CWC2023: review of league stage , best 4 teams in semis ?

 

The 45 match league stage of the World cup 2023 is over . India with an all win record, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand  are the 4 teams to have qualified for the semis . According to the overall performances these 4 were the best four teams in this league stage .

It has been a long one month plus league stage in the world cup and it is time to review all the teams on their performances in the league  . We start with the teams which made their exits from the league stage  :

England:  

England , the reigning champions was one of the hot favourites in this event . However they were very disappointing and ended the league stage with 6 points from just 3 wins in 9 games . The team surprisingly never gelled together . Some of the key players like Bairstow, Buttler and Root were below their best and Buttler was actually in pathetic form . The early fitness concerns to Ben Stokes did not help .  The bowling could not adjust at all to the Indian conditions and it was only in the last few games that the bowlers like Willey , Woakes performed better.  Their only wins came vs Bangladesh, Netherlands and Pakistan.  Their losses to Afghanistan and Sri Lanka  were major setbacks.  Some good performances came from Dawid Malan (404 runs , avg 44) , Adil Rashid (15 wkts) and Ben Stokes (304 runs at 50 avg ) in the later stages . 

Sri Lanka  :

The 1996 champions suffered from injury issues right through the world cup which did not allow the team to settle . Due to injuries to key players the bowling resources  looked thin . The batting had it's good moments as well as some horror shows . Their win over England was the only saving grace in an otherwise poor world cup with other win coming vs Netherlands.  They ended at number 9 and missed Champions trophy qualification . However they have a few good talent that will gel in the future.  Their two young batters Samarawickrama ( 373 runs at 53 avg) & Nissanka (332 runs at 41 avg) impressed . Kusal Mendis & Asalanka played few good knocks . However their best performer by some distance was left arm quick Dilshan Madushanka with 21 wickets in this world cup . He bowled with good pace and swung the ball & was definitely one of the top performers of this world cup .

Pakistan :  

The 1992 champions was tipped as a possible semi finalists by many experts but they flattered to deceive . Their batting hardly produced the firepower that is required to create impact except a late Fakhar Zaman innings and their highly rated pace attack largely had a poor tournament leaking runs .  Their spin stocks were barren & mediocre and hence  they deservingly exited from the league stage . Pakistan two wins over Sri Lanka and New Zealand (DL method) were impressive and apart from that they won vs Bangladesh & Netherlands and missed out a great winning chance vs South Africa . Some good performances came from Fakhar Zaman (220 runs from 4 games at 73 average ) who was not considered in first 5 games , Md Rizwan (395 runs at 65 avg ) , Abdullah Shafique (336 runs at 42 avg) and Babar Azam (320 runs at 40 avg) . Shaheen Afridi got 16 wickets in bowling . 

Bangladesh:  

Bangladesh had a  chaotic , controversial & disappointing world cup with only 2 wins vs Afghanistan and Sri Lanka . Their loss to associate nation Netherlands was disappointing . The team never looked settled and their Timed out controversy in Sri Lanka game did not enhance their reputation . Much was expected from Shakib and Miraz but both were disappointing.  Mahmudullah with 328 runs at 54 avg was their only signing light . 

Netherlands:

The associate nation Netherlands had their bright moments with their upset win over semifinalists South Africa and another good win over Bangladesh.  Overall they gained good experience from this world cup to build on their cricket future further . Players like Engelbrecht (300 runs at 37 avg) , Edwards , bowlers De Leede and Van Meekeren impressed in parts .

Afghanistan: 

Afghanistan over achieved during this world cup and could have won a couple of more games to reach the semis . Their win over England defending a total and the  win over Pakistan chasing 282 were the two high points of their campaign apart from their 2 other wins vs Sri Lanka and Netherlands.  They could have beaten Australia but for the Maxwell unbelievable rescue act from 91/7 chasing 292 and they also had South Africa worried before losing out by 5 wickets.  This world cup campaign will do wonders for Afghanistan and now it is their responsibility to build on this effort further . The batting looked solid and has improved beyond belief - biggest takeaway being their recent  ability to chase totals  , spin attack was always their strong suit but now their pacers are also performing . Omarzai (353 runs at 70 avg ) , Shahidi (310 runs at 52 avg) , Ibrahim Zadran (376 at 47 avg) &  Rahmat (320 at 40 avg) performed well in batting  . Rashid Khan was their highest wicket taker with 11 wickets .

And now for the 4 semi finalists:

New Zealand:

The Kiwis were the 4th team to reach the semis after a brief dip in fortunes in losing 4 games back to back after winning 1st 4 . They managed to resurrect their fortunes with a big win over Sri Lanka  after being done by the DL method in Pakistan game despite posting 401 . New Zealand  has showed great chasing ability winning in 35 overs vs England chasing down 282 and nearly beating Australia in a big chase of 388 runs . The batting has great depth . The bowling suffered due to Henry's injury but still have quality bowlers. Southpaw  Rachin Ravindra with 565 runs so far is the find of the tournament . Daryl Mitchell with 418 runs has looked in ominous touch and Santner with 16 wickets has been the pick of their bowlers. 

Australia:

Australia after initial struggles has won 7 consecutive games to reach the semis. However they still have a few areas to address . Their middle order has not always provided the stability and their pedigreed  big three fast bowlers  have looked below their best as they have struggled to pick powerplay wickets . Zampa's terrific performance (22 wickets so far - highest in this world cup ) has kept the bowling together . The batting has largely been the Warner- Marsh show with Maxwell producing that iconic innings vs Afghanistan . Warner (499 runs ) , Marsh (426 runs ) and Maxwell ( 397 runs) are their leading run getters so far .  Australia's despite their few areas of concern has that ability to bring out their best in big games.  

South Africa :

South Africa had a great start to their campaign  but has slightly fallen from their peak in last few games . However  their very strong batting lineup has largely lived upto their expectations except in a couple of chases which is their big area of concern . Their bowling has been really good especially under lights when the ball swung during powerplays. With 7 wins out of 9 games they have looked a powerful team on the whole and will challenge Aussies in the semis .  Quinton de Kock with 591 runs and 4 hundreds has been their star performer in his ODI swansong . Van Dussen (442 runs) , Markram (396 runs) & Klaasen (326 runs ) have been impressive. Jansen ( 157 runs, 17 wkts ) has done very well as allrounder with great inputs from bowlers Coetzee (18 wkts ) , Maharaj (14 wkts ) and Rabada ( 12 wkts ) . While Coetzee is taking middle order wickets , Maharaj is squeezing the runrate. 

India : 

With record breaking 9 wins hosts India has clearly looked the best team in this world cup . The bowling in particular has looked lethal with Bumrah , Siraj and Shami taking powerplay wickets  and Jadeja , Kuldeep applying the squeeze . In batting Rohit Sharma  has taken upon himself to produce those blistering starts which is enabling the middle order to set up a platform without taking risks . India's only weakness is lack of batting depth but that is very well camouflaged so far . Kohli (594 runs) , Rohit (503 runs) , Iyer (421 runs) has been the leading run getters while Bumrah (17 wkts) , Shami (16 wkts) & Jadeja (16 wkts) has been the leading wicket takers so far . ) .  So far India have not faced any difficulties whether batting first or second.

The 2 semi finals between India v New Zealand and Australia v South Africa promises to be gripping contests 

Final league standings 

Top 5 rungetters & wicket takers till league stage