The Cricket World Cup is drawing to a close, with the final match to be played on Sunday in Ahmedabad. Home side India are favorites with a perfect record so far this tournament, but five-time champions Australia can never be counted out. Here are the winners and losers from the final week of the tournament:
Winners
1. India and New Zealand put on a remarkable show at Wednesday’s semi final. India batter Virat Kohli scored a record-breaking 50th century in one-day internationals, surpassing legend Sachin Tendulkar, who congratulated him online.
Bowler Mohammed Shami also played a vital role, taking seven wickets. Some fans recalled the backlash from internet trolls against Shami after a defeat to Pakistan in 2021, when Kohli stood up for his teammate.
2. Passengers traveling on domestic flights in India didn’t have to miss out on match details, as flight captains kept them updated with the latest scores at regular intervals.
3. An honorary mention goes to the Afghanistan team, who finished just below Pakistan at 6th in the table. They’ll be remembered for beating England and Pakistan, while Australia needed a record-setting innings from Glenn Maxwell to beat the underdogs going into the tournament. Here is how the Afghanistan players celebrated after defeating Pakistan in Chennai:
Losers
4. Some critics alleged that the pitch picked by India’s cricket board for the semi final was done to give the hosts the best chance of winning.
The International Cricket Council reportedly said, “Changes to planned pitch rotations are common towards the end of an event of this length, and has already happened a couple of times.”
5. The International Cricket Council Board suspended Sri Lanka’s membership, saying the authority had “failed to manage its affairs autonomously and without government interference.” The Sri Lankan team’s poor performance in the tournament, including a near-record defeat to India, had earlier provoked a political response in the cricket-mad nation.
6. Former England player Michael Vaughan drew attention to the fact that India and Australia players will be facing off against each other very soon after the final in a T20 series. Fixture congestion and prioritizing revenue over rest time for players have been key issues in sports.
--With assistance from Menaka Doshi, Alex Gabriel Simon, Akriti Sharma and Satviki Sanjay.
