World Cup Monitor
Lead with the left
Peter English
25-Feb-2013
Bowlers are struggling to restrict the left-handed opening batsmen who are hammering boundaries all over the Caribbean. Top-order power-hitting is proving the key to setting and chasing big targets at the World Cup and the lefties are leading the way.
Matthew Hayden has 436 runs, including the fastest World Cup hundred, from six matches at a strike-rate of 107 to top the run list. When Adam Gilchrist’s 238 runs are thrown in is it any wonder Australia are on top of the table?
Full postThe influence of WAGs
Cricket Scotland are to review whether future tours will allow WAGs - players' wives and girlfriends - to accompany them, following allegations of excessive drinking and a "holiday camp" atmosphere during Scotland's World Cup campaign
Will Luke
25-Feb-2013
Cricket Scotland are to review whether future tours will allow WAGs - players' wives and girlfriends - to accompany them, following allegations of excessive drinking and a "holiday camp" atmosphere during Scotland's World Cup campaign.
It has emerged that players were seen drinking the night prior to their "humiliating" defeat to Netherlands, a loss which their captain, Craig Wright, said he was "embarrassed" by. Cricket Scotland refuse to accept their preparation was anything less than wholesome, however.
"The guys prepared thoroughly for the tournament and whatever they decide to do to unwind 36 to 48 hours before a game is entirely up to them," Ryan Watson, the new Scotland captain, told the Scotsman. "If a guy wants to go and have a couple of drinks with his mates or his family 36 or 48 hours before a game, I've no problem with that.
"It's an entirely different scenario to the England squad, who were out to four in the morning. It was just a few guys going for a drink after a game. It was never an all-night session - we're far too professional for that."
Full postFluke no more
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
Bangladesh + win = Frenzy. Emergency rule or not, thousands thronged the streets to celebrate Bangladesh’s 67-run win against South Africa at Guyana, and the police were kind enough to allow the fans let their hair down well into the wee hours of the morning.
According to an AFP report, at least 3000 marched through Dhaka’s main square, and the sound of firecrackers and fire horns filled the air. The emergency rule which took effect in January, restricted public rallies, but in the glorious world of sport, exceptions can be made.
Full postMemories flood back as time catches up with Bourda
Jamie Alter
25-Feb-2013
 | ||
|
| ||
|
|
|
For years, the Bourda Oval stood firm against the march of time and torrential rain, but the World Cup has signaled the end for one of the oldest cricket grounds in the Caribbean. With the modern Guyana National Stadium at Providence, built by the Indian government at a cost of US$ 25 million dollars, taking over from Bourda, the ramshackle, historic ground is now relegated to hosting regional matches only, AFP reports.
But Bourda's place in West Indies cricket history is assured.
It was here that West Indies achieved their first Test win - a 289-run victory over England in 1930 - two years after they had gained Test match status. Since then, legends like Rohan Kanhai, Basil Butcher, Joe Solomon, Lance Gibbs, Clive Lloyd, Roy Fredricks, Alvin Kallicharan, Colin Croft, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan have cut their teeth at the famous venue.
Full postPakistan fans force suspension of World Cup ad campaigns
A leading Pakistan bank has suspended a high-profile publicity campaign featuring Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi after billboards and posters were defaced in Karachi
George Binoy
25-Feb-2013
A leading Pakistan bank has suspended a high-profile publicity campaign featuring Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi after billboards and posters were defaced in Karachi.
Habib Bank, which employs several other top players, launched the campaign with big billboards, posters and commercials on television to coincide with the World Cup. Pakistan were eliminated in the first round of the World Cup after losing to West Indies and debutants Ireland.
“We decided to suspend this campaign because of the prevailing mood and after some of our billboards and posters were defaced,” Abdul Raquib, a senior bank official told The News. Pakistan players had to face angry fans who have burnt their effigies and taken out mock processions to mourn the World Cup debacle.
Afridi said people had a right to be upset with the team. “We played badly in the World Cup. But there must be a limit to venting their anger,” he said.
Full postSound the trumpets! Instruments are allowed!
