Monday Morning
Debutant
- Joined
- Jun 22, 2015
- Runs
- 151
Here's my ranking for teams based on their league stage performance given pre-tournament expectations:
10. England: Disastrous tournament for reigning champs. They were near favorites coming in. A lot of the players have won a WC and a WT20. Poor, poor showing in the end. Had the right strategy, but terrible execution.
9. Sri Lanka: After reaching the Asia Cup Final (their performance in that game notwithstanding), I expected SL to fight for 5th/6th place. They missed Hasaranga and a couple of others, but the team lacks fight more than they lack talent. Also, tells you how good Dhoni is as captain. He won the IPL with Theekshana and Pathirana - both of whom have looked toothless in the WC.
8. Pakistan: Batsman can't bat 50 overs, bowlers can't keep the opposition under 330. Lack of squad depth has been brutally exposed. Got lucky vs NZ, otherwise the results on paper would've been worse.
7. Bangladesh: They have too many no-hopers in their squad to do any better. If anything they exceeded expectations by winning two games.
6. New Zealand: Won one game they weren't favorites at the outset (vs England) and lost the rest (albeit one due to weather). Smart team that do the basics right, which in cricket is enough to make the semis because half the others can't do even that.
5. Netherlands: Won two games convincingly and were competitive in two more. Great tournament by the Dutch. Would love to see more of them in the future.
4. South Africa: Utterly devastating when batting first. Equally unconvincing batting second. A solid outing overall for a side that hasn't been competitive since WC 2015.
3. Australia: Written off after two games, they've bounced back in classic Aussie style. Won two games (vs NZ and Afg) through sheer grit.
2. Afghanistan: They keep rising and rising. A freak innings and poor fielding cost them a place in the semis. They have more fight in them than BD, Pak, and SL combined.
1. India: Getting better with each game. They've won their last two by ~550 runs! Haven't seen such dominance since the 00s Aussies.
Now all of this can change after the knockouts (as an Indian fan I hope not!), but thought it made sense to evaluate teams at this stage.
10. England: Disastrous tournament for reigning champs. They were near favorites coming in. A lot of the players have won a WC and a WT20. Poor, poor showing in the end. Had the right strategy, but terrible execution.
9. Sri Lanka: After reaching the Asia Cup Final (their performance in that game notwithstanding), I expected SL to fight for 5th/6th place. They missed Hasaranga and a couple of others, but the team lacks fight more than they lack talent. Also, tells you how good Dhoni is as captain. He won the IPL with Theekshana and Pathirana - both of whom have looked toothless in the WC.
8. Pakistan: Batsman can't bat 50 overs, bowlers can't keep the opposition under 330. Lack of squad depth has been brutally exposed. Got lucky vs NZ, otherwise the results on paper would've been worse.
7. Bangladesh: They have too many no-hopers in their squad to do any better. If anything they exceeded expectations by winning two games.
6. New Zealand: Won one game they weren't favorites at the outset (vs England) and lost the rest (albeit one due to weather). Smart team that do the basics right, which in cricket is enough to make the semis because half the others can't do even that.
5. Netherlands: Won two games convincingly and were competitive in two more. Great tournament by the Dutch. Would love to see more of them in the future.
4. South Africa: Utterly devastating when batting first. Equally unconvincing batting second. A solid outing overall for a side that hasn't been competitive since WC 2015.
3. Australia: Written off after two games, they've bounced back in classic Aussie style. Won two games (vs NZ and Afg) through sheer grit.
2. Afghanistan: They keep rising and rising. A freak innings and poor fielding cost them a place in the semis. They have more fight in them than BD, Pak, and SL combined.
1. India: Getting better with each game. They've won their last two by ~550 runs! Haven't seen such dominance since the 00s Aussies.
Now all of this can change after the knockouts (as an Indian fan I hope not!), but thought it made sense to evaluate teams at this stage.
