Hogg's World Cup revival, and a mini-Klusener

The 47-day circus has finally ground to a halt and all those pundits who'd called it an open World Cup and hyped up Australia's vulnerability are now munching on their hats. Australia went to the World Cup after losing the CB series and after their bowling attack had received a flogging in the Chappell-Hadlee series but, once in the Caribbean, they barely broke sweat.

The Australian batsmen had been among the runs in the lead up to the World Cup but during the tournament, they took their game even further. Six of their batsmen averaged at least 15 runs higher during the World Cup than in the 12 months preceding it - even Adam Gilchrist, who ended a mediocre World Cup with a matchwinning hundred in the final. Matthew Hayden scored 709 runs at an average of 55 in 15 innings before the World Cup but raised the bar and plundered 659 runs at an average of 73 during the tournament. Shane Watson did a mini-Klusener, hammering 145 runs at a strike-rate of 171, and being dismissed only once in six innings. Only Michael Hussey failed, scoring only 87 runs, but he wasn't needed to play a significant innings in any of the matches.

Paul Nixon, who was included in the England squad during the CB series in Australia, cashed in on his World Cup opportunity. He averaged fewer than 12 before the World Cup but after several gritty performances, Nixon more than tripled his average during the World Cup.

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Virender Sehwag is India's sole representative in the table above but his average of nearly 55 is bloated by a hundred against Bermuda. After a satisfactory performance during the one-day series in South Africa in November, Mahendra Singh Dhoni struck form in the home series against Sri Lanka and West Indies with 223 runs in five innings. However, Dhoni fell for ducks in tense situations against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the group stage, and had only 29 against Bermuda to show for his maiden World Cup.

Pakistan's biggest letdown was the form of the two Ys. Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan form the lynchpin of the batting order but both came unstuck during the World Cup. Yousuf scored 761 runs in 19 innings before the tournament began, but made only 55 in three matches in the Caribbean. Younis scored even fewer - 37 in three innings - compared to the 581 in 20 in the build up to the World Cup.

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Brad Hogg's form going into the World Cup was poor. He played only two matches in the Champions Trophy and took one wicket, and three CB Series matches yielded only two at 57 apiece. It got worse for Hogg during the Chappell-Hadlee series where he was clobbered for 114 runs without a single wicket at an economy-rate in excess of seven. However, on pitches that offered more purchase, Hogg spun circles around the batsmen with his wrong 'uns and picked up 21 wickets at an average of just below 16.

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One of the biggest disappointments of the World Cup was Makhaya Ntini. He has been the spearhead of South Africa's attack for the last couple of years and had taken 25 wickets in 15 matches at an average of 21 going into the tournament. The Caribbean pitches offered little in terms of bounce and movement off the pitch and at Ntini's pace the ball came nicely on to the bat. He struggled and took only six wickets in seven matches at 49 apiece and was dropped for the make-or-break Super Eights game against England and the semi-final against Australia.

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