Not defending anything

AHEAD of the Cricket World Cup, England captain Jos Buttler stated plainly: "We're not defending anything" - and, on that note, he has been proven to be entirely correct.

Buttler intended his words to mean that England would attack this tournament head on - but, in reality, his team stumbled for the last five-and-a-half weeks from one miserable defeat to the next.

The campaign began back on 5 October with a heavy reverse to New Zealand, the side who they had squeezed past by the barest of margins in the Final at Lord's four years earlier.

And, although a thumping victory over Bangladesh in the second match gave little indication of what was to follow, England were brought quickly back down to earth following a historic 69-run defeat to Afghanistan.

From that point onwards, it got much worse. South Africa took the English bowling attack to the cleaners as the 2019 champions came within a single run of conceding 400 for the first time ever in a One Day International.

In response, England collapsed under scoreboard pressure and ultimately finished 229 runs behind on 170 all out.

Five days later in Bangalore, England's humiliation was complete as they succumbed by eight wickets to an erratic Sri Lanka side after being bowled out for 156 in 33.2 overs while a literal vulture circled the ground.

That left 16.4 overs unbowled in that innings - 100 balls exactly. A screeching irony if ever there was one.

One hundred balls one week - one hundred runs the next; it felt as if the cricket gods were actively haunting English cricket with the number 100.

England next went down against India by that margin despite an improved bowling display which restricted the hosts to 229-9.

It proved more than enough, though, as a brittle batting line-up wilted once again.

Ben Stokes attempted to hit his way into some form but was out for a duck off the 10th ball of a torturous innings.

Yet, remarkably, given their sheer collective incompetence, England had not officially been eliminated as a result of their fifth defeats out of six.

However, Australia were more than happy to hammer the final nail in the holders' coffin - and eventually did, as England failed to chase down a modest target of 287, despite the efforts of Stokes who played a far more measured innings.

That left rock-bottom England with two dead-rubbers against Netherlands and Pakistan - although the importance of these fixtures was rather randomly increased mid-tournament.

Confirmation came from the International Cricket Council (ICC) that only the top eight would qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy, an announcement which caught several teams - including England - by surprise.

It is unclear exactly when the ICC had decided this and the cynic will find it difficult to believe the decision was nothing other than an attempt to give some sort of meaning to matches which would have been otherwise quite meaningless.

Ultimately, England finished seventh to avoid that indignity, comfortably beating Netherlands by 160 runs before making it back-to-back wins against Pakistan where they belatedly showed some signs of being back to their best to compile a score of 337-9.

Pakistan, and neighbours Afghanistan, were the only teams in the final round of matches with a technical chance of breaking into the top four.

However, both had been left with an almost impossible task to finish above New Zealand on net run rate after the Black Caps made light work of Sri Lanka.

Certainly then, there can be no doubt that the best four teams - India, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand - have made it through to the knockout stage.

Pretty much everyone, though, had identified at least three of the sides since the end of matchday four back in mid-October.

Indeed, a lack of overall drama has been reflected by a scarcity of close finishes throughout the competition - with the two biggest World Cup wins in terms of runs both occurring during this edition.

By contrast, only one match has been won by less than a 20-run margin and only one match won by a chasing team more than seven wickets down.

Moreover, the fact that those two matches - Australia v New Zealand and South Africa v Pakistan - occurred within 24 hours of each other has left long stretches in the schedule with a tedious lack of jeopardy or excitement.

Nevertheless, there have been some outstanding individual performances - especially with the bat.

Leading run-scorer Virat Kohli engineered his first century of the tournament against Bangladesh by retaining the strike - then, against South Africa on his 35th birthday, he drew level with his idol Sachin Tendulkar on 49 ODI tons, equalling the all-time record.

Quinton de Kock was the second most prolific player, scoring four centuries against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Australia and New Zealand in what he has stated will be his last World Cup.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the scale, in his first ever senior international tournament, 23-year-old New Zealander Rachin Ravindra has already made three tons against England on his World Cup debut, Australia and Pakistan.

The Australians have dominated in terms of producing the biggest individual scores with Glenn Maxwell hitting a mammoth unbeaten 201 off 128 balls to save the five-time champions from perilous positions of 49-4 and 91-7 against the doughty Afghans.

For good measure, Mitchell Marsh then smashed 177 not out off 132 balls in the Aussies' very next match against Bangladesh for the second highest score of the tournament.

It has been undoubtedly a much more difficult competition with the ball, in general - but it is yet another man in Canary Yellow, spinner Adam Zampa, who leads the way with 22 wickets.

Having said that, Mohammed Shami has easily been the pick of the bowlers in the group stage.

The veteran seamer took 16 wickets at an average of under 10-a-piece in just five matches - including 5-18 against Sri Lanka and 5-54 against New Zealand - as India successfully bowled out seven of their nine opponents on their way to a perfect nine wins out of nine.

At the risk of being accused of sour grapes though, this has sadly not been a well-organised or well-delivered tournament by the ICC, the Indian cricket board (BCCI) or the Indian authorities.

For a start, the organisers were still rejigging the match schedule and venues as late as 9 August, leaving travelling fans with no hope of making advance plans.

Pakistan supporters found it particularly difficult to gain visa access to their neighbouring country - and, against Australia, the few who had made it were even stopped from cheering on their side by police in the stadium.

Beyond the India matches which all had raucous atmospheres of course, crowds otherwise - while not low - have looked sparse in some of the more cavernous grounds.

Sometimes it makes you wonder if the people in charge actually want One Day International cricket to fail - and there is certainly plenty of concern for the future of the format.

Nevertheless, by far the biggest opprobrium in this regard should be reserved for the players and teams who have disrespected the 50-over game - and, as defending champions, England especially have charges to answer for their desperate performances.

Even before the start of the tournament, muddled thinking was evident with World Cup-winning opener Jason Roy told he was in the squad before being discarded at the last minute for Harry Brook because of concerns over a back injury.

