Reviewing It My Way : CWC 2015

Australian players after winning the World Cup 2015

Four years ago, on 2^nd April, India became the world champions on their home turf. But nothing remains constant in this ever changing world. The Indian team made a valiant, but unsuccessful, effort to defend the title in the 2015 edition of the Cricket World Cup. The Australian team ended all the enigma and curiosity by winning the World Cup for the fifth time. Undoubtedly, they were the most charismatic and deserving team right from the start of this gala event, and playing at home added a lot more optimism to their quest for the glory.

This edition of the WC was not less than the other editions in terms of eventfulness. We had greats playing their last World Cup and a few future superstars, who embarked in grand fashion. History was repeated and a few events happened for the first time. Records were broken and new milestones were set. In this post, we will take a look at all those incidents which made this season an unforgettable affair for the fans and followers.

For the first time, since the 1987 WC, the final was played between two non-Asian teams. It was for the second time that the event was co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. The last time WC happened here was back in 1992, where none of the co-host nations were in the final. But this time around, the things were a bit different and both of them featured in the final, where New Zealand turned up as the runners up. The four top teams cruised into the semi finals, where India and South Africa were the second best teams in their respective encounters. For England, it was another disappointing tournament and they had to catch their flight after the preliminary round, which was a result of their disastrous loss against Bangladesh. Bangladesh looked promising and won all the hearts by their performance and reached the quarter final, where they had to face the defeat against their neighboring giants, India. But the team which broke all hearts was South Africa. Despite being such a great troop of talented and experienced players, they “choked” again at the knock-out stage. The outburst of their emotions after the game against New Zealand told the whole story.

Clarke playing a shot in the final at MCG

Now talking about the individuals, this edition marked the end for many players who served their nations for several years. The winning captain Michael Clarke was the happiest among those legends, as his team finished as the best side in the tournament, clinching the title. To add to the list, we had Sri Lankan lions Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jaywardhane featuring in their last one-day tournament. The kiwi spin veteran Daniel Vettori was as agile as any 18 year old boy in his final appearance at the international arena. A few Pakistani legends including the flamboyant Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq and the classical Younis Khan represented their country for the last time in the limited overs format.

With the new anti-bowler's rules, this edition was a treat for the batters, as many batting records were claimed this season. The highest team total in the world cups was achieved by the winners Australia when they scored 417 against the minnows, Afghanistan. Two double centuries were scored within a span of 50 days. In the initial stage, the Caribbean superhero, Chris Gayle raced off to 215 against Zimbabwe, while later in the competition Martin Guptill surpassed him with his breathtaking 237 and this time West Indies was at the receiving end. Presently Guptill holds the record for highest individual score in the world cup. Two hat-tricks were clinched in the tournament by English pacer Steven Finn and the Proteas part-timer JP Duminy respectively.

All in all, this biggest cricket carnival was a huge success in all means. It was a mixed pack of action, drama, emotion and more importantly, cricket was the mode of all these expressions. By 2019, things won’t be the same, the players would change and of course the venue will shift to England. But the thing which will remain constant is the craze and affection for this beautiful & wonderful game of “Cricket”.