Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Game 1: West Indies vs Pakistan

So, finally the Cup has begun..



The first match starts off tonight.. and it has WI, the hosts facing off against Pakistan.



Hard to pick one from the two..

But if I have to, which I did in a friendly game of Cricket Satta with friends, I would pick West Indies.



WI are on their home turf.. which has increasingly been unpredictable.. what with slow and low bounced pitches with a tendency to crack..



They had the slight edge, mainly due to their batting.

Lara, who is playing his last tournament in his long career would like to go out on a high.

Gayle, debatably, the most destructive batsman in the world. A man to reckon with for the Paki bowlers, none of whom are world class.

Chanderpaul, really reliable specially when the team needs him.

Samuels, in my opinion, the next big thing. A solid bat.



While on the other hand, Paki batting is not much to talk about. Haq and Yousuf are good but not ably supported by others. Then they dont have a stable opening partnership. Also, with no Akhtar and Asif, they lack the sting in their bowling.



I know they were humbled rather badly in a warm-up game against India, but these warm-up games dont speak much about a team like WI which is more instinctive than even India.



I think WI should make it.





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