Such worries did not seem to be considered when it came to Stokes after he dramatically reversed his decision to retire from ODIs and slotted back into the 15-man selection despite not being fully fit himself.

Worse was to follow. Spooked by the prevalence of T20 franchise leagues around the world, the ECB offered multi-year deals to centrally-contracted players for the first time.

Remarkably though, the deals were signed off right in the middle of a tournament with the very same players who were making a complete mess of their trophy defence - all with the sole exception of David Willey.

To his credit, Willey - who was far from the worst performer - continued to steam in and the left-arm seamer was rewarded on his final appearance against Pakistan with his 100th ODI wicket.

Understandably though, the 33-year-old has now retired from international cricket - and the decision not to offer him a deal was undoubtedly the final straw.

Rumours abounded of disharmony in the camp - rumours which were denied by Australian head coach Matthew Mott who merely watched on gormlessly as his team was routinely dismantled.

Mott - who had previously led an all-conquering Aussie women's team which barely needed coaching to beat their modest competition - seemed to lack any idea how to turn things around when England's hitherto talented batting unit began to falter.

Instead, the Aussie made few public statements and seemed to have even fewer ideas, shirking all responsibility as his side sank ever deeper into the quicksand.

Furthermore, the question must be asked that, if it was still such a happy camp, then how were England playing quite this poorly?

Some of it can be explained by a lack of practice with the holders playing only 42 matches in the 50-over format between their triumph and this tournament compared to 88 games between 2015 and 2019.

Additionally, some of those matches were played at the exact same time as England were also contesting a Test series, resulting in a lack of cohesion between the all-format players and the white-ball specialists.

Put simply though, some of England players in India are just too old and have been badly exposed by the intensity of a long, drawn out World Cup.

In the defeats to Sri Lanka, India and Australia, England did not field a single player aged under 30 - and it was really quite sad to see this golden generation fail over and over again.

Hopefully, once the dust settles, the players in this squad can be remembered for what it achieved rather than what it became - but, contracts or not, this really should be the end of the line for the majority, at least in ODI cricket.

That should include Buttler who has struggled to step up as Eoin Morgan's successor and has even seen his batting form crumble to the extent that he averaged an abysmal 15.33 at this World Cup.

Yet, ECB managing director Rob Key has backed Buttler and Mott with the former included by the latter in the next white-ball squad for a tour of the Caribbean next month.

For now, though, England must watch on as India, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia squabble over a prize which was so hard-won but sadly also so easily given away.

GROUP STAGE TABLE

		W	L	NRR	Pts	Results
(Q)	INDIA	9	0	2.57	18	WWWWWWWWW
(Q)	SOUTH AFRICA	7	2	1.26	14	WWLWWWWLW
(Q)	AUSTRALIA	7	2	0.84	14	LLWWWWWWW
(Q)	NEW ZEALAND	5	4	0.74	10	WWWWLLLLW
5	PAKISTAN	4	5	-0.20	8	WWLLLLWWL
6	AFGHANISTAN	4	5	-0.34	8	LLWLWWWLL
7	ENGLAND	3	6	-0.57	6	LWLLLLLWW
8	BANGLADESH	2	7	-1.09	4	WLLLLLLWL
9	SRI LANKA	2	7	-1.42	4	LLLWWLLLL
10	NETHERLANDS	2	7	-1.83	4	LLWLLWLLL

