ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Why India are best placed to win the trophy

India, currently ranked second in ICC team ODI rankings, dominate ICC player rankings with two batsmen and three bowlers among top 10; also, number 1 batsman and number 1 bowler are both from India.

The much-awaited International Cricket Council (ICC) tournament, the men’s cricket World Cup 2019 (50-over) is scheduled to kick-start from May 30. The cricket world cup (CWC), hosted by England and Wales this time, will see 10 teams playing 47 league matches. Four teams would advance to the knockout stage where two semifinals will be played. The winners of the semis will meet in the final to decide the world champion.

Days before the start of the 12th edition of CWC, we look at the ICC rankings for batsmen, bowlers and all-rounders, and estimate which teams will have the advantage going into the World Cup.

Check World Cup schedule here

According to the latest ICC batsmen ranking, India, New Zealand and South Africa have two players each in top 10 list, while England, Australia, Pakistan and West Indies have a player each. The India cricket team seems to have an advantage in the batting department, with the top two batsmen in the ICC rankings from the country — Virat Kohli (ranked first) and opener Rohit Sharma (second). New Zealand’s Ross Taylor is ranked third, while the only England player among top 10 is Joe Root (ranked 6th).

However, if we were to widen the list from top 10 to top 20, England would find three of its other frontline batsmen making the list — Eoin Morgan (ranked 19th), Jos Butter (14th) and Jonny Bairstow (17th). By comparison, apart from Kohli and Sharma, India have only one player in top 20 — Shikhar Dhawan (13th).

Talking of Australia, which recently returned to winning ways after a team overhaul, have only their skipper, Aaron Finch, in top 10 (ranked ninth). The only other Australian in top 20 is Finch’s opening partner Usman Khawaja (18th). At least three participating teams — Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan — have no representation in ICC’s top 10 batsmen list.

Bowlers

Indians appear to be dominating the ICC rankings in the bowling department, too, with Jasprit Bumrah ranked first, Kuldeep Yadav seventh and Yuzvendra Chahal (eighth) in top 10. Afghanistan have two bowlers on the top 10 list — Rashid Khan (third) after Mujeeb Ur Rahman (ninth). New Zealand have Trent Boult (second) in top 10, while South Africa, regarded the best bowling unit in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, have two players — Imran Tahir (fourth) and Kasigo Rabada (fifth). Australia have only Pat Cummins (sixth) in the list of top 10, while World Cup favorites England have Adil Rashid (ranked 10th). Again, three participating nations — Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan — have none of their players in the ICC list of top bowlers.

Sultans of swing and spin: Top 10 bowlers to look for in ICC World Cup 2019

From Bumrah to Rabada, these top 10 bowlers will hold the key to their respective teams' success on the pacey and bouncy tracks of England and Wales in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

Business Standard : The biggest international 50-over cricket tournament, the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, is set to kick off from May 30 in England and Wales, where bowlers would look to have a gala time on pacey and bouncy tracks, considered ideal for testing batsmen’s mettle.

At stake is the dream of every player — the World Cup — and the 10 participating teams would look for an early attack with their bowling arsenal.

It would not be surprising if Pakistan, known to bring the best breed of pacers to the world stage, were to find themselves lacking this time in the midst of some fresh talent coming from other countries.

If the India squad boasts the supremely talented Jasprit Bumrah, Aussies have Adam Zampa, and South Africa Kasigo Rabada. In the spin department, considered the backbone of every bowling attack in today’s cricket, would have an even bigger role this time — the onus to trick batsmen and choke the run flow will be on them.

Let us look at some of the bowlers who could prove lethal in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019:

Jasprit Bumrah, India

The man with the golden arm is currently the number 1 bowler in ICC one-day international (ODI) rankings. This right-arm fast-medium bowler has emerged as one of the most trusted death-over bowlers for his point-precision bowling skills, and he has mastered the art deftly. A yorker specialist, Bumrah has ended India's years-long wait for a quality death-overs bowler. His recent Indian Premier League (IPL) outing bears testament to the skills of this young bowler. This time, batsmen will be wary of the threat he poses while playing his first World Cup.

Hasan Ali, Pakistan

A 24-year-old medium-fast bowler from Pakistan, Hasan seems an outlier in the present Pakistani bowling attack: He is known to tighten the noose around batsmen with tricky bowling and variation rather than relying solely on pace and swing. Hasan will be a key player for Pakistan and remain at the forefront of their bowling attack.

