The ICC seem to have failed yet again at organising a World Cup
The anticipation in the build up to this year’s Cricket World Cup was immense with many predicting that it would be the most open tournament ever. However it has only taken a few days since the event began for its format and 43 day length to come under scrutiny.
After the disastrous 2007 World Cup, changes were made for this year’s tournament in order to keep people’s interest sustained throughout. Out went the widely criticised Super 8 stage and in came two groups of seven to replace the four groups of four. What hasn’t undergone a dramatic change though has been the length of the competition; something that desperately needed doing. In 2007 it ran for a marathon 51 days and unsurprisingly people began to lose interest in cricket’s most prestigious tournament. Although the exclusion of the Super 8 stage has led to a shorter tournament, 43 days is still far too long.
The group stage doesn’t conclude until 20 March and with it being an almost certainty that the top eight teams will reach the Quarter Finals, it’s easy to see why the tournament is under fire. It’s true that many people won’t switch on until the knockout stage begins.
The main purpose for changing the group structure was to ensure that the events of 2007 were not repeated again. The viewing figures last tournament took a huge nose dive after both India and Pakistan were knocked out of the group stage following defeats to Bangladesh and Ireland respectively. One off colour performance by both sides meant that two cricketing powerhouses were sent home early from the Caribbean. Consequently, interest in the tournament among the majority of Pakistan and Indian fans ceased to exist.
However now, with each team playing a minimum of six games, the chances of the big sides falling at the first hurdle are very slim. Is this is a good thing? Well, it maybe for the business side but it eliminates one thing that every sports fan loves – a good old upset. Yes, a so called minnow may defeat one of the big guns in one game in the group stage but there is still another five games to go. Therefore the likelihood of an underdog getting through the group stage becomes very small. India’s and Pakistan’s early exit in 2007 not only created headlines but it was a fairytale for Bangladesh and Ireland. This is what sport is about – it’s the old cliché ‘David slaying Goliath.’
The 2015 World Cup will also see changes made to the tournament’s format but this time they will be far more radical. The teams competing will be reduced from fourteen to ten and not surprisingly the decision has led to the wrath of the Associate countries. Cricket Kenya chief executive Tom Sears said, ‘If we have to improve on the standards, there is no point of denying us the opportunity of competing at the top level.’ Furthermore, players from Full Member countries have come out in support of the Associates. Australian fast bowler Shaun Tait said, ‘to play against the best players and sides in the world is massive and I wouldn’t want to take that away from anyone’ while South African wicket keeper AB de Villiers added, ‘it makes it more colourful and it’s good for the growth of the game (to have Associate Members competing).’
So what is the best format for the World Cup? Obviously, you have to completely disregard the business side of the sport to find the best solution! The best way would be to have four groups of four with the top two from each group going on to compete in the Quarter finals. If the likes of India and Australia get knocked out because they were outperformed on the day by a ‘minnow’ then what is wrong with that? We see it in the football World Cup all the time.
In addition, it is beyond belief that the organisers insist on having only one match a day on all but a few occasions when the tournament is being held in three different countries! Surely, if they wanted interest to be sustained then they would speed up the group stage by having two matches a day but as always, money does the talking.
When you consider that we’re talking about cricket’s most prestigious tournament, it’s amazing that the organisers continually fail to find the best format to benefit not only the competition but the sport.