GROUP STAGE RESULTS

01 Thu 05-Oct	9:30	ENGLAND	282-9	▪️ NEW ZEALAND won by nine wickets
Ahmedabad		NEW ZEALAND	283-1 36.2
02 Fri 06-Oct	9:30	PAKISTAN	286 49	▪️ PAKISTAN won by 81 runs
Hyderabad		NETHERLANDS	205 41
03 Sat 07-Oct	9:30	AFGHANISTAN	156 37.2	▪️ BANGLADESH won by six wickets
Dharamshala		BANGLADESH	158-4 34.4
04 Sat 07-Oct	9:30	SOUTH AFRICA	428-5	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by 102 runs
Delhi		SRI LANKA	326 44.5
05 Sun 08-Oct	9:30	AUSTRALIA	199 49.3	▪️ INDIA won by six wickets
Chennai		INDIA	201-4 41.2
06 Mon 09-Oct	9:30	NEW ZEALAND	322-7	▪️ NEW ZEALAND won by 99 runs
Hyderabad		NETHERLANDS	223 46.3
07 Tue 10-Oct	6:00	BANGLADESH	227 48.2	▪️ ENGLAND won by 137 runs
Dharamshala		ENGLAND	364-9
08 Tue 10-Oct	9:30	PAKISTAN	345-4 48.2	▪️ PAKISTAN won by six wickets
Hyderabad		SRI LANKA	344-9
09 Wed 11-Oct	9:30	AFGHANISTAN	272-8	▪️ INDIA won by eight wickets
Delhi		INDIA	273-2 35
10 Thu 12-Oct	9:30	AUSTRALIA	177 40.5	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by 134 runs
Lucknow		SOUTH AFRICA	311-7
11 Fri 13-Oct	9:30	BANGLADESH	245-9	▪️ NEW ZEALAND won by eight wickets
Chennai		NEW ZEALAND	248-2 42.5
12 Sat 14-Oct	9:30	INDIA	192-3 30.3	▪️ INDIA won by seven wickets
Ahmedabad		PAKISTAN	191 42.5
13 Sun 15-Oct	9:30	AFGHANISTAN	284 49.5	▪️ AFGHANISTAN won by 69 runs
Delhi		ENGLAND	215 40.3
14 Mon 16-Oct	9:30	AUSTRALIA	215-5 35.2	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by five wickets
Lucknow		SRI LANKA	209 43.3
15 Tue 17-Oct	9:30	SOUTH AFRICA	207 42.5	▪️ NETHERLANDS won by 38 runs
Dharamshala		NETHERLANDS	245-8 43
16 Wed 18-Oct	9:30	AFGHANISTAN	139 34.4	▪️ NEW ZEALAND won by 149 runs
Chennai		NEW ZEALAND	288-6
17 Thu 19-Oct	9:30	BANGLADESH	256-8	▪️ INDIA won by seven wickets
Pune		INDIA	261-3 41.3
18 Fri 20-Oct	9:30	AUSTRALIA	367-9	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by 62 runs
Bangalore		PAKISTAN	305 45.3
19 Sat 21-Oct	6:00	NETHERLANDS	262 49.4	▪️ SRI LANKA won by five wickets
Lucknow		SRI LANKA	263-5 48.2
20 Sat 21-Oct	9:30	ENGLAND	170 22	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by 229 runs
Mumbai		SOUTH AFRICA	399-7
21 Sun 22-Oct	9:30	INDIA	274-6 48	▪️ INDIA won by four wickets
Dharamshala		NEW ZEALAND	273
22 Mon 23-Oct	9:30	AFGHANISTAN	286-2 49	▪️ AFGHANISTAN won by eight wickets
Chennai		PAKISTAN	282-7
23 Tue 24-Oct	9:30	BANGLADESH	233 46.4	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by 149 runs
Mumbai		SOUTH AFRICA	382-5
24 Wed 25-Oct	9:30	AUSTRALIA	399-8	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by 309 runs
Delhi		NETHERLANDS	90 21
25 Thu 26-Oct	9:30	ENGLAND	156 33.2	▪️ SRI LANKA won by eight wickets
Bangalore		SRI LANKA	160-2 25.4
26 Fri 27-Oct	9:30	PAKISTAN	270 46.4	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by one wicket
Chennai		SOUTH AFRICA	271-9 47.2
27 Sat 28-Oct	6:00	AUSTRALIA	388 49.2	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by five runs
Dharamshala		NEW ZEALAND	383-9
28 Sat 28-Oct	9:30	BANGLADESH	142 42.2	▪️ NETHERLANDS won by 87 runs
Kolkata		NETHERLANDS	229
29 Sun 29-Oct	8:30	ENGLAND	129 34.5	▪️ INDIA won by 100 runs
Lucknow		INDIA	229-9
30 Mon 30-Oct	8:30	AFGHANISTAN	242-3 45.2	▪️ AFGHANISTAN won by seven wickets
Pune		SRI LANKA	241 49.3
31 Tue 31-Oct	8:30	BANGLADESH	204 45.1	▪️ PAKISTAN won by seven wickets
Kolkata		PAKISTAN	205-3 32.3
32 Wed 01-Nov	8:30	NEW ZEALAND	167 35.3	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by 190 runs
Pune		SOUTH AFRICA	357-4
33 Thu 02-Nov	8:30	INDIA	357-8	▪️ INDIA won by 302 runs
Mumbai		SRI LANKA	55 19.4
34 Fri 03-Nov	8:30	AFGHANISTAN	181-3 31.3	▪️ AFGHANISTAN won by seven wickets
Lucknow		NETHERLANDS	179 46.3
35 Sat 04-Nov	5:00	NEW ZEALAND	401-6	▪️ PAKISTAN won by 21 runs DLS
Bangalore		PAKISTAN	200-1 25.3
36 Sat 04-Nov	8:30	AUSTRALIA	286 49.3	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by 33 runs
Ahmedabad		ENGLAND	253 48.1
37 Sun 05-Nov	8:30	INDIA	326-5	▪️ INDIA won by 243 runs
Kolkata		SOUTH AFRICA	83 27.1
38 Mon 06-Nov	8:30	BANGLADESH	282-7 41.1	▪️ BANGLADESH won by three wickets
Delhi		SRI LANKA	279 49.3
39 Tue 07-Nov	8:30	AUSTRALIA	293-7 46.5	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by three wickets
Mumbai		AFGHANISTAN	291-5
40 Wed 08-Nov	8:30	ENGLAND	339-9	▪️ ENGLAND won by 160 runs
Pune		NETHERLANDS	179 37.2
41 Thu 09-Nov	8:30	NEW ZEALAND	172-5 23.2	▪️ NEW ZEALAND won by five wickets
Bangalore		SRI LANKA	171 46.4
42 Fri 10-Nov	8:30	AFGHANISTAN	244	▪️ SOUTH AFRICA won by five wickets
Ahmedabad		SOUTH AFRICA	247-5 47.3
43 Sat 11-Nov	5:00	AUSTRALIA	307-2 44.4	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by eight wickets
Pune		BANGLADESH	306-8
44 Sat 11-Nov	8:30	ENGLAND	337-9	▪️ ENGLAND won by 93 runs
Kolkata		PAKISTAN	244 43.3
45 Sun 12-Nov	8:30	INDIA	410-4	▪️ INDIA won by 160 runs
Bangalore		NETHERLANDS	250 47.5

SEMI FINAL RESULTS

SF1 Wed 15-Nov	8:30	INDIA	397-4	▪️ INDIA won by 70 runs
Mumbai		NEW ZEALAND	327 48.5
SF2 Thu 16-Nov	8:30	SOUTH AFRICA	212 49.4	▪️ AUSTRALIA won by three wickets
Kolkata		AUSTRALIA	215-7 47.2

CENTURIES

201* Glenn Maxwell (Australia) v Afghanistan 

177* Mitchell Marsh (Australia) v Bangladesh
174 Quinton de Kock (South Africa) v Bangladesh 

