Check Errors With Technology

The TV umpire should check every delivery for a ‘no-ball’ to avoid heartburns.

- Sunil Gavaskar

The 2019 ICC World Cup has started and it’s quite clear that there is no team that can be considered the favourite. England which is the No. 1 ranked team in the world and which is the favourite to win its first ever World Cup has lost to Pakistan which had earlier lost to West Indies. So the upsets have come through in the first week of the tournament itself. There’s South Africa, which has lost all three World Cup matches it has played so far as also Afghanistan. The latter is still young in international cricket and so is not a real contender but can cause the odd surprise and beat a fancied team and spoil its party. It is clearly a team that is more in sync with T20, the ultra short format of the game than the 50-overs version.

India started its campaign well beating South Africa easily but has some big games which can make or mar its tournament.

Australia has shown great resurgence and the manner in which it recovered after being four wickets down for 38 against the West Indies shows that the old combativeness is back. No Australian team is ever defeated till the last ball is bowled and this team with Steve Smith and David Warner back in Aussie colours is not going to surrender the trophy easily. Remember it is the defending champion and it can regain the respect of the cricketing world and more so its own countrymen by winning the World Cup.