By losing against Bangladesh,the England cricket team missed an opportunity to hit two birds with one stone.(Although they could've taken away only one of the Two birds.) I mean,if England won against Bangladesh,the path would have been clear for both India and England to reach the Quarterfinals,because if Bangladesh lost the match,then Group B would have had 3 teams with 3 defeats each against their names-which meant that Teams which can't lose more than 2 matches each,will qualify for the Quarters easily(India already posted 3 wins and a half,with 2 more games to go;while England might've gained 7 points out of 10,with one more game to go.)
Thanks to England losing against both Ireland and Bangladesh,the latter two teams too have a chance of reaching the Quarterfinals.Now that India too has lost against South Africa,both teams' fate depends a lot on their next game against West Indies-the difference being that even if England wins against West Indies,it must depend on other factors like Bangladesh not achieving an improbable Upset win over South Africa(Bangladesh now have 3 wins,after defeating Netherlands coolly.One more win,will make England depend on Net Run Rate to enter the Quarter finals.) and West Indies too failing to win against India. While in the case of India,it can afford a loss against West Indies and still have 80% chances of reaching the Quarterfinals(Only if England thrashes West Indies by a huge margin along with an improbable win by Bangla against Saffers can things look difficult for India.).Also,theirs(India) being the last match,they'll even be aware of whether they can enter the Quarter finals,even if they don't win the last match and perhaps play without pressure.
Right from 1997(Probably began with the Indian Independence Cup,I think :D),I and my father would often come up with many equations and probabilities of India's chances of entering the next round(Like how many losses can India afford,if X and Y teams win so many matches,Should X lose or Y lose in X vs Y match,so that it can benefit India etc.);every time a Quadrangular or Bigger Multi-Series ODI tournaments with the Round Robin format is played.I don't think even the Team Captains and their managements might have spent so much time on it!::D And when I told my father that India is through to the Quarter Finals after India won against Netherlands in this World Cup,perhaps I under-estimated England's unpredictability in this World Cup then.:D
England's loss against West Indies though will make it more easier for India and even Bangladesh now to enter the Quarter Finals.(Ireland's chances of winning 3 of 6 looks dim,as it appears to be no match against South Africa.)
So far,only one team has been eliminated from Group A and that's Netherlands.The rest all can still fancy their chances.
Thanks to England losing against both Ireland and Bangladesh,the latter two teams too have a chance of reaching the Quarterfinals.Now that India too has lost against South Africa,both teams' fate depends a lot on their next game against West Indies-the difference being that even if England wins against West Indies,it must depend on other factors like Bangladesh not achieving an improbable Upset win over South Africa(Bangladesh now have 3 wins,after defeating Netherlands coolly.One more win,will make England depend on Net Run Rate to enter the Quarter finals.) and West Indies too failing to win against India. While in the case of India,it can afford a loss against West Indies and still have 80% chances of reaching the Quarterfinals(Only if England thrashes West Indies by a huge margin along with an improbable win by Bangla against Saffers can things look difficult for India.).Also,theirs(India) being the last match,they'll even be aware of whether they can enter the Quarter finals,even if they don't win the last match and perhaps play without pressure.
Right from 1997(Probably began with the Indian Independence Cup,I think :D),I and my father would often come up with many equations and probabilities of India's chances of entering the next round(Like how many losses can India afford,if X and Y teams win so many matches,Should X lose or Y lose in X vs Y match,so that it can benefit India etc.);every time a Quadrangular or Bigger Multi-Series ODI tournaments with the Round Robin format is played.I don't think even the Team Captains and their managements might have spent so much time on it!::D And when I told my father that India is through to the Quarter Finals after India won against Netherlands in this World Cup,perhaps I under-estimated England's unpredictability in this World Cup then.:D
England's loss against West Indies though will make it more easier for India and even Bangladesh now to enter the Quarter Finals.(Ireland's chances of winning 3 of 6 looks dim,as it appears to be no match against South Africa.)
So far,only one team has been eliminated from Group A and that's Netherlands.The rest all can still fancy their chances.
3 comments:
Eng v WI will be a cracker. And I have a feeling even the Ind v WI game will be full of tension for both teams.
I read Anil Kumble's article in 'The Hindu' today and I was surprised that he too,to an extent touched on the same points highlighted by me here.:D
Agreed,Eng vs WI will be a cracker. While Ind vs WI,might most probably turn out to be a case of deciding India's Group rankings;let's see.
And if Ireland defeats South Africa today,India's place in QF is confirmed;regardless of who wins the S.A vs Ban(As only 1 of the 2 teams will be able to get 8 points then.)
Looks like a lot of Fans online are concerned about India's chances of entering the Quarterfinals(Most of the hits,my blog got in recent hours have been due to the Google search related to it.:D)
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