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Rohit Mahajan
Nottingham, June 13
Watching the rain fall was the spectator sport of the day, and the crowd, predominantly Indian, didn’t seem to mind this form of entertainment. Drunk on exuberance and nostalgia/patriotism/tribalism, and the good liquors of this bountiful land, they had a good time even though not a single ball of the India-New Zealand match was bowled.
In the end, it’s likely that the two teams who had to play the game today, India and New Zealand, also didn’t mind the match being abandoned. They remain the two unbeaten teams in the tournament. If one of them had to lose a rain-hit, truncated match today, it would have been a very unfair result to the losing team: The contest would have been reduced to a lottery due to the extreme conditions created by several days of rain. So, New Zealand remain the No. 1 team in the tournament, with seven points from four games, while India are third with five points from three matches, one above England, who have four points from three matches.
Making a point
Virat Kohli, his team on a roll after wins over South Africa and Australia, would have been confident about gaining two full points from this game; New Zealand, who had beaten India in a practice match before the tournament began, also would have fancied their chances, especially given the damp, overcast conditions here that would have helped their swing and seam bowlers.
The round-robin format of the tournament makes every match of critical importance — winning only one point from today’s abandoned match could prove costly later. The margins are very small in the round-robin style tournaments — when the format was last used in the World Cup, in 1992, India had lost to England by nine runs and to Australia by one run. They ended up with only five points from eight games and failed to make the semifinals. In other words, 13 more runs in the two chases, and India would have entered the semifinals. That’s how little the margins are in this format.
Right decision
New Zealand coach Gary Stead, asked to evaluate if today was a point lost or gained for his team, said: “I think it’s too early in the tournament to know if that is going to be influential or not in the long run of things… We have to let this one go very quickly and move on to that.” Kohli seemed to be more satisfied with gaining a point. “One point not a bad thing for sides that have won all their games so far,” he said. “So we’ll take it.”
Had to take it, though — he didn’t have a choice, really.
Meanwhile, under the stands, carrying glasses of beer and other such important stuff, Indians swayed to the tune of “Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Chhorenge”, from the movie Sholay. This song seems to have become an anthem for Indian cricket fans when they move around in bands in foreign lands. Pity about the lack of a result, but they didn’t mind it too much.
Split points could cost teams dear
In four matches out of the 18 so far in the World Cup, points have been split by the contestants — that’s an unacceptably high percentage of 22.22. But can’t do much about it --- the UK has an unacceptably high incidence of rain anyway! The effect of split points can be very serious in the tournament, especially if one strong team is playing a weak team. For instance, both Pakistan and Bangladesh would have fancied their chances of taking two points from Sri Lanka. Both the games were abandoned, and the teams got one point each. Both Pakistan and Bangladesh would believe that they were robbed of a point each due to rain washing out their matches against Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka, struggling and straggling, may have reason to be happy that rain earned them a point each from the two games. South Africa were down at 29/2 against West Indies, from 7.3 overs. The rain came and the game ended in a ‘no result’, and one point each to the two teams. West Indies were more aggrieved with the rain, for they had been on the ascendant; South Africa captain Faf du Plessis admitted that a shortened game would have helped West Indies more than his team. “But the further the game goes, the closer to a T20 game it becomes, the odds are heavily in their (West Indies) favour,” du Plessis said. “So as it got a bit later in the day, then you’d rather get the (one) point and go.” — Rohit Mahajan
BCCI office bearers, COA memberS in same VIP box
NOTTINGHAM: It is no secret that BCCI office-bearers and at least two CoA members don’t see eye to eye but secretary Amitabh Choudhary and Lt. Gen (Retd) Ravindra Thodge were seated together in the same hospitality box during India’s abandoned game against New Zealand. Many of BCCI’s state unit officials have already landed in the United Kingdom, primarily to watch the India versus Pakistan game at the Old Trafford on Sunday. “I will be there till the Pakistan game and then leave,” Thodge informed as he waited outside the Trent Bridge gate for his pass. It was not exactly a comfortable situation for both as the Committee of Administrators and the BCCI office-bearers have been at loggerheads.
Archer vs Gayle as Eng, WI renew rivalry
Southampton: England and West Indies will carry their intense rivalry from the Caribbean into the Rose Bowl tomorrow with Barbados-born pace sensation Jofra Archer adding spice to the World Cup contest. — Agencies
ENG vs WI in World Cup
Matches 6
England won 5
West Indies won 1
Form guide
England: WLWWW
West Indies: LWLLW
(L=lost W=won; Last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pitch and conditions
Cloudy start to the day, assistance for the fast bowlers. Rain showers expected later
154KPH The fastest delivery in the tournament bowled by Mark Wood of England. He will undergo a fitness test on Friday morning ahead of their match vs West Indies
76.25 Eoin Morgan’s average at the Hampshire Bowl. He was the highest run-scorer for England in the ODI series against WI earlier this year
51.42 Chris Gayle’s average against England contrary to his career average of 38.14
I don’t think it will change, that’s just Sheldon. I guess Trevor will just have to learn to accept it Jason Holder, On Trevor Bayliss’ annoyance over ‘Sheldon Salute’
Warner gifts Man of the Match award to Australian youngster
Taunton: In a heartwarming gesture, David Warner gave away his Man of the Match award to a young Australian fan after their win over Pakistan. Warner scored his first international hundred after serving out his ball-tampering ban and guided Australia to a 41-run win over Pakistan on Wednesday. On his way back from the stadium, Warner posed with fans and on meeting a young boy in Australia jersey, the opener gifted his Man of the Match award to the young fan. “It’s really awesome, it feels cool to have that MoM Award. We were just waving the flag. He just came over and gave it to us,” the young fan said. “We were way outnumbered by Pakistan fans, then it went quiet, then it got noisy again when Pakistan made some runs, and then Mitchell Starc came on in the end,” said the boy’s father. Warner revealed that his innings, which laid the foundation for Australia’s win, filled him with both joy and relief after wondering whether he would ever get the chance to enjoy a similar moment ever again. “Yes, definitely, there was always that going through my mind,” nodded the left-hander when asked about the possibility that his hundred in the Boxing Day Test against England in December 2017 might have been his last in the baggy green. — PTI
Today on TV
Hockey: FIH Series (semifinals)
Usa vs South Africa 5pm
Japan vs India 7PM
STAR SPORTS
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