World T20, Super Eights: Marks out of 10, so far

After a sedate start, the World T20 tournament, 4th in five years, has lit up. At the half-way stage of the Super-Eights, we have seen the best and the worst of almost every team in the tournament. Lets us analyze each team by giving marks out of 10 and see which team has the mettle to lift the coveted trophy.

1- Sri Lanka:

Starting with the hosts, we come across a team determined to break the jinx that no host nation has won the World T20 so far.

They have a strong but top-heavy line-up. The openers, Mahela Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan make a formidable opening partnership. Kumar Sangakkara’s presence at one-down is reassuring one as he can adapt to the situation as easily as fish to the water.

The middle order looks inexperienced but goes very deep into the batting order with two quality all-rounders in Angelo Mathews and Thisara Perera capable of turning the match on their own. The bowling relies heavily on dangerous Lasith Malinga and inform Ajantha Mendis, but they have reliable back-up in Nuwan Kulasekara who can strike with a swinging new ball.

Batting – 7/10

Bowling – 6/10

Boon factor – Home advantage 7/10

Cumulative – 6.6/10

2- West Indies:

They are the neutral’s favourite. Despite their recent progress, they are still a shadow of their past. The T20 format suits them better, especially when you have most-sought-after players like Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard in your ranks. Their batting is explosive albeit brittle at times.

Gayle is the best in the business in this format and his captain Darren Sammy would bank on him to give his side flying starts. Marlon Samuels, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell and Pollard can all go berserk with their range of shots. The main concern for them may be a lack of temperament at times but still they possess a real threat.

The bowling has been boosted by the presence of mystery spinner, Sunil Narine. No one has yet picked which way his deliveries go so he will be difficult to hit, even negotiate. Ravi Rampaul and Fidel Edwards are pacy and can make early inroads but discipline will be the key for the bowling line up.

Batting – 6.5/10

Bowling – 5/10

Boon factor – Chris Gayle 6.5/10

Cumulative – 6/10

3- India:

India are a formidable T20 unit. As usual they will bank on their batsmen to deliver but possess a threatening bowling line-up as well. Captain Mahindra Singh Dhoni has already led his team to a World Cup win last year in the 50-over format, so the confidence level must be unmatched. He was also the man to lift the first-ever World T20 Cup in 2007.

In Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, they have experienced T20 players who can accumulate as well as hit with equal adeptness. Then they have Yuvraj Singh, Dhoni and Suresh Raina who can launch an assault on the opposition bowlers and are great finishers. Virender Sehwag, though out of form, is a match-winner on his day.

India’s bowling strength is their spin department. Harbhajan Singh has come back with a bang as he demonstrated against England the other day, but the real threat would be unorthodox Ravichandran Ashwin. They both might play which means Piyush Chawla has to sit out.

Irfan Pathan too has made his comeback worthwhile, as his speed and swing both seem to return. Zaheer Khan is not in form but there is no doubt about what is capable of. India lacks a genuine fast bowler that may be a concern especially in case if the opposition goes on a run feast. But the way wickets have changed over the course of the tournament, as shown by their thrashing of Pakistan yesterday, they stand a good chance.

Batting – 7.5/10

Bowling – 6/10

Boon factor – They are able to chase anything 6.5/10

Cumulative – 6.6/10

4- England:

The Englishmen are the defending champions. They have packed their side with youth and T20 specialists. So far in the tournament they have shown tendency to falter whenever they were pushed to the wall. The batting looks solid as well as destructive on their day. If they get a good start, which they haven’t yet achieved, they can destroy any attack barring quality unorthodox spinners. Eoin Morgan, Alex Hales and Luke Write are in good form. Wright has already played a couple of stunning knocks but the ghosts of Kevin Pietersen are still hanging about.

The bowling is one dimensional. Graeme Swann has been steady so far but his team needs wickets from him. Steven With Finn nipping out the top order and Broad, Dernbach and Swann strangling the middle order would be the perfect recipe for England. Their fate is hanging in the balance at the moment.

Batting – 6/10

Bowling – 6/10

Boon factor – Good pace attack 5/10

Cumulative – 5.66/10

5- Australia:

The Australians are now taking T20 seriously. After a year of experimenting with different combinations and captains, they seem to assemble a right bunch.

In Shane Watson and David Warner, they have the most destructive and consistent opening pair. Watson has grabbed man of the match awards in each of the matches he has played in the tournament so far. The middle order is steady but has not been stretched so far.

Australia has unearthed two bright young guns, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins, who can bowl at 90 miles per hour consistently. The back-up bowling is not brilliant but their fielding and discipline make up for that handicap. Watch out for the Aussies as their craving to lift the T20 Cup may get answered this time. Their form in the tournament is testament to that.

Batting – 7/10

Bowling – 7/10

Boon factor – Determination to win and Shane Watson 7/10

Cumulative – 7/10

6- South Africa:

AB de Villiers has shrugged off the chokers tag saying they have come with a clear mind and have devised different strategy for each match. So far their performance has been short of that of a champion but they have a formidable team and have all bases covered.

They bat deep but the batting order is a concern. They will bank on Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis and de Villiers to score big with Richard Levi, JP Duminy and Albie Morkel all are capable of using the long handle.

They have the best pace bowing attack in Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel backed up well by all-rounders Kallis and Albie. The spinners, Johan Botha and Robin Petersen are steady. They are the number one T20 side in the world so it was thought they should be able to get past the semi-final stage this time. Their captain AB de Villiers thinks so but only time will tell. They are on the brink of elimination as they have to beat India with a big margin.

Batting – 6/10

Bowling – 7/10

Boon factor – Ranked number one 7/10

Cumulative – 6.6/10

7- Pakistan:

Mercurial Pakistan are oozing confidence after winning a T20 series against Australia in UAE. Quite surprisingly their batsmen are outperforming their bowling which is the most varied and productive attack in the world. The openers, Imran Nazir and captain Mohammad Hafeez, have provided good starts so far. 

They have found a gem in Nasir Jamshed who is in form and can score quickly without looking in a hurry.

The middle order is good with Umar Akmal, inform Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Malik all capable of scoring big knocks. Shahid Afridi is a worry as he is woefully out of form as a batsman but with Abdul Razzaq waiting on the bench he must be itching to perform. The recent performance against India must have shattered their confidence and the recovery depends on how they gather themselves and tackle resurgent Australia.

With world’s top three wicket takers in the format in their team, they are a formidable bowling unit. The ‘jadugar’ Saeed Ajmal takes wickets and chokes runs at the same time. Afridi and rookie Raza Hasan are pretty good spinners too. Umar Gul has lost his radar badly and Pakistan need him to find his Yorker-bowling ability sooner rather than later if they are to have their sights at the Cup. The second, and third, seamer slots are a worry but if all other fire, it may not matter much in the end.

Batting – 7/10

Bowling – 7/10

Boon factor – Unpredictability 6/10

Cumulative – 6.6/10

8- New Zealand:

The Black Caps have always performed beyond their ability in the world Cups. Their batting relies heavily on the exploits of Brendan McCullum. If he fails, they have a problem, especially chasing big scores.

The bowling lacks depth but in Vettori and Tim Southee they have squeezers who are difficult to hit. Kyle Mills’ experience and excellent fielding to back up are other trademarks which New Zealand would love to bank on. Ross Taylor needs to fire as a leader and a batsman if they are to touch the silverware but that looks extremely unlikely now as they need a minor miracle to come back in contention with only one match to play against New Zealand.

Batting – 6/10

Bowling – 5.5/10

Boon factor – Vettori and McCullum 5.5/10

Cumulative – 5.6/10

Image Credit: Associated Press