Australia win the World Cup (again) ...yawwwwwwwwwwnnn

Its 8.14am in Melbourne and Australia have triumphed for the third time in the World Cup. Aleem Dar and Steve Bucknor are insisting the game's not over since 3 overs remain. Another pig-headed decision by the ICC means that SriLanka will bat out the remaining overs in light that is best suited for an evening tea-party not a cricket final. Before this Australia decimated the SriLankan bowlers in the morning and then polished off their middle-order with some tight bowling. Most of the cricketing world would have been supporting a SriLankan but that man Adam Gilchrist again played like he had God batting for him. On one hand we marvel at how bloody good this Australian team but we also wonder where cricket heads from here. A dominant unbeatable team now holds all the major titles, has won in every cricket playing country and has an abundance of talent for another decade. I propose we do away with this farce of Australia playing in tournaments and beating everyone silly. Lets have a World Test and ODI Series over 4 years where all teams bar Australia play each other and the winner then plays Australia at the end of it. Atleast we'll see more even matches and we'll have to bear Australia crush opposition only once in 4 years. If there's any consolation McGrath and Warne are gone forever ...maybe India can win something when they go down to Australia later this year.

Why SriLanka Must Win The World Cup

Two years ago I was lucky enough to spend a fortnight in Colombo and Dambulla during a triangular in the Emerald Island closely observing the start of SriLankan crickets revival under their new coach Tom Moody. That tournament victory sparked an enthralling run by the SriLankans that has taken them back to the cricket World Cup final, one game away from usurping the old enemy Australia again. So just why is it more important for SriLanka to win than for Australia to complete crickets first World Cup treble. Some may accuse me of a sub continental and personal bias having long since adopted SriLanka as my honorary second nation. But biases aside ... Cricket desperately needs a new champion team, one that can rule for the next four years, winning on the field but also bringing in new audiences to the game. One suspects that Australia with their all conquering stint and tasteless sledging seemed to turn off both purists and casual spectators - many tired of their one sided conquests and boorish on-field behaviour. In any case Australia have won the World Cup prize twice and a loss in their third final will not diminish but only add to their legend just as Bjorn Borg's loss did in his last Wimbledon final. While South Asian teams have reached the final in the last 4 editions they have suffered embarassing losses to Australia the last two times. If Srilanka goes on to win on Saturday, slaying the Australian dragon it will go a long way in restoring some subcontinental pride. Finally SriLanka must win because that beautiful nation and its ever smiling inhabitants deserve a bit of providence and success on the cricketing field where they come to forget the strife that frequently engulfs their tiny nation. Not only will Jayawardene's Army be perfect ambassadors for the game, rest assured they will be far more well behaved than their predecessors as a certain Mr.Sharad Pawar will testify. Come April 28, I hope Percy that undoubted talismanic figure and enigmatic #1 fan of SriLankan cricket will be all celebratory smiles and holding aloft his SriLankan flag with pride.

India exit cricket World Cup

In an anti-climatic end, the Indian team has crashed out out of the Cricket World Cup. A team that until a year ago was being touted as the only one capable of overcoming Australia, lost easily to its two smaller neighours SriLanka and Bangladesh. As a young kid, I watched Arjuna Ranatunga adopt defensive tactics in game after game as he knew his team was no match for India's might. A decade later the same team now erupts with glee everytime they force a collapse and usurp their bigger neighbours in a crunch game. As an Indian fan, the lingering memory will not be the loss to Bangladesh as will be the sight of my heroes from a decade ago struggle against inexperienced bowlers who weren't even playing cricket when India were in the finals of the last World Cup. To see bowlers like Mortaza, Asif and Malinga regularly castle Sachin Tendulkar's middle stump is deflating to the morale. Starting late 2005, this team had broken new ground and given hope of a stronger mental mindset if not a second World Cup trophy. A 17-match voctory streak while chasing, the discovery of a genuine all-rounder in Irfan Pathan, the appointment of legendary Greg Chappell as coach all gave rise to visions of a new meaner Indian team winning more than in the past. Alas it seems, that ever present Indian fraility to crumble in crunch situations proved to be the weak link. Perhaps we should be picking players who measure up on this parameter rather than on pure runs volume in our meaningless domestic tournament.