The contests become intense now. The pressure of knockout matches influences even the most mentally strong cricketers. In turn, they affect the performance of the team. I expect furious battles over the next four days with Sri Lanka taking on South Africa in the first quarterfinal.
Among the pre-tournament favourites, Australia, New Zealand and India have played true to their reputations. South Africa, a huge underachiever in the World Cup history, has been an exception with some issues needing desperate attention, especially bowling.
Batting has been South Africa’s strong point but there is an over-reliance on Hashim Amla and A.B. de Villiers. Quinton de Kock has not delivered for South Africa and it would be a pity if de Villiers is forced to don the gloves for it would deprive the team of its most versatile fielder.
Kumar Sangakkara is in pristine form. A lot depends on how he and T. Dilshan fare. They can be the difference because Sri Lanka has had issues with its bowling. There is a question mark over Rangana Herath’s fitness and Lasith Malinga has not looked the same since his return from injury. It will need a 300-plus total to tame South Africa at Sydney.
One can expect some explosive action in the Australia-Pakistan match later. I also expect the New Zealand-West Indies match to produce some scintillating stuff. West Indies is the most unpredictable challenger even though New Zealand has appeared the most formidable in conditions that suit its players.
India has a task at hand, and it will be unwise to take Bangladesh lightly. With the result against England, the motivated Bangladesh team has shown it belongs to this league. India, however, has clearly been the most dominant team in this tournament and can back itself against Bangladesh.
