmen in one over. Should have been three but for a terrible drop.

All over, unless the Dutch fancy another miracle!

by Marky Fri 06 Oct 2023, 4:47 pm

Netherlands 205 all out. Shame as they were 120-2 at one stage.

by Duty281 Fri 06 Oct 2023, 4:50 pm

81 run win for Pakistan, Haris Rauf getting the final wicket and finishing with 3/43. Perhaps not as decisive as they would have wanted with the bat, but a win is a win and Pakistan are off to a solid start. The Netherlands have given themselves some shoots of optimism going forward as they competed well in many parts of that game.

Pakistan have got Sri Lanka next, so they should be confident of going two for two ahead of the India game. The Netherlands next play New Zealand.

Two games tomorrow. Two! Bangladesh and Afghanistan in the early, all-day, game, an intriguing match-up, with South Africa/Sri Lanka overlapping in the day/night game.

by KP_fan Fri 06 Oct 2023, 6:44 pm

Pak was playing 2 international games today and at one time they were at risk of losing to 2 minnows.....

Afg won the lottery on a pitch that's becoming increasingly a minefield in Asian games
(Because seemingly Chinese have just one pitch on their university ground where the entire tournament is being played)

Watched the highlights of the senior side's game where experience saw them through...in what was a good workout for Pak in the opener.
Ned have a handy couple of pacers and a good spinner in Dutt who was getting turn...should have gotten more wickets........van der Merwe was a bit disappointing
There was spin for Pak spinners also and it's clear every team needs atleast 3 spinners
Son de Leede had the all round game of this life....outdid his father's game of life vs Ind in 2003 world cup.

In the end the minnows run out of steam against top sides.

Pak can count positives in their middle order and spin bowling allrounders standing up
Losing Naseem shah is a blow but Hasan Ali bring other skills of controlled seam movement with both new and old ball........only a shade less that the mercurial Mohd Asif

by guildfordbat Sat 07 Oct 2023, 9:37 am

KP-f’s last post was rather wasted on me as I didn’t know anything about a second game - this main tournament is long enough and more than enough for me! However, I certainly agree with him that Bas de Leede had a stand out game for the Netherlands. 4 Pakistan wickets and then 67 with the bat. Seemed very unfair he lost out to Saud Shakeel (notwithstanding the latter’s commendable 68 off 52) for MotM although, as said before, it now almost automatically gets awarded to a member of the winning side which is not how it used to be or should be now.

by Duty281 Sat 07 Oct 2023, 11:31 am

Couple of uninteresting fixtures today.

Afghanistan were bowled out for 156, despite being 112/2, with their much talked about batting weaknesses coming to the fore. And Bangladesh are comfortably sailing to the target, although they've taken a bit over 30 overs to get there, so their NRR won't be very high on the basis of this game.

And South Africa are lining up a monster score - 158/1 after 25 - against Sri Lanka, with de Kock and van der Dussen both in the 70s.

Maybe the World Cup will spark to life tomorrow with India/Australia? Because it's been a very flat start.

by Duty281 Sat 07 Oct 2023, 12:00 pm

In three games there hasn't yet been a score of 300+, but South Africa are 206/1 after 30, against an utterly hapless Sri Lankan bowling attack, and may have eyes on bypassing 300 and instead notching up 400.

by Sponsored content