Down Memory Lane: The 2007 Cricket World Cup

The basic idea behind the cricket World Cup was to provide a platform where the top teams would fight for the tag of World Champions. The ICC decided to include some Associate members in it so that they could rub shoulders with the big teams. It was also a wonderful medium to promote the game and attract people from all corners of the world towards it. Since the first edition in 1975, the number of participating teams had steadily been increases from 8 to 9 to 12 and to 14 in 2003. In 2007, two more teams were added to take the number to 16. West Indies, the only test side that had not yet hosted a World Cup, finally got the opportunity in 2007, the ninth edition of the World Cup. The increase in the number of teams led to a change in the format. Teams were divided into four groups. Each team had to play the others teams in the group once with the top two teams of each group qualifying for the super eight stage. The winner of the group match between the qualifying teams of each group would also be carrying forward the points earned in that match. The teams would then play the qualifying teams from the other groups in the super-eights with the top four teams progressing to the semi-finals. Australia came into the tournament as overwhelming favourites to defend their title. India and South Africa too had strong sides and they were expected to give the Aussies a run for their money. The mysterious death of Pakistan’s coach, Bob Woolmer, dominated headlines for quite a few days during the event. Australia also suffered a major setback hours before the start of the tourney as their star spinner Shane Warne had to return home after failing drug test. But despite that, the Aussies managed to put up an emphatic all-round show to win their fourth World Cup.

Herschelle Gibbs smashes one of the six sixes he hit in an over

Australia were put in group A along with South Africa, Scotland and Netherlands. As expected, Australia and South Africa qualified from the group. The Aussies were the most impressive of all sides in the group stages by far. Skipper Ricky Ponting and opener Matthew Hayden were in top form as the Aussies dominated bowlers right from the word go. They notched up totals in excess of 300 in each of their matches and won them with ease. Hayden scored a 66 ball century against South Africa, the fastest ever in a World Cup. South Africa’s opening batsmen, Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers gave the team good starts. The middle order also contributed well to take the team to convincing victories against the Scottish and the Dutch. In the match against Netherlands, Herschelle Gibbs became the first batsman in ODI history to hit six sixes in an over. Dan van Bunge was the unfortunate bowler at the receiving end. Netherlands settled for third place in the group with an 8-wicket win over Scotland.

A dejected Indian dressing room after the loss to Sri Lanka that led to their early exit

Three Asian teams, Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh were put in group B along with Bermuda. The Lankans had a set of highly experienced players who managed to get their act together to take the team to three comfortable victories. India had the worst possible start with a defeat against Bangladesh that cast a shadow of doubt on their progress to the next stage. A big 257-run victory over Bermuda restored some hopes, but a defeat against the Lankans in a must win game more or less knocked them out of the tournament. Bangladesh managed to pull off a 7-wicket win in the last group stage match against Bermuda to ensure their qualification and India’s elimination. Bermuda, making their first World Cup appearance, couldn’t put up much of a fight and they had to return home empty-handed. Three-time runner-up, England, New Zealand, Kenya and Canada made up group C. Each of New Zealand’s top six batsmen managed to do well in some match or the other in group stage and that was good enough to ensure qualification as the group toppers. England lost their opening match against the Kiwis, but the pulled up their socks to clinch victory in the remaining two matches to progress to the next stage. Kenya’s captain Steve Tikolo impressed with both bat and ball, but he could only take his team to a win against Canada, who ended at the bottom of group C with three losses out of three.

The Ireland team doing a victory lap after defeating Pakistan

Group D comprised the hosts West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland and Zimbabwe. The home fans had plenty to cheer about as the Windies won all their group matches quite comprehensively. However, things didn’t turn out to be pleasant for Pakistan. A loss against West Indies was followed by a shock defeat at the hands of Ireland. To make things worse, coach Bob Woolmer was found dead under mysterious circumstances. They ended with a win against Zimbabwe, but they were already out of the tournament. A dramatic tie against Zimbabwe, followed by a win against Pakistan ensured Ireland a super-eight spot. The tie against Ireland was the best result that Zimbabwe could achieve and they had to bow out of the group stage after going past it on the last two editions.

Glenn McGrath was in great form throughout the tournament

Hayden and Ponting continued their good form with the bat in the super-eight. Glenn McGrath shone with the ball, picking up 16 wickets in 6 matches, as Australia cruised to victory in all the six matches. Bangladesh’s progress beyond the group stage was a big surprise. Hence, not many would have expected them to go any further. Bangladesh did raised a few eyebrows though with an upset victory over the mighty South Africans but that was their only success in the second stage of the competition. However, the fact that they had come this far was already a big accomplishment, but a defeat against Ireland was a disappointing result for their fans. The loss against Bangladesh was unexpected and shocking as far as South Africa were concerned. But they still managed to make it to the last four. Their top four batsmen came good when it mattered and a thrilling one wicket win over Sri Lanka coupled with comprehensive victories over England, Ireland and West Indies ensured fourth place in the super-eights table. England had a couple of very close finishes in the super eight. The lost the first one by just two runs against Sri Lanka, but won the second against West Indies by 1 wicket. Beside the hosts, they could only beat the minnows, Bangladesh and Ireland. Unfortunately for the Englishmen, that wasn’t good enough and their wait for a World Cup title continued.