World Cup organisers have finally relaxed their ban on musical instruments and will allow them from Saturday’s match between Bangladesh and South Africa
Peter English
25-Feb-2013
World Cup organisers have finally relaxed their ban on musical instruments and will allow them from Saturday’s match between Bangladesh and South Africa. Soulless venues over the first half of the tournament have forced the authorities to ditch the regulation in the hope of regaining the usual sounds of the Caribbean crowds.
Spectators will be able to take conch shells, horns, drums and trumpets into the ground at Guyana, Reuters reported. "Safety must be paramount but we do want everyone to watch cricket in a festive and lively atmosphere," the World Cup chief executive Chris Dehring said. "We just ask that they be mindful of the comfort of other spectators around them and, of course, of the players on the field."
Full postFree tickets at last ... but still too late
The World Cup is coming in for some flak about its (lack of) organization, so here’s a heartwarming tale, or so you would think
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
The World Cup is coming in for some flak about its (lack of) organization, so here’s a heartwarming tale, or so you would think. For the England and Sri Lanka thriller on Wednesday, the Local Organizing Committee announced that they were offering Antiguan and Barbadian residents free entry to the match.
The offer was for two tickets per person and aimed to redress the inflated ticket pricings that had priced the locals out of the market, in a bid to fill up the stands. So far, so good. The only problem was the announcement came half-way through the match, too late for most to head on down.
Our man on the spot, Andrew Miller, rang the committee to find out whether this grand gesture of free entry was going to be repeated for England against Australia on Sunday, also at Guyana. Apparently not.
"For the last three games we have been distributing free tickets to youth clubs and church organisations to pack the stands with young people," said an LOC spokesman. Err ... clearly. As Andrew noted, with even a hint of advance notice, the Guyana stadium could be full for that game.
Full postSouth Africa send police reinforcement
South Africa are sending 64 police officers to the Caribbean to help with security at the World Cup, the office of National Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi has confirmed.
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
South Africa are sending 64 police officers to the Caribbean to help with security at the World Cup, the office of National Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi has confirmed.
The Deputy National Commissioner Andre Pruis will head up the group who will provide operational assistance in Grenada, St Lucia and Barbados from April 8 until the close on April 29.
Speaking in Pretoria on Wednesday, Selebi's office also said the contingent would include certain members of the special task force and national intervention unit, bomb disposal experts, detectives, hostage negotiators, crime scene investigators, explosives dog handlers and a command-and-control group.
The police and troops will be involved in the security sweeps inside venues, airports and harbours, VIP protection and crowd control and will be available for emergencies not only at the cricket venues, but in any of the Caribbean countries.
Full post'The biggest con job ever'
Jack Warner, the president of CONCACAF, the region’s footballing body and one of the most controversial figures in that sport, has launched a stinging attack on the World Cup.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
Jack Warner, the president of CONCACAF, the region’s footballing body and one of the most controversial figures in that sport, has launched a stinging attack on the World Cup.
"The biggest con job ever passed off on a region is this Cricket World Cup and it is one of immense proportion - not just by the organisation but by the governments as well - that have taken limited resources of their people's money and put it in a dying sport. If there is anything that this World Cup has done well is it has shown people what not to do in the future. Imagine in Antigua for a public holiday a brand new stadium is half-filled. This has been a World Cup for the organisers, the visitors and the players but certainly not for the people. That's why the stadiums are empty and that in itself is a con job."
Warner has been the subject of several media investigations and last month his conduct with regard to ticketing arrangements at football’s 2006 World Cup resulted in a firm slap. “The Executive Committee expresses disapproval of vice-president Jack A. Warner's conduct and reminds him to exercise the requisite level of care in ticketing matters in the future and to strictly abide by all directives,” a press statement said.
Full postGilchrist wants ticket fire-sale
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
Adam Gilchrist has called on the World Cup organisers to slash tickets to bargain-basement prices in an effort to fill some of the empty stands. Gilchrist believes it’s just not right to play such a major tournament in such an idyllic location with so few spectators.
"You come to the Caribbean to experience that unique atmosphere that is Caribbean cricket," Gilchrist told AFP. "There certainly is an element of the sterile feel about it. I don't know whether that's because administration hasn't let it flow or whether people just aren't turning up. It's a little bit frustrating.”
Full postMost Read
Writers