A loss of credibility

It is a real shame that the 2019 Cricket World Cup winner was decided in the way it was. It is hard to digest that after a heart-stopping performance by two teams which gave it their best, an odd rule ruined the party not only for the gutsy Kiwis but also for cricket fans (‘England win Cricket World Cup after Super Over drama,’ July 15, Gulf Today).

It is much more than a loss for the Black Caps, the gentleman’s game took a severe beating. The outcry over the result is refusing to die, with coaches and star cricketers calling for a review of the decision. It is still not late for the ICC to take a call and declare both the teams as joint winners.

The boundary verdict made a mockery of the game and its rich glory. I seriously would like to know what would have been the outcome, if the tally of boundaries also stood tied. The boundary rule was used for the first time in a World Cup tournament, so probably they would have given a shot at the number of catches or something like that.

There are loads of jokes doing the rounds after the final. The one I particularly enjoyed was about a boy who went home to his father with his result sheet and said that he was ‘NewZealanded’. Asked for an explanation, the boy told his dad that he and his colleague scored 99 out of 100 but he was not ranked first because his friend used more answer sheets than him in the final exam.

Sunil Shetye
By email