Law Of Averages Catches Up with Sri Lanka?

Many were left in shock, some wondered in disbelief but cricket played its own game yesterday. Pakistan clinched the Twenty20 World Cup in England much to the dismay of many. I personally wasn't too surprised though. They were finalists at the previous tournament so why weren't they considered a good team or a favourite? Was it because they weren't getting a chance to play any cricket due to the turmoil in their country? They have brilliant batsman, and Afridi who must have smiled from ear to ear when this format of the game was introduced. Cricket, however, seems to be a game where the 'law of averages' comes in to play. No one can be consistently good and there has to be a point where one fails. Sri Lanka were having a brilliant run with their top batsmen( Dilshan and Jayasuriya, Jayawardene) getting runs in previous games. They had to fail at some point of time and it was their misfortune that it had to be in the final. Pakistan lost early in the tournament and that seemed to be their wake up call and a boost to their efforts on the field. No batsman can carry on scoring a large amount of runs match after match. Afridi saved his best for the last and let others get them to the final. Sri Lanka were on a high having remained unbeaten through out the tournament, right until the final. They were lucky that Sangakkara found form and took them to a respectable and defendable total. Another thought that arises is the captains decision in the 18th over as he handed the ball to little known Udana. Was he saving his best (Mendis, Malinga) for the last? He didnt even get there. When Udana came onto bowl, the match was tightly poised and I feel Sri Lanka had the upper hand with Pakistan needing almost 9 an over to win. Had Mendis or Malinga bowled, I'm surely positive they wouldn't have given more than 8-10 runs and that would have doubled the pressure on the Pakistanis who would have had to go hell for leather in the last over. Now, The captain, will have a long time to think, 'what if'. No one can say what would have happened had one of the other two bowled but then he also had an experienced veteran like Jayasuriya who he could have tossed the ball to. All said and done Sri Lanka will still be licking their wounds after a playing a fabulous tournament and Pakistan will be jubilant having suffered defeat in the last final and also to boost cricket in their country.

Its A Thriller Of A Final To Wait For

No one could have ever suggested that India would meet arch rivals Pakistan in the Finals of the Twenty 20 World cup going on in South Africa. In a tournament full of upsets and hard hitting, it has finally come down to the final game and between two countires where cricket is treated as a religion and the rivalry fierce and competitive. Pakistan got the better of New Zealand in the first final bringing back memories of the 1992 and 1999 World Cup Semi Finals. India took on favourites Australia in the second semi final and the match lived up to his thrilling nature. India who opted to bat first were boosted by yet another blistering innings by Yuvraj Singh (70 of 30 balls)and captain MS Dhoni (36 of 18 balls) to an imposing total of 188 in 20 overs. Yuvraj continued his form from the match against England where he hit the fastest 50 (12 balls) in any form of the game which included 6*6's of an over. The bowler unluckily was Staurt Broad. Chasing 188 was never going to be easy and Australia kept up the hunt with Hayden (62 of 47 balls). When Symonds (43 of 26) was dismissed with Australia still needing another 30 odd to win of the last 3 overs it was almost all over for them. Good bowling in the end gave India a 15 run victory and a mouth watering final clash with Pakistan. Afridi vs Yuvraj, both big hitters and a lot riding on their shoulders. The much awaited match takes place on the 24th of Sept. For a ll cricket lovers its a must watch.

Sixes And Upsets Galore at Twenty 20 Cup.

The Twenty 20 Championship got off to an explosive start and has proved to be entertaining and absolutely unpredictable. In the first game of the tournament itself, records began to tumble and the crowd was treated to some high quality hitting. Chris Gayle set the stadium alight with a whirlwind innings of 117 of just 57 balls.(7*4's and 10*6's). The West Indies set an imposing target of 205 in their 20 overs for the hosts South Africa but thanks to Gibbs (90* off 55 balls) and Kemp (46*) South Africa brushed them aside. The second day so three matches and a massive upset. Early on New Zealand swept aside Kenya in a game where records fell again. First 4 batsmen (Kenya) out for 0 and 4-7 bowling figures for Gillespie. Pakistan beat Scotland by 50 runs or so thanks to some hard hitting by Afridi (22 of 7 balls)and Younis Khan getting 48 of just 29 deliveries. The last game of the day was dramatic and a shocker. The heavy weights and favourites, Australia against lowly rated Zimbabwe. Australia batting first struggled thanks to some brilliant fielding by the Zimbabweans and could only muster up 138. Zimbabwe reached the target on the penultimate ball thanks to an unbeaten 60 by Taylor, which produced a huge upset. Todays games were just as thrilling and featured upsets. The West Indies were sent packing byt Bangladesh, who have kept up their world cup form. Chasing 178, Bangladesh got their with 8 wickets to spare with credit going to Ashraful (67) and Aftab (69*). England saw off Zimbabwe by 50 runs. Kevin Pieterson doing the damage with an explosive 79. Zimbabwe were cruising at one stage and looked set to pull of another shock when they raced to 75/0 in the 7th over but ran out of steam and were bowled out for 120. The last game between India and Scotland was abandoned due to rain. In 6 matches so far 58 sixes have been hit. It is proving to be a very exciting format of the game. Big and crucial games tomorrow with England taking on Australia. Australia have to win this game and then Run Rate would come into play. The other big game sees India take on rivals Pakistan.