163 David Warner (Australia) v Pakistan
152* Devon Conway (New Zealand) v England

140 Dawid Malan (England) v Bangladesh

137 Travis Head (Australia) v India FINAL
134 Daryl Mitchell (New Zealand) v India SF

131* Muhammad Rizwan (Pakistan) v Sri Lanka

131 Rohit Sharma (India) v Afghanistan

130 Daryl Mitchell (New Zealand) v India

129 Ibrahim Zadran (Afghanistan) v Australia

128* Shreyas Iyer (India) v Netherlands

126* Fakhar Zaman (Pakistan) v New Zealand

123* Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand) v England

122 Kusal Mendis (Sri Lanka) v Pakistan

121 Mitchell Marsh (Australia) v Pakistan

117 Virat Kohli (India) v New Zealand SF
116 Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand) v Australia

113 Abdullah Shafique (Pakistan) v Sri Lanka

111 Mahmudullah (Bangladesh) v South Africa

109 Quinton de Kock (South Africa) v Australia

109 Heinrich Klaasen (South Africa) v England

109 Travis Head (Australia) v New Zealand
108 Rassie van der Dussen (South Africa) v Sri Lanka

108 Sadeera Samarawickrama (Sri Lanka) v Pakistan
108 Rachin Ravindra (New Zealand) v Pakistan
108 Charith Asalanka (Sri Lanka) v Bangladesh

108 Ben Stokes (England) v Netherlands

106 Aiden Markram (South Africa) v Sri Lanka

106 Glenn Maxwell (Australia) v Netherlands

105 Shreyas Iyer (India) v New Zealand SF
104 David Warner (Australia) v Netherlands
103* Virat Kohli (India) v Bangladesh

102 KL Rahul (India) v Netherlands

101* Virat Kohli (India) v South Africa
100 David Miller (South Africa) v Australia SF
100 Quinton de Kock (South Africa) v Sri Lanka

FIVE-WICKET HAULS

7-57 Mohammed Shami (India) v New Zealand SF
5-18 Mohammed Shami (India) v Sri Lanka
5-33 Ravindra Jadeja (India) v South Africa
5-52 Mitchell Santner (New Zealand) v Netherlands

5-54 Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan) v Australia

5-54 Mohammed Shami (India) v New Zealand
5-80 Dilshan Madushanka (Sri Lanka) v India

Cricket World Cup preview: Confident India hold all the cards

• CRICKET WORLD CUP •

• 2023 •

INDIA ICC ODI ranking 1 • ODI record since CWC19 W40 L22 NR6 Win% 64.5 
Coach Rahul Dravid (since November 2021)
Squad Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav
Best performance Winners 1983, 2011
• Hosts and favourites India have hit top gear in the run-up to the Cricket World Cup, breezing to an eighth Asia Cup triumph by bowling Sri Lanka out for 50 before chasing the target without loss in 37 balls, before defeating Australia 2-1 in a bi-lateral series. Those recent achievements have elevated the Indians to number one in the ODI rankings, making them only the second side after South Africa in 2012 to top the standings in all three formats of the game concurrently - and head coach Rahul Dravid, a legendary player in his own right, has benefited from the strong return to form of KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, and the return to fitness of key bowler Jasprit Bumrah. Experienced heads Virat Kohli and Ravi Ashwin, a late selection for the injured Axar Patel, are actually the only two members of the squad who were part of the team which won the trophy when it was last on home soil in 2011 so there remain legitimate questions over whether this current vintage can cope with the almost ridiculous level of pressure exerted by the most vociferous supporters in world cricket. All things being equal, though, India have the talent - and, indeed, the form - to make reality reflect the rankings by winning the World Cup for a third time.
• Prediction Winners 

PAKISTAN ICC ODI ranking 2 • ODI record since CWC19 W24 L12 T1 Win% 64.8
Coach Grant Bradburn (since May 2023)
Squad Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Nawaz, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Wasim
Best performance Winners 1992
• Pakistan have already overcome their first obstacle at this Cricket World Cup - obtaining visa access to neighbours India, following a predictable stand-off between the two adversaries. Of course, Pakistan did not help matters by delaying the naming of their squad - but, then again, the Indians have not exactly been the most organised of hosts either with the match schedule and venues still being rejigged as late as 9 August. One of the nine amended games was the India v Pakistan match which was moved forward by 24 hours to 14 October to avoid a clash with a religious festival in Ahmedabad - and, in their first encounter on Indian soil since the T20 World Cup in 2016, the visitors will be desperate to improve their horrific ODI World Cup record against their greatest rivals. It currently reads played seven, lost seven - and it has undoubtedly contributed to the Falcons' extremely modest overall record at the tournament in the 21st century, with only one semi final appearance coming in the last five editions. With the ferocious pace of Shaheen Shah Afridi leading the attack, this tournament represents an extremely good chance for Pakistan to make a return to the top table; however, the Falcons' batting will need to improve if they want to double their number of World Cup titles on 19 November.
• Prediction Semi finals

AUSTRALIA ICC ODI ranking 3 • ODI record since CWC19 W25 L20 NR1 Win% 55.5
Coach Andrew McDonald (since April 2022)
Squad Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Best performance Winners 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015
• Five-time champions Australia have endured an uncharacteristically indifferent build-up to the Cricket World Cup, falling to a 3-2 series defeat to South Africa from 2-0 up before a further 2-1 series defeat in India. At one stage in that sequence, the Aussies lost five matches in a row and conceded more than 300 runs in four of the defeats, including a mammoth 416-5 against the Proteas. Notably, in that match, spinner Adam Zampa recorded the joint worst ever figures by a bowler in One Day International cricket to finish on 0-113 - and the most pertinent reason to bring this fact up is that Zampa is the Baggy Greens' only frontline spinner in a strangely imbalanced squad. Instead, the selection from Andrew McDonald is full of bits-and-pieces players - and Australia look set to rely perhaps more heavily than ever upon the batting prowess of Steve Smith, scoring power of Glenn Maxwell and the bowling ferocity of Mitchell Starc. The fast-bowler warmed up nicely for the tournament with a hat-trick against Netherlands in a washed out game - and, while there have been better Australia teams in the past, the Baggy Greens will no doubt remain as doggedly competitive in seeking a record eighth appearance in a World Cup Final.
• Prediction Runners-up

