13:14
ADMIN
Nobody can deny that there were a handful of incredibly one-sided games in the 2011 World Cup - the scorecards don't lie. Using the same form of measurement, though, one can also see that there were some absolute crackers, a few of which involved the likeable folk from Ireland.
William Porterfield's men quickly became fan favourites at the event, but those fans better commit Kevin O'Brien's assault against England, George Dockrell's magic and a general sense of enthusiasm and dedication to their long-term memories because they won't be seeing those players at the game's showpiece event for at least eight years; and that is simply unacceptable.
Ireland's reaction to the ICC's decision to limit participation in the 2015 World Cup to the 10 Member nations has been understandably strong. Coach Phil Simmons described it as "despicable", suggesting that the game had been "pulled back by 10 years," while Ireland Cricket's chief executive Warren Deutrom called it a "black day for the sport". To skipper William Porterfield, it's simply "a joke".
Their sentiments are hard to disagree with, and they certainly can't be repelled with logic. As Simmons pointed out, Ireland are in the top 10 in the rankings, they pull in the fans and have the skills to back it up. More curiously, however, one can't call on the ICC's reasoning to defend the decision because, since Monday's board meeting in Mumbai, they haven't offered any.
Chief executive Haroon Lorgat has mentioned in the past that the Associates will be included in the World Twenty20, as the ICC view this as a better arena in which the minnows can improve their skills. Quite a ridiculous comment, really, when the prominent school of thought sees Twenty20 Internationals requiring a different skill set to long forms of the game, and certainly not one that will enhance play in the Test arena every team's ultimate goal.
Since the commercial disaster that was the 2007 World Cup there have been rumblings that the ICC simply cannot afford to take the chance that major upsets will occur as they did in the Caribbean, with India and Pakistan crashing out in the group stages. If this is the case, the least the ICC can do is come out and say it, rather than hiding behind a cowardly wall of silence.
Perhaps the most perplexing point is why have the ICC reduced the tournament by four? By limiting the number of teams to 12 rather than the 10 that has been decided on, one allows the top Associates to have their day in the sun, and the bigger nations have a one-in-three chance of making the semi-finals. The chances of two of the big guns losing out on those odds is slim.
Speaking in the run-up to the World Cup, Ed Joyce, once of Ireland, then of England and now again with Ireland, told Cricket365 that if the game was to really grow in Ireland, players needed to be presented with a realistic choice, a firm reason for staying in Ireland.
The ICC have now made the choice for this generation of Irish players. Dockrell now looks certain to turn out for England in the future, and you can't really blame him.
Even more horrifying is that if the decision has such drastic consequences for the Ireland, who are seen as being on the cusp of Test-playing status, what will it do to even smaller nations? What do the Kenya and Canada have to play for? Should Bermuda and Afghanistan just throw in the towel now? Madness.
Asked whether he would like to see the Associates at future World Cups, England's Graeme Swann replied: "Why would you want to take the world out of the World Cup?"
It seems that neither the players nor fans would want to. The ICC are alone on this one.
William Porterfield's men quickly became fan favourites at the event, but those fans better commit Kevin O'Brien's assault against England, George Dockrell's magic and a general sense of enthusiasm and dedication to their long-term memories because they won't be seeing those players at the game's showpiece event for at least eight years; and that is simply unacceptable.
Ireland's reaction to the ICC's decision to limit participation in the 2015 World Cup to the 10 Member nations has been understandably strong. Coach Phil Simmons described it as "despicable", suggesting that the game had been "pulled back by 10 years," while Ireland Cricket's chief executive Warren Deutrom called it a "black day for the sport". To skipper William Porterfield, it's simply "a joke".
Their sentiments are hard to disagree with, and they certainly can't be repelled with logic. As Simmons pointed out, Ireland are in the top 10 in the rankings, they pull in the fans and have the skills to back it up. More curiously, however, one can't call on the ICC's reasoning to defend the decision because, since Monday's board meeting in Mumbai, they haven't offered any.
Chief executive Haroon Lorgat has mentioned in the past that the Associates will be included in the World Twenty20, as the ICC view this as a better arena in which the minnows can improve their skills. Quite a ridiculous comment, really, when the prominent school of thought sees Twenty20 Internationals requiring a different skill set to long forms of the game, and certainly not one that will enhance play in the Test arena every team's ultimate goal.
Since the commercial disaster that was the 2007 World Cup there have been rumblings that the ICC simply cannot afford to take the chance that major upsets will occur as they did in the Caribbean, with India and Pakistan crashing out in the group stages. If this is the case, the least the ICC can do is come out and say it, rather than hiding behind a cowardly wall of silence.
Perhaps the most perplexing point is why have the ICC reduced the tournament by four? By limiting the number of teams to 12 rather than the 10 that has been decided on, one allows the top Associates to have their day in the sun, and the bigger nations have a one-in-three chance of making the semi-finals. The chances of two of the big guns losing out on those odds is slim.
Speaking in the run-up to the World Cup, Ed Joyce, once of Ireland, then of England and now again with Ireland, told Cricket365 that if the game was to really grow in Ireland, players needed to be presented with a realistic choice, a firm reason for staying in Ireland.
The ICC have now made the choice for this generation of Irish players. Dockrell now looks certain to turn out for England in the future, and you can't really blame him.
Even more horrifying is that if the decision has such drastic consequences for the Ireland, who are seen as being on the cusp of Test-playing status, what will it do to even smaller nations? What do the Kenya and Canada have to play for? Should Bermuda and Afghanistan just throw in the towel now? Madness.
Asked whether he would like to see the Associates at future World Cups, England's Graeme Swann replied: "Why would you want to take the world out of the World Cup?"
It seems that neither the players nor fans would want to. The ICC are alone on this one.
0 comments:
Post a Comment