The first 3 days of the World cup so far (as well as the opening ceremony) have been largely predictable affairs, except for the New Zealand vs. Kenya game where New Zealand caused a major upset by skittling the 2003 semi-finalists for a meager total and then going on to polish the runs off in less than 10 overs themselves. For a side that has lost more games than it has played this year, to have such a confidence boosting victory in the first round means a lot. A slightly sterner test awaits for them in their next game against Australia. By a simple process of extrapolation, it can be argued that if Hamish Benett bowls his full quota of 10 overs, he will end up with 8-32 in that match, which makes a New Zealand victory almost a certainty. Surely, these one-sided ODI's have to end!
India and Sri Lanka both did what was expected of them by obliterating the minnows. India went so far as to try and help Bangladesh by playing Sreesanth, but even that could not stop them from scoring an 80+ run victory against the home side. Bangladesh seem to have a sure game-plan though. They are quickly taking all the pre-tournament pressure off themselves and trying to settle once again into the role of minnows before hustling their way towards a World Cup victory. If I read their strategy right, expect a 100+ run drubbing against either Ireland or the Netherlands before they pick their game up and end up winning the tournament unbeaten from that point and then winning the next 3 world cups without dropping a single game. There might still be some debate about the legitimacy of a "You just dropped the World Cup son" comment by Imrul Keyes when either Kapugedara or Angelo Matthews drops a catch at square leg while trying to celebrate (this is the part where the crystal ball gets a bit fuzzy) and Keyes then goes on to score a match winning century in the Quarter Final. It can thus be said that their World Cup campaign is off to the perfect start. From the time they put India in, only for Sehwag to blitz his way to a 175, the result was never in doubt. The gregarious Sreesanth did what he does best by providing the home side with some moments of cheer in his 5-over spell, but the writing was on the wall by then. It is interesting to note that India have never lost a World Cup when one of their batsmen has scored a 175 against a minnow nation so that must be a good sign for the tournament hosts.
Canada, of course, have no real ambition. They are only in it to click some pictures of Bangladesh and India for their flickr accounts and argue with fellow countryman Bryan Adams about what flavor of maple syrup goes better with a Kottu-roti. There are certain rumors that Canada have been specifically hired by Haroon Lorgat to lose games by such huge margins that no one argues about not including minnows in the 2015 World Cup anymore. Minor upsets like NZ victories over Kenya will be forgotten if Canada continue to play as per plan. Sri Lanka once again proved that on flat pitches and against bad opposition, there are no better looters. They hold a record for the highest ODI and T20 scores against minnows and I have already put a vast fortune of $1 on them beating that record during this World Cup.
And finally, who can forget the opening ceremony? It captured the local flavor and the general theme of the tournament perfectly. But you had to read between the lines, of course. The boring speeches by the politicians and the overly long cultural shows represented the games including minnows during this World Cup that no one really cares about. Sonu Nigam and a local Bangladeshi woman dressed in a saree over someone like a Beyonce or Rihanna (say) represented how the ICC know exactly what the viewers don't want to see but will make no effort to do anything about it nonetheless. A performance by the 112 year-old Bryan Adams (despite being the best recorded performance by a person his age) went out to show just how the ODI format can still continue to entertain despite fears that is largely irrelevant. And a recording of the the largely un-inspiring World Cup theme song played 3 times in loop was a true representation of the lukewarm nature of a majority of the pre-quater games as well as the fact that its 3 times longer than it should be. It was all very cleverly done, it must be said. And then there was Ravi Shastri.
While his constant mumblings of "tracer bullet" have put him on the radar of the US governments Department of Homeland security (who make it a business to make everything their business) for a while now, his accent at the World Cup opening ceremony put him firmly on the country's blacklist. Language experts analyzing his accent found traces of Egyptian, Iranian, Syrian and Cuban dialects in there somewhere without being able to trace his roots 100%. His dogs bouncer and beamer are now under a 24-hr watch and the US are showing a lot of restraint by not trying to bring democracy to his living room. How this sub-plot emerges might just be the most exciting bit about the World Cup before the Quarter finals start.
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