SOUTH AFRICA ICC ODI ranking 4 • ODI record since CWC19 W21 L16 NR5 Win% 56.7
Coach Rob Walter (since February 2023)
Squad Temba Bavuma (c), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Lizaad Williams
Best performance Semi finals 1992, 1999, 2007, 2015
• South Africa head into this Cricket World Cup looking to make amends for their poor display four years ago in England when their best performances came all too late. By the time the Proteas thumped Sri Lanka by nine wickets and then squeezed past Australia by 10 runs, a low confidence outfit had already been eliminated following three defeats and a washout in their first four games. There is far more confidence in the South African camp for this edition - and Rob Walter's squad warmed up for the tournament with a fine comeback from 2-0 down to win a five-match One Day series against Australia thanks to some stunning contributions with the bat from Heinrich Klaasen and Aiden Markram. In support of that, Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi will provide plenty of threat with the ball, but the loss of the excellent Anrich Nortje on the eve of the tournament to a back injury really is a devastating blow - and, indeed, it is a lack of sufficient depth could prove costly for the Proteas in their chase for a place back in the top four.
• Prediction Group stage

ENGLAND ICC ODI ranking 5 • ODI record since CWC19 W23 L16 NR6 Win% 58.9
Coach Matthew Mott (since May 2022)
Squad Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes
Best performance Winners 2019
• Defending champions England have been on quite the journey since winning by the barest of margins on that gloriously sunny July day at Lord's over four years ago. The subsequent drop in the rankings to fifth place has rather laid bare the fact that it has not been exactly the most comfortable of rides - and, certainly, a lot has changed in the intervening period. England have a new specialist white-ball coach, Australian Matthew Mott, while Jos Buttler took over the captaincy reins from Eoin Morgan upon the Dubliner's retirement in June last year. Furthermore, England have been extremely experimental with 28 different players used in 15 matches between February 2021 and February 2022 alone - while, at the same time, the domestic 50-over competition has been reduced to reserve status in favour of The Hundred, a risible format played nowhere else in the world. Then, in July last year, England Test captain Ben Stokes announced bombshell news as he retired from One Day International cricket, citing the congestion in the calendar for his decision. But, although ultimately the honour of defending a World Cup proved too tempting for Stokes who reversed his decision, a niggling knee injury and a far less experienced squad have contributed to the feeling that the 32-year-old may have been more prudent to stick with his original decision.
• Prediction Group stage

NEW ZEALAND ICC ODI ranking 6 • ODI record since CWC19 W26 L16 NR3 Win% 61.9
Coach Gary Stead (since August 2018)
Squad Kane Williamson (c), Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitch Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Will Young
Best performance Runners-up 2015, 2019
• Still hurting, New Zealand arrive in India for the Cricket World Cup determined this time to go one better than four years ago when they lost only on a little-heard, and now discarded, boundary count regulation. It was, in fact, a second successive World Cup Final defeat for the Black Caps following a heavy loss to fellow co-hosts Australia in the 2015 edition - but, understandably, it is the tracing paper-thin margin of the 2019 reverse which remains an open wound for many of this squad. With Gary Stead still at the helm, the Kiwis are the only team to have retained the same coach between the two tournaments - and, led by skipper Kane Williamson and spearheaded by veteran bowlers Trent Boult and Tim Southee, no fewer than nine of the players have taken part at an ODI World Cup before. New Zealand are chock full of experience then - but, with a country from the Big Three of Australia, England and India awarded hosting rights yet again, Stead's men will need to break something of a glass ceiling to achieve their ultimate ambition.
• Prediction Semi finals

SRI LANKA ICC ODI ranking 7 • ODI record since CWC19 W30 L26 NR2 Win% 53.5
Coach Chris Silverwood (since April 2022)
Squad Dasun Shanaka (c), Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dushan Hemantha, Maheesh Theekshana, Dunith Wellalage, Kasun Rajitha, Matheesha Pathirana, Lahiru Kumara, Dilshan Madushanka
Best performance Winners 1996
• Sri Lanka failed to qualify directly for the Cricket World Cup for the first time requiring the fall-back route of the ICC Qualifier. In fairness, the qualification competition contributed to a confidence-boosting record sequence of 13 successive One Day International victories - but little else really could be garnered from winning a group otherwise featuring Scotland, Oman, Ireland and United Arab Emirates. At least the Lions did not suffer the same fate as fellow former winners, the West Indies, who failed to qualify at all. However, far more Sri Lankan hope derives from the performance of the team at home in the Asia Cup where wins over Bangladesh twice, Afghanistan and Pakistan sent Chris Silverwood's side all the way to the Final. There, though, old habits came creeping back as a fired-up India team destroyed the top and middle order - and, at one stage, Sri Lanka were 12-6 before eventually being bowled out for just 50. A subsequent warm-up defeat to Afghanistan has also given little sign of that the 1996 champions are anywhere near consistent enough to threaten a place in the knockout stage - and even matching their sixth-placed finish from four years ago might be a stretch.
• Prediction Group stage

BANGLADESH ICC ODI ranking 8 • ODI record since CWC19 W30 L21 NR3 Win% 58.8
Coach Chandika Hathurusingha (since January 2023)
Squad Shakib Al Hasan (c), Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mehedi Hasan, Towhid Hridoy, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Nasum Ahmed, Mahedi Hasan, Tanzim Hasan, Tanzid Hasan, Mahmudullah
Best performance Quarter finals 2015
• The build-up to this Cricket World Cup for Bangladesh has been dominated by an escalating war of words between the two most notable cricketing figures in the country with skipper Shakib Al Hasan and his omitted predecessor Tamim Iqbal trading barbs. Officially, Tamim had been left out of the squad because of doubts over fitness after his well-publicised struggles with a back injury. However, Shakib has since accused opener Tamim of being "childish" and not a team player after he is said to have refused to bat in the middle order. At this point, the whole thing is a rather unseemly mess ahead of a tournament in which the Tigers should be looking to take advantage of relatively familiar conditions. Instead, recent form at the Asia Cup in August and September was nothing special - and, beyond all-rounder Shakib repeating his 2019 feat of scoring more than 600 runs and taking a five-for at the same tournament, there is precious little else to suggest Bangladesh make it into the top four. After all, even four years ago, Shakib's stunning contributions were only good enough for an eighth-placed finish.
• Prediction Group stage