Rashid Khan, Afghanistan

This young bowler is known for his quick googlies and sudden flippers that deceive the batsmen in business. The 123 wickets he has picked in his 57 matches so far clearly show how difficult it would be for batsmen to survive his attack in ICC World Cup 2019.

India vs Afganishtan Day 2 Test Match preview: Will Afghanistan make an impact on the second day?

On the second day, Afghanistan would aim to wrap up India's innings in the first session by taking the four remaining wickets. Pandya and Ashwin are at the crease, Jadeja is to follow.

In the historic India vs Afghanistan one-off test match, India started by scoring some quick runs, after wining the toss and electing to bat first

at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday. Powered by Dhawan and Vijay's tons, the hosts kept Afghanistan bowlers on their toes and the match looked like a one-sided affair until the final session, which brought some twist to the tale.

The world no.1 hosts lost five wickets for 99 runs in the final 32 overs of Day 1 and this helped Afghanistan salvage their show from the sorry picture in the first two sessions of the day.

Afghanistan's star spinner Rashid Khan, who shot to fame recently for his outstanding performance in the Indian Premier League (IPL) struggled initially, finding it difficult to adjust to the long format of cricket, but the player-with-a-magical-touch did put up a fight eventually.

On the second day, Afghanistan bowlers would want to continue the attack and aim to wrap up India's innings in the first session. Among recognised batsmen apart from Hardik Pandya and Ravichandran Ashwin, who are at the crease at present, Ravindra Jadeja is still to bat.

For Pandya and Ashwin, who will continue the batting for India, sticking on to the crease for some more time and rebuilding momentum would be important.

Jadeja, Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav could also weild their bat in cameos and elevate the score further, but facing Afghan bowlers may not be a cakewalk for the lower order.

The first session of the second day holds significance as on the one hand India would look to strengthen their position further, while on the other Afghanistan would try to trap the hosts and prepare for a reply with the bat.

Earlier, Shikhar Dhawan (107 off 96 balls) bludgeoned the rookie Afghan bowlers into submission on Day 1 and became the first Indian batsman ever to score a century in the first session of the first day in an international test match. Murli Vijay also joined the party and ground the bowling attack for his impressive 105 off 153 balls.

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India vs Afghanistan Live Test Match Day 1: Shikhar Dhawan becomes 1st Indian to score 100 before lunch

India won the toss and elected to bat first in the historic one-off Test match against Afghanistan.

India opener Shikhar Dhawan on Thursday became the first Indian in the history of cricket to hit a century before lunch on the first day of the historic India vs Afghanistan one-off test match. Earlier this morning, India won the toss and elected to bat first on the green-looking pitch of Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday.


In the first session, the Afghanistan bowlers seemed rather lacklustre, with little experience, and Shikhar Dhawan smashed them all around the ground. Also hammered by Dhawan was Afghanistan premier turner Rashid Khan, who leaked runs at an economy rate of 6.16 runs per over. Just before lunch would be announced, Dhawan completed his 7th century in the 26th over of the innings. Before him, Virendra Sehwag had come very close to achieving the glory of become the first Indian to hit a century before lunch, but he had missed the milestone by 1 run against West Indies in 2006.


After winning the toss, skipper Ajinkya Rahane said that it was a historic moment for Afghanistan and that he was really excited about the match. "It's important to start well after coming off the IPL. It is a historic moment for Afghanistan, I'm really excited," Rahane said. Afghanistan skipper Asghar Stanikzai, likewise, said: "Very proud moment. All guys have first-class experience. Inshallah, we can do well. Maybe the first one hour it will be a good wicket for bowling. Then he recites the entire playing XI from memory, no peeking into paper chits. Amazing."
As far as Playing XI is concerned, India has gone into the match with three openers, leaving out middle-order batsman Karun Nair to make space for in-form KL Rahul to bat at number 4. Shardul Thakur and Navdeep Saini are the other two players who have been left out from the India playing XI. India went into the match without its regular captain Virat Kohli, who is currently undergoing a rehabilitation for a neck injury that he sustained during IPL 2018.


For Afghanistan, Afsar Zazai will keep the wicket while two frontline spinners — Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Ur Rahman — are also part of the Playing XI. Afghanistan, who have fast established itself as a force to reckon with in the shorter formats, will become the 12th side to feature in men's Test cricket after Ireland debuted against Pakistan last month.

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