2007 Cricket World Cup

▪ 2008

      An ill-fated tournament from the start, the 2007 World Cup ended in farce and near darkness on April 28, with Australia beating Sri Lanka by 53 runs in a rain-affected final in Bridgetown, Barbados. Australia, expertly led by Ricky Ponting, deserved to win its third successive trophy, but after 51 matches spread across 47 days and nine Caribbean islands, not many fans outside Australia and Sri Lanka truly cared about the outcome. Crowds at many matches were sparse—the result of high ticket prices and tight security—and with the early departure of Pakistan and India, the tournament lost two of its most lucrative drawing cards.

      It was not the standard of play (sometimes thrilling but mostly mediocre) that set the sombre tone for cricket's showpiece occasion. The death of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer (Woolmer, Bob ) in his hotel room in Jamaica the night after his side's shocking defeat by Ireland in the group stages and the ensuing police investigation into his death rendered the rest of the tournament irrelevant. Many thought that the tournament should have been halted then and there, a move never likely to be sanctioned by the International Cricket Council.

       Australia came into the World Cup on an unprecedented run of five defeats but did not lose a match when it mattered. Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden formed a destructive opening partnership on low, slow pitches. Meanwhile, bowler Glenn McGrath (McGrath, Glenn Donald ), in his last international tournament before retirement, took 26 wickets at an average of 13.73 and went out as Player of the Tournament. Only Sri Lanka, superbly marshaled by Mahela Jayawardene, matched the Australians in spirit and talent. In beating India, Bangladesh came of age in international competition, whereas Ireland, one of the lesser teams, surprised everyone—including themselves—by playing some inspired and purposeful cricket in reaching the Super Eight phase.

      The antiseptic atmosphere was not helped by the dismal showing of the host team, which was nearly eliminated from the competition in the group stage. The West Indies' final Super Eight game, a narrow one-wicket defeat by England, also marked the retirement of Brian Lara, a true master of world cricket. With the stage set for one last great innings, Lara was run out for 18 by his own teammate. South Africa and New Zealand reached the semifinals by virtue of stamina and efficiency rather than flair. In the end, the two best teams contested the final, which was graced by an innings of sustained brilliance by Gilchrist. In a match reduced by rain to 38 overs a side, the Australian wicketkeeper's 149 took Australia to 281 for 4. Sri Lanka's stubborn reply ended 53 runs short and in total confusion, with neither the umpires nor the players sure of the rules as rain and darkness fell.

Andrew Longmore

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