AFGHANISTAN ICC ODI ranking 9 • ODI record since CWC19 W15 L14 NR2 Win% 51.7
Coach Jonathan Trott (since July 2022)
Squad Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Riaz Hassan, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Abdul Rahman, Naveen ul Haq
Best performance Group stage 2015, 2019
• Played nine, lost nine - Afghanistan certainly found life tough four years ago at the Cricket World Cup in England. This edition in India at least should provide conditions slightly more to the liking of the Afghans - and, while they should expect to win anyway on 3 November against the lower-ranked Netherlands, there is enough talent in this squad to cause much more of a stir. Spinners Rashid Khan and Mujeeb ur Rahman and all-rounder Mohammad Nabi are standout figures - but, as a whole, this Afghanistan outfit remains rough around the edges and suffers from a lack of regular match practice. That, in itself, should not really come as much of a surprise - opponents are understandably unwilling to tour the landlocked central Asian nation, especially since the Taliban regained control in August 2021, so matches are difficult to organise. Consequently, the team has been effectively consigned to perennial minnow status - despite the best efforts of former England batter Jonathan Trott, who currently finds himself in the rather unexpected position of Afghanistan head coach.
• Prediction Group stage

NETHERLANDS ICC ODI ranking 14 • ODI record since CWC19 W8 L24 T1 NR3 Win% 24.2
Coach Ryan Cook (since May 2022)
Squad Scott Edwards (c), Max O'Dowd, Bas de Leede, Vikram Singh, Teja Nidamanuru, Paul van Meekeren, Colin Ackermann, Roelof van der Merwe, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Ryan Klein, Wesley Barresi, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad, Sybrand Engelbrecht
Best performance Group stage 1996, 2003, 2007, 2011
• Netherlands belied the lowly 14th-placed ranking to make it into this 10-team Cricket World Cup - but Scotland will still be kicking themselves now that it is not them instead. Defending 277 in a winner-takes-all match, the Scots looked on course to make a fourth finals appearance when the Dutch were reduced to 163-5. But Durham all-rounder Bas de Leede had other ideas - and, having taken 5-52 with the ball, he finished on 123 not out with the bat as the Flying Dutchmen smashed 22 off the 41st over and 20 off the 42nd to win in pretty comfortable style in the end. Certainly, the Dutch fully deserve another shot at taking on the world cricketing elite having earlier held their nerve to beat two-time former winners West Indies in a Super Over with the men from Caribbean missing out altogether for the first time. Nevertheless, de Leede's audacious semi finals target looks especially fanciful, considering the Dutch lost 17 international matches in a row while taking part in the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League against the same elite opponents as they will face over the next five weeks.
• Prediction Group stage

Bairstow and Roy send England to the semis

CRICKET WORLD CUP

TEAM-BY-TEAM REVIEW

1 INDIA W 7 L 1 NR 1 NRR 0.809 Points 15

Coach Ravi Shastri (since July 2017)

Most runs Rohit Sharma (647)
Most wickets Jasprit Bumrah (17)

CWC19 results WWXWWWLWW

Group winners India made light work of the opening phase and, in the latter part of last month, regained their position at the top of the rankings. As such, it is no surprise that it is now India - and not England - who have now been installed as favourites for this World Cup. Predictably, the key to the Indians' success has been their rock-solid top three which easily overcame the tournament-ending thumb injury to Shikhar Dhawan who, nevertheless, had already registered a match-winning century against Australia. Altogether, Indian players scored seven centuries in their nine group stage matches - with a World Cup record of five compiled by the prolific Rohit Sharma alone. Opener Sharma is unsurprisingly the top scorer at this World Cup so far with 647 runs at an eye-watering average of 92.42 and it would be fair to say he has outshone even Virat Kohli who holds a still-highly respectable best score of 82 and average of 63.14. The frontline bowlers too have made an impact - Jasprit Bumrah has taken 17 wickets at a cost of just 19.52 each and Mohammed Shami has produced some fine demonstrations of exactly how to bowl against the tail at the death. And so, everything considered, it is frankly very difficult to see a suddenly woefully out-of-form New Zealand getting anywhere near to India in their match which, weather-permitting, is due to be played at Old Trafford tomorrow. Of course, the group match between the teams at Trent Bridge was itself a washout - but even a repeat of that rather undesirable outcome would still be enough to take India to a fourth World Cup Final. 

2 AUSTRALIA W 7 L 2 NR 0 NRR 0.868 Points 14

Coach Justin Langer (since May 2018)

Most runs David Warner (638)
Most wickets Mitchell Starc (26)

CWC19 results WWLWWWWWL

Five-time winners Australia were the first team to qualify for the semi finals all the way back on 25 June after beating England at Lord's - and their long wait for another truly meaningful game perhaps provides the reason why the Aussies took their eye off the ball against South Africa on Saturday, though only just by 10 runs. It is nevertheless a potentially costly defeat as it meant India unseated the Baggy Greens at the top of the table on the last day of the group phase. Australia now face a reinvigorated England in the semi finals on Thursday instead of a New Zealand team which seems to have completely lost its way. Meanwhile, the initial Aussie squad has also suffered from several injuries with Mitchell Marsh, Peter Handscomb and Matthew Wade called up to replace the stricken Marcus Stoinis, Shaun Marsh and Usman Khawaja respectively. Unsurprisingly, off-spinner Nathan Lyon has started the mind-games early by declaring England to be the favourites for the match - but really that would only clearly be the case if the injuries had been suffered by one of the openers or Mitchell Starc. Rather predictably, all three players have been the figureheads of this Aussie campaign - opening pair David Warner (638) and skipper Aaron Finch (507) are in second and fourth place in the run-scorers list, while Starc - with 26 wickets so far - needs just one more to have taken the most by a player at a single World Cup. Forget the defeat on Saturday then - knowing how to win a Cricket World Cup is part of the Australian DNA and this set of players is just as fearsome as their predecessors in the gold and green. 

