MARCUS HOOK'S WORLD CUP DIARY 2003 (PART ONE)

Sunday 9 February: South Africa v West Indies First day, first match, first upset. In the preview I put on ovalworld-online.com I questioned whether Brian Lara was in the right sort of shape for this World Cup. Well, today I think I got my answer. His 116 guided the West Indies out of trouble and to the respectability of 278 for five, which was always going to take some getting under lights. But how many of the South Africans brought about their own downfall? Also, how might things have turned out had Jacques Kallis held that half chance at second slip early in the great man’s innings? Lance Klusener made up for his poor showing with the ball, but after getting his side into a position where they needed 14 off the last two, one could argue he too was guilty of going for glory. In the lead up to the competition a number of observers had put the West Indies down as their dark horses, me included; though certainly not to win it. I felt they were capable of sneaking into the semis, but now, well, who knows? The hosts represent a huge scalp. Sri Lanka are not the side they were in 1996 and the Kiwis are yet to win a one-day international on South African soil. One thing is for sure, today’s result makes tomorrow’s Pool B contest a ‘must win’ for both teams. Despite an indication that England were going to announce whether they would be going to Zimbabwe, no decision was forthcoming. Although I cannot possibly put myself in the shoes of the players, if there is a chance that the people of Harare will take to the streets on Thursday, I wouldn’t want it on my conscience if things turned ugly.							Mervyn Dillion and Ridley Jacobs celebrate the wicket of Gibbs, who was caught behind for 24.
Sanath Jayasuriya during his match-winning innings of 120 off 125 balls against New Zealand.				Monday 10 February: Sri Lanka v New Zealand and Zimbabwe v Namibia Andy Flower and Henry Olonga’s black armband protest against Zimbabwe's plight, made during today’s game against Namibia, took a lot of bottle. I hope they will not get leant on because of it, either by the ICC, the ZCU or, above all, those friends of Robert Mugabe who have a habit of popping around in the middle of the night. Craig Wishart’s unbeaten 172 against the team which seems to have more burgers than MacDonald’s was truly awesome. I know it’s a bit early to get carried away, but his clean hitting would have got runs against any attack. Perhaps this tournament has come at the right time for the 28-year-old. Watching the match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, I found myself wondering whether the art of keeping wicket was dead. Sides that bat all the way down are obviously better equipped for the one-day game, but what is the benefit of playing batsmen who can keep in place of keepers who can bat? If Lou Vincent had held one of chances offered by Sanath Jayasuriya perhaps the result would have been different. Scott Styris was one of the unfortunate bowlers. If he had captured the wicket of Sri Lanka’s captain in addition to making an amazing 141 off 125 balls the man of the match adjudicator would have been out of a job. When Stryris opened the 46th over with his sixth maximum the thought that New Zealand could still win it popped into my head. But, next ball, he was caught at deep square leg and that was that. In the final analysis the wicket of Cairns was crucial, as was Astle’s probably. If either had shown a bit more presence of mind the Kiwis would not now be contemplating a trip to Nairobi. Talking of which, England still have not reached a decision over the Zimbabwe game. Consequently, I am now starting to get fed up with the whole sorry saga.
Tuesday 11 February: Australia v Pakistan and Bangladesh v Canada Now we know why the Aussies are so good – they’re all on performance enhancing drugs! But seriously, the news that Shane Warne has failed a drugs test appears to have robbed the World Cup of one of its star attractions. The 33-year-old leg spinner is said to have taken a fluid-reducing diuretic given to him by his mother. The fact that the one he took, Moduretic, is also used by athletes to cloak drug use could mean that Warne is looking at a lengthy ban; which throws his obligations to Hampshire into some doubt. Diuretics are often prescribed for weight loss, but Warne insists he did not take it for that purpose. Why then did he take the tablet at all? Moreover, why didn’t he find out if it was on the list of banned substances? Events off the field overshadowed the cricket when it was also announced that Thursday’s match between England and Zimbabwe is definitely off. In an effort to get the fixture moved England will apparently give some more evidence to the ICC’s technical committee, but I cannot see it happening somehow. On the pitch, the only contest of any consequence was the Australia-Pakistan clash at Johannesburg, in which Pakistan started brightly. But, having accounted for Gilchrist, Hayden and Martyn inside the first eleven overs to reveal what appeared to be a brittle lower order, Andy Symonds came to the fore with a superb 143 off 125 balls. Had it not been for the absence of Bevan, Lehmann and Warne, it is unlikely that Symonds, Hogg and Harvey – who added in 124 in 17 overs between them – would have got a game. Andy Symonds has always been a dangerous player. In both of Surrey’s meetings with Kent last season the Queenslander was guilty of throwing his wicket away. Had he pressed home the advantage he built up in the first innings at Canterbury, the outcome there may well have been very different. As someone who placed a fiver on Pakistan winning the tournament, I was not exactly to see Wasim Akram berating his fieldsmen, not to mention Waqar Younis resorting to bowling beamers. Should India fail to cause an upset on Saturday, I can easily see the Aussies going through the whole tournament without dropping a game.							Ian Harvey congratulates Andy Symonds upon reaching his hundred.
The Dutch celebrate the fall of another Indian wicket.				Wednesday 12 February: South Africa v Kenya and India v Holland Having been cleared earlier today of racially abusing Adam Gilchrist, now Pakistan’s Rashid Latif is threatening to sue the Aussie keeper. Just what is the game coming to? I am a firm believer that what is said on a cricket field should stay on the cricket field. That’s why I thought it was so refreshing on Ben Hollioake’s international debut in 1997 that he described his exchange with Glenn McGrath as simply “him bowling and me batting.” After Canada’s surprise 60-run victory over Bangladesh yesterday, there were no such upsets today. South Africa’s ten-wicket win over Kenya was achieved with more than 28 overs to spare. The ominous news for their opponents was that Herschelle Gibbs – who struck 87 in 66 deliveries – seems to have found his range. Apart from Jonty Rhodes sustaining a broken hand in the field, which sadly puts him out of the rest of the tournament, the only thing that will be of concern to the hosts was a somewhat lacklustre three-over spell from Jacques Kallis. In the other match, India failed to make use of all their overs. All-rounder Tim de Leede took four for 35, including the prized wickets of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, as the star-studded Indian batting line-up played rather too positively against some accurate Dutch bowling. But that was before Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble put their side’s total into a certain amount of context.

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