INZI’S SOMBRE END: Inzamamul Haq retired after Pakistan crashed out of the 2007 World Cup. PHOTO: AFP
The first World Cup to be staged in the Caribbean unfortunately failed to ignite fan spirit, nor the carnival atmosphere that the region is known for, as a colossal tally of 51 matches took what seemed an eternity to end.
For six weeks, Sri Lanka, England, the West Indies, New Zealand and South Africa pretended that they too were contenders against an Australian juggernaut that crushed every opponent in their way and a huge sigh of relief was breathed by all concerned when an Adam Gilchrist blitz finally confirmed the obvious in Barbados; Australians were just a class above.
Pakistan and Woolmer
Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room after his team was sent packing by eleven amateur Irishmen who celebrated the Saint Patrick’s Day by cooking the goose of Inzamamul Haq and Woolmer’s supposed World Cup contenders.
A beleaguered Pakistan trounced Zimbabwe in their last group match — Imran Nazir clobbered 160 — but the only lasting memory from the game is an emotionally overwhelmed Inzamam trudging back to the pavilion in his last ODI.
The tournament that catapulted Inzi’s status to that of an icon in 1992 brought his career to a tearful halt 15 years later.
The failed ‘globalising’ experiment
The International Cricket Council’s idea of ‘globalising’ the game by inducting a total of 16 participants for the 2007 World Cup fell flat on its face when India, the most lucrative and financially strong team, exited the event just a few days after their bitter rivals Pakistan did so.
The 16 teams were divided into four groups each; India had to win at least two of their games against group rivals Bermuda, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to go through the Super Eights stage.
But Bangladesh sprung a huge surprise against the Rahul Dravid-led side — coasting to a five-wicket win. Bermuda were brushed aside after a no-contest in Trinidad but Sri Lanka, the eventual finalists, nailed India by a whopping 69-run margin, giving their neighbours the marching orders in the process.
Pakistan bracketed with the hosts, Ireland and Zimbabwe entered the pool stage as the favourites in their group. The West Indies spurred by their home fans made most of their rivals’ perennial problems in chasing a score by running away with the game despite posting at best a par score of 241 in the tournament opener at Jamaica.
Woolmer’s death and the early exit of both India and Pakistan brought the tournament to its knees.
Ireland and Bangladesh’s giant killing act sucked life out of the Super Eights stage since both teams struggled to replicate their heroics. Australia kept flaying their opposition, while England continued to disappoint at the big stage.
In the process, the local supporters started losing interest in the tournament after the hosts failed to sustain the momentum they had built in the group stage — losing to Australia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka by massive margins in the Super Eights.
The King of Trinidad, Brian Lara, made his final appearance in the ODI format at Barbados as a Kevin Pietersen special gave England a thrilling one wicket win in a dead rubber; both teams had already lost the chance of making it to the semis.
Gilchrist and the squash ball
Australia’s class of 2007 boasted some of the greatest talents the game has ever seen. Ricky Ponting had in his ranks Adam Gilchrist, Matthew Hayden, Andrew Symonds, Glenn McGrath, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke, Mike Hussey and Shaun Tait — all players with incredible cricketing abilities.
The squad also included more than handy performers in Nathan Bracken and Brad Hogg. The defending champions didn’t put a foot wrong on their way to the final at Barbados. The only missing link was the poor form of Gilchrist.
On the eve of the final, the wicketkeeper-batsman decided to follow the advice of his batting coach and placed a squash ball inside his left batting glove. The idea was to give him a better grip and leverage for playing attacking shots.
Rain threatened to wreak havoc but after a considerable delay, the sky cleared up. The match was reduced to 38-overs-a-side and Australia elected to bat. Gilchrist upped his game to a level that even his lofty standards rarely matched.
The left-hander’s brutal assault left the Sri Lankans befuddled and bewildered. In a 129-minute stay at the wicket, Gilchrist posted an individual score of 149, his innings embellished with 13 fours and eight enormous sixes.
Australia’s total was a staggering 281 — Dilhara Fernando, the Lankan pacer, was thrashed for 74 runs in only eight overs.
Sri Lanka fought hard through Sanath Jayasuria and Kumar Sangakkara but a batting collapse amid the return of rain made the equation even tougher for the luckless Islanders.
Umpires Steve Bucknor and Aleem Dar were found scratching their heads on what the playing conditions dictated as shadows lengthened past the twilight hour.
Ponting’s men celebrated their win twice as the players were called back on the field for three additional overs. Match referee Jeff Crowe took the blame for the absurd finish to the final, which forced the Sri Lankans to bat in pitch-black darkness.
“In hindsight, I should have known the rules and said the game had been called off. I'm very embarrassed for the playing control team today,” said Crowe later.
The farcical end was a fitting conclusion to a tournament that promised so much but in the end delivered so little.
Like Sports on Facebook, follow @ETribuneSports on Twitter to stay informed and join in the conversation.
COMMENTS (2)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
For Pakistan 2007 was the worst, there was more controversies than anything else. Team was seen busy praying all the time. All members of the team had some facial hair and Inzimam made Pakistan a complete joke by ruling the team like a Madarsah Maulvi. Lets for get 2007 and its players,
Ina allaha wa inna alahay rajion