3 ENGLAND W 6 L 3 NR 0 NRR 1.152 Points 12

Coach Trevor Bayliss (since May 2015)

Most runs Joe Root (500)
Most wickets Jofra Archer (17)

CWC19 results WLWWWLLWW

England captain Eoin Morgan was compelled to resort to cliché when asked to describe his side's performance during the group phase - but, in fairness to him, he could not really be faulted for referring to the last few weeks as like being on a rollercoaster. It had all looked rather more straightforward at the halfway stage, at which point a high-scoring defeat to Pakistan had been the only blip. Ben Stokes had taken an iconic catch in the opening game on the first day of the tournament against South Africa - while Morgan himself now holds the record for the most sixes in a single One-Day International after clearing the rope on 17 occasions against Afghanistan. But, when a shock defeat to Sri Lanka at Headingley was followed up by a worryingly facile reverse against Australia at Lord's, England hopes of a first semi final since 1992 were suddenly hanging by the thinnest of threads. Indeed, the wheels threatened to come off altogether when opener Jonny Bairstow became involved in a spat on social media with former captain Michael Vaughan. Bairstow claimed that he felt there were some observers who were just waiting for the team to fail - but, having finally been reunited with his previously hamstrung opening partner Jason Roy, the Yorkshireman blossomed with back-to-back centuries against India and New Zealand. 
True, matters were never quite out of the hands of the hosts - but, following their wobble, few people were expecting successive victories against two sides who England had failed to beat at a World Cup for 27 years. Certainly, the successes of the past week or so have gone a long way to restoring confidence to a team which, after all, came into the tournament ranked as the world number one. Bairstow looks far more comfortable at the top of the order with Roy instead of the far looser James Vince while Liam Plunkett has sensibly been restored to provide some threat in the middle overs with the ball. A note of caution, however, in that it should be noted that Morgan won both tosses in the last two games and opted to bat first with England having failed to chase on three separate occasions - and, of course, the coin will not always land in the hosts' favour.

4 NEW ZEALAND W 5 L 3 NR 1 NRR 0.175 Points 11

Coach Gary Stead (since August 2018)

Most runs Kane Williamson (481)
Most wickets Lockie Ferguson (17)

CWC19 results WWWXWWLLL

There or thereabouts, always there or thereabouts. New Zealand qualified for a fifth semi final in the last six World Cups and their eighth overall on the back of pretty typical results in which they beat the teams they would expect to beat and lost against or did not play some of the tougher opponents. Certainly now, though, the five successive wins either side of the washout against India at the start of the tournament feel an age away following three consecutive heavy defeats to Pakistan, Australia, and England. Meanwhile, some of the Black Caps' victories were far less comprehensive - Bangladesh were beaten by two wickets in the 48th over, South Africa were beaten in the 49th over and West Indies were beaten with an over to spare by just five runs. Undoubtedly then, New Zealand are comfortably the weakest of the four remaining teams with the ongoing struggles of openers Martin Guptill and Colin Munro exemplified by the ease with which the openers from the other three semi finalists are racking up the runs. On a more positive note, skipper and top scorer Kane Williamson has already shown in this tournament against South Africa that he is a genuine match winner, while a bowling attack boosted by the emergence of Lockie Ferguson alongside Trent Boult has enabled New Zealand to chase successfully on four occasions despite it having been far from the preferred option of any of the teams throughout the competition.

5 PAKISTAN W 5 L 3 NR 1 NRR -0.430 Points 11

Coach Mickey Arthur (since May 2016)

Most runs Babar Azam (474)
Most wickets Mohammad Amir (17)

CWC19 results LWXLLWWWW

Pakistan will feel hard-done by after reacting to their customary World Cup defeat to India by winning their last four matches, thereby drawing level with New Zealand on 11 points. Indeed, the Falcons beat the Black Caps, winning by six wickets on the back of a Babar Azam century, and also triumphed against South Africa, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh in their late surge. Earlier in the piece, Pakistan had shocked hosts England in a high-scoring thriller at Trent Bridge - and the campaign spookily mirrored the order of their results in 1992, an edition of the World Cup in which Imran Khan's Cornered Tigers were ultimately victorious. This time, however, the Pakistanis' late run was not enough - although elimination on net run-rate has proven controversial among the more paranoid Pakistan supporters - and even coach Mickey Arthur - who pointed out they would have progressed instead of New Zealand if their head-to-head record had been the tiebreaker. The rules, though, were clear before the start of the tournament - and so Pakistan only have themselves to blame for being ambushed so badly in their first game against a West Indies team which eventually finished ninth and for later chasing so timidly against rock-bottom Afghanistan. At least, Pakistan can still leave their long stay in England with several positives - in particular, youngsters Babar and Imam ul-Haq have shown plenty of promise at the top of the order while teenager Shaheen Afridi looks as if he could forge a fearsome strike partnership with the rehabilitated Mohammad Amir.

6 SRI LANKA W 3 L 4 NR 2 NRR -0.919 Points 8

Coach Chandika Hathurusingha (since December 2017)

Most runs Kusal Perera (273)
Most wickets Lasith Malinga (13)

CWC19 results LWXXLWLWL

Like the girl with the curl right in the middle of her forehead, Sri Lanka were very good when they were good - but, when they were bad, they were horrid. For all their complaints about bowler-friendly pitches, poor facilities and accommodation, and a cramped team bus, the Lions actually performed better than expected for their midtable finish. However, they are also the classic definition of a team in transition. From their magnificent 20-run win over hosts and pre-tournament favourites England, the Sri Lankans - in their next game just seven days later - were comprehensively beaten by already-eliminated South Africa. Of course, still more changes are set to follow with star performer Lasith Malinga due to join the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Rangana Herath in retirement. Nevertheless, the rest of this team has done enough to put to bed a selection policy which has, in recent times, resembled a wildly-spinning revolving door. An exception, though, can surely be made for Niroshan Dickwella who showed his credentials on an 'A'-team tour of India played at the exact same time as he should have been in this squad. 