Lasith Malinga became the first man to pick up four wickets in four consecutive deliveries in an ODI

Hosts, West Indies weren’t considered to be serious contenders for the title before the tournament started. However, a good show in the group stage raised hopes among their supporters. Thus, their performance in the super-eight was left their fans disappointed. A win against Bangladesh was the only success as they suffered heavy defeats in four out of the remaining five matches. The Lankans put up a good show in the super-eights to finish the stage at second spot behind the Aussies. The won four matches out of six and Lasith Malinga’s four wickets in four consecutive deliveries, the first ever in ODI history, nearly took them to another victory from a seemingly hopeless position against South Africa, but the Proteas held their nerves to clinch victory by one wicket. New Zealand suffered a crushing defeat against Australia and they also lost to Sri Lanka, but their bowlers, especially Shane Bond and Daniel Vettori, chipped in to secure victories in the remaining five matches that took them to the last four. Progressing beyond the group stages was a huge achievement in itself for Ireland. There wasn’t any fairytale as such in the super-eights, but a victory against Bangladesh was a very encouraging result for them.

Mahela Jayawardene's century in the semi-final was enough to overcome the Kiwis

The semi-finals didn’t provide too much excitement as they turned out to be one sided contests. Sri Lanka booked a spot in the final with an 81-run win over the Kiwis. Skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who had been in good form throughout the tourney, set the stage up with a fine unbeaten century. The Lankans set New Zealand a target of 290 to achieve in order to reach their first World Cup final. The Kiwis were looking good at 105 for 2 but then the Lankan spinners triggered a collapse that saw New Zealand losing 5 wickets for just 11 runs. Muttiah Muralitharan was the chief destroyer with three of those wickets. The tailenders fought hard, but the Kiwis were finally dismissed for 208. In the other semi-final, the Aussies demolished the South Africans. McGrath picked up three wickets in his opening spell to reduce the Proteas to 27 for 5. Gibbs and Justin Kemp staged a small recovery, but Shaun Tait bowled a fiery spell of fast bowling that led to them being bowled out for just 149. Australia lost Adam Gilchrist in just the seventh ball of their innings, but there weren’t any other alarms and they went on to chase down the runs with seven wickets in hand.

Adam Gilchrist celebrates his century in the final

An in-form Australian outfit faced Sri Lanka at Bridgetown Barbados in the final of the 2007 World Cup. Rain delayed the start of the match that had to be reduced to 38 overs a side. Matthew Hayden was the in-form man for Australia, but in the final he decided to play second fiddle to his opening partner, Adam Gilchrist, who was in devastating form. The extent of his destruction can be gauged by the fact that Hayden contributed just 38 in an opening partnership worth 172. Gilchrist raced to his hundred in only 72 deliveries, and he kept going even after that. He finally departed for 149, a knock lit up by 13 hits to the fence and 8 beyond it. The Lankans managed to pull back things a bit in the slog overs but even then the Aussies reached 281 in 38 overs. Sri Lanka had a good 116-run second wicket stand between Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumara Sangakkara, but they found it difficult to keep up with the asking rate that kept on climbing. A further two overs were lost due to rain and the target was reduced to 269. Efforts to increase the run-rate led to regular wickets and in the end, Sri Lanka fell short by 53 runs. It was Australia’s third successive World Cup and the fourth in total. Adam Gilchrist was the obvious choice for man-of-the-match for his brutal knock.

The Australian team after their World Cup triumph

Glenn McGrath, the highest wicket-taker, was declared the player-of-the-series. Hayden ended as the highest run-getter. Australia’s domination of the tournament displayed the well known fact that they were way superior than the others. No team could even come close to defeating them and just like in 2003, they had yet again won the World Cp without losing a single match. Not many would have counted Sri Lanka as one of the pre-tournament favourites and hence their run to the final was also praise worthy. However, the organising committee of the tournament was widely criticised by experts and fans. The high ticket prices meant that a large percentage of the locals couldn’t afford to come to the ground. Large parts of the stadium remained empty which in turn affected the atmosphere. The length of the tournament, 46 days, also didn’t go down well with most experts. The discontent of the people was evident from the fact that top level ICC officials, Percy Sonn and Malcolm Speed, were booed at the presentation ceremony of the final. The early elimination of India and Pakistan meant that the quality of cricket also suffered. Australia’s domination at times made viewers wish for more competitive cricket. But as for the Aussies, it was just another well executed job.

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