Calypso cricket

Australia’s victory at the Cricket World Cup... was nothing short of brilliant. But... the Cup itself sank to new lows, with a farcical final... Though Gilchrist’s star was shining, the team’s unbeaten run owed much to the talents of captain Ricky Ponting, the superb bowling skills of Glenn McGrath... and the professionalism of the rest of the squad... As outgoing coach John Buchanan said, the gap between his team and the rest had been the difference “between night and day". Unfortunately, the same could be said when comparing this World Cup... with just about every other competition in the game. The 2007 tournament will go down in cricketing history as being short on organization and long on duration. Overseas fans complained of hotels tripling their costs, while high entrance fees to matches kept the locals away... Its Caribbean backdrop should have injected plenty of flair into the game. But the competition was no carnival.