7 SOUTH AFRICA W 3 L 5 NR 1 NRR -0.030 Points 7

Coach Ottis Gibson (since August 2017)

Most runs Faf du Plessis (387)
Most wickets Chris Morris (13)

CWC19 results LLLXWLLWW

South Africa headed to the World Cup in third place in the rankings but endured the sort of campaign which, in time, will no doubt produce a series of eye-opening accounts in the chapters of the autobiographies of some of these players. In fairness, the Proteas were given a tough fixtures draw with hosts England in their opening match and powerhouses India in their third game. But defeat to Bangladesh in between and a washout in the fourth fixture against West Indies effectively left South Africa needing to win all of their remaining matches from then on. Certainly, their cause was not helped when a flare-up of a long-standing shoulder injury to strike bowler Dale Steyn ruled him out of the tournament without him having made a single appearance. Meanwhile, fellow fast-bowler Lungi Ngidi struggled early on with a hamstring strain and opener Hashim Amla looked a shadow of his former self with the bat. But, just as it looked as if Ottis Gibson's men were heading out limply and not in their usual tragicomic manner, South Africa became involved in the best tussle of the tournament against New Zealand. As ever, the Proteas should have won but did not - as they failed to review a not-given caught-behind against Kane Williamson which he had hit with the toe-end of the bat. Kiwi skipper Williamson went on to make a match-winning unbeaten 106 as the Black Caps scrambled to victory with three balls to spare - and so, South Africa were mathematically out with three matches to spare. With the pressure off, the South Africans belatedly showed their worth by strolling to a nine-wicket win over Sri Lanka at Chester-le-Street before narrowly defending a score of 325 against Australia at Old Trafford. In the latter, skipper Faf du Plessis scored the only century by a South African at this World Cup while Rassie van der Dussen grafted hard for his 95. Altogether, though, it was much too little, too late. 

8 BANGLADESH W 3 L 5 NR 1 NRR -0.410 Points 7

Coach Steve Rhodes (since June 2018)

Most runs Shakib Al Hasan (606)
Most wickets Mustafizur Rahman (20)

CWC19 results WLLXWLWLL

Only three men have scored more than 600 runs at this World Cup and only eight men have taken a five-for - but only one player is on both of those lists: Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh. Certainly then Shakib has enhanced his standing as one of the world's best all-rounders - and he was also backed up effectively by his skipper Mustafizur Rahman who took two five-fors himself against India and Pakistan in a haul of 20 wickets. This is a total bettered only by Mitchell Starc - yet there was precious little else from the Tigers at this tournament - and the win for South Africa over Australia in the last group match consigned the Bangladeshis to a place in the bottom three. Undoubtedly, Bangladesh can expect to be more competitive at the next World Cup in 2023 which, on Asian soil, will play to their strengths - but, regardless, they will need altogether far greater depth than they have currently to put up a more serious challenge than this for a place in the top four. 

9 WEST INDIES W 2 L 6 NR 1 NRR -0.225 Points 5

Coach Floyd Reifer (since April 2019)

Most runs Nicholas Pooran (367)
Most wickets Sheldon Cottrell (12)

CWC19 results WLXLLLLLW

It was difficult to know what to make of West Indies in the run-up to the World Cup and it is still difficult to know what to make of them now. First, of course, it must be remembered that the Windies had been - somewhat humiliatingly - forced to qualify for a tournament which they had dominated in its embryonic years - and yet, just before this campaign, Jason Holder's men deservedly drew 2-2 against the then-world number one team England. At the World Cup itself, West Indies simply could not have started any better as they bowled Pakistan out for 105 and won by seven wickets in their first game. However, six consecutive defeats either side of a washout against South Africa left West Indies without any sort of chance of a respectable place in the group phase. The narrow win in the last match against rock-bottom Afghanistan will be considered as little more than the most minor consolation for the men from the Caribbean - although things would have definitely looked rosier if West Indies had got over the line against in similarly tight finishes against either or both of Australia and New Zealand. Still, the fact they did not take either match rather belied a lack of confidence which comes from winning games so rarely - and recently-appointed coach Floyd Reifer has much work to do to rebuild this in the wake of this ninth-placed finish and the impending retirement of talisman Chris Gayle.

10 AFGHANISTAN W 0 L 9 NR 0 NRR -1.322 Points 0

Coach Phil Simmons (since December 2017)

Most runs Rahmat Shah (254)
Most wickets Mohammad Nabi (10)

CWC19 results LLLLLLLLL

Played nine, lost nine - it is hardly an unsurprising result for Afghanistan considering they were facing all of the teams currently ranked above them. Indeed, the outsiders went close against some of their more illustrious opponents, losing to India by just 11 runs before pushing Pakistan into the last over in one of the most remarkable matches of the World Cup. At the same time, though, it is equally true that the Afghans failed to maximise their chances due to some horrific decision-making, both before and during the tournament. In the run-up, Asghar Afghan was sacked as captain and replaced by Gulbadin Naib and then, just two matches into the campaign, the best player in the team - Mohammad Shahzad - was sent home, accused of being unfit. New captain Gulbadin took it upon himself to be a jack of all trades and master of none as he opened the batting and took on some of the most important overs with the ball, not least against Pakistan. However, nothing summed up his World Cup more than him ducking out of the way of a catch in the final group game against West Indies. At least, during that match, there was a spirited 86 from teenage wicketkeeper Ikram Alikhil, the best score by any Afghani player in the tournament. Afghanistan have now reached a critical juncture in their development as a team - and, to compete at the top level, they need better selection from their administrators which brings through more of the likes of Ikram and surely less of Gulbadin.