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Monday, March 16, 2015

2015 ICC Cricket World Cup - Asia Quartet Defy convention


  
 




The striking feature of this World Cup is Asia`s four Test nations - India,Pakistan,Sri Lanka and Bangladesh defying conventional wisdom to make the quarter-finals.

The belief that Asian cricketers struggle on the hard, bouncy wickets Down Under was thrown out of the window as India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh moved ahead from the group stages

Three more wins will see a team crowned the 2015 champions -- just like Pakistan did when the World Cup was last held in Australia and New Zealand in 1992 -- and another victory for Asia cannot be ruled out.

Defending champions India bounced back from a dismal tour of Australia prior to the World Cup to record six straight wins in the Group Stage

Bangladesh went through almost the entire last year without a win in Test or one-day cricket, but the tactical acumen of their Coach Chandika Hathurusinghe (SL)and fast bowling adviser Heath Streak has paid dividends.
Two consecutive centuries by Mohammad Mahmudullah and incisive fast bowling by Rubel Hossain and young Taskin Ahmed led the turnaround for the Tigers, and skipper Mashrafe Mortaza promises more from his side.

India`s quarter-final opponents at the iconic Melbourne Cricket ground on Thursday March 19,2015 will be Bangladesh, the surprise packet of the tournament who knocked England out in the league

Sri Lanka, who take on the powerful but inconsistent South Africa in Wednesday`s first quarter-final at the Sydney Cricket Ground, have the prolific Kumar Sangakkara in their ranks.
The 37-year-old left-hander, playing one-day cricket for the last time, has already hammered an unprecedented four consecutive centuries and tops the batting charts with 496 runs.
With the 38-year-old Tillakaratne Dilshan having made 395 runs with two hundreds, it promises to be an enthralling contest between Sri Lanka`s in-form batsmen and the Proteas` attack led by Dale Steyn.
Sri Lanka Coach Marvan Atapattu is confident that Sri Lanka, the 1996 champions who lost in the finals in both the last two editions, are equipped to deal with the pressures of a knock-out game

Pakistan, described by South African Coach Russell Domingo as "predictably unpredictable", lived up to that reputation by bouncing back from two defeats to win four in a row.
And as they prepare to tackle mighty Australia at the Adelaide Oval on Friday March 20,2015, skipper Misbah-ul Haq was convinced his team can win the tournament and repeat the feat of their 1992 predecessors.

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