The much awaited cricket world cup 2015 was one of the best world cups that have been organized over a period of time. The world cup this time went into old format of having two pools where teams will be playing against each other to qualify as the top 8 teams. At the start of the cup it looked to be a long one but coming to the end it resulted into becoming an exciting one. The format of the cup this year consisted of 14 teams including the associate nations who came after qualifying. Only 4 associate nations were given chance to participate in this form of the game. This included Afghanistan, Scotland, United Arab Emirates and Ireland.
Pool A of the 2015 world cup cup comprised of both the host nation Australia and New Zealand. Accompanying them were teams like Bangladesh, England, Afghanistan, Scotland and last times runners-up Sri Lanka. It was the most exciting pool as it promised the teams to produce a hard fight when it comes to cricket. The 7 teams from Pool A fought against each other and New Zealand emerged as the best team in this pool. They were unbeaten by the teams in the pool and won all their 6 matches. The Australians emerged as the 2nd best team in this pool after winning 4 out of 6 while 1 match was a no-result match due to rain. Sri Lanka emerged as the 3rd best side in this pool after their batting side struggled a bit. Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan played their best role for the team and helped the team qualify for the next round. One of the biggest upset was created by Bangladesh as they toppled England to qualify as the 4th team from this Pool. In a do or die match Bangladesh ended up a better side against England to make their dream come true of qualifying to the next round after 2007. England was one of the biggest setbacks for the cup as they lost 4 matches in their attempt to qualify. Afghanistan and Scotland ended up at 6th and 7th position respectively but these teams surprised the whole world with their fighting spirit. They failed to win matches against test nations but succeeded in performing well against all. One of the best matches that were played in this pool included the host nations. This match saw a nail biting finish with New Zealand eventually emerging as the winners.
On the other hand Pool B comprised of Defending champions India, the unlucky South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Ireland, Zimbabwe and United Arab Emirates. This group seemed to a simpler one when compared to Pool a but eventually the end result showed the assumptions being wrong. India played like a defending champion winning all the 6 matches. This team was the best team and qualified as the top team from Pool B. South Africa lost their 2 matches against India and Pakistan and emerged as the 2nd best team just above Pakistan due to a better run rate. West Indies toppled Ireland in the last match and qualified as the 4th team from the group. The team qualified as 4th due to a better run rate and hence after having few good games Ireland had to bid good bye from the world cup early. Zimbabwe and UAE ended up in 6th and 7th position but Zimbabwe was a side which played with all their heart. Each player in that team contributed well in this cup and won hearts.
After 42 pools matches the tournament moved towards the final round of it where top 8 teams were to knock each other out in order to move ahead in the tournament. The 1st quarterfinal of the tournament saw South Africa take on the Sri Lankans. This match ended up as a one sided affair as South African spinners bowled Sri Lankans out cheaply. Jean Paul Duminy took a hat trick in the match. South Africans moved to the next round easily. The 2nd match saw Bangladesh take on India where India’s clinical batting and bowling performance out witted Bangladesh and threw them out of the race. Australia when met Pakistan in the 3rd quarterfinal, Pakistan appeared to be of no match as it was a cake walk for them. The 4th and the final quarterfinal saw New Zealand take on West Indies where Marin Guptill scored a double century to bat West Indies out of the tournament.
The top 4 contenders for the cup were in the semi-finals of the tournament with South Africa and New Zealand facing each other. It was the best match of the tournament where both the teams displayed high amount of sportsman spirit. A rain hit 43 overs match turned out to be the best match of the tournament. New Zealand won the match in the last over to qualify for their 1st ever final. The 2nd semi-final of the tournament saw arch rivals Australia and India face each other. Australia posted a good score batting first while India too started off well. The Australian bowlers emerged too hot to handle in the middle overs and hence were able to topple the defending champions to qualify for the finals.
The final of the tournament was being played between the two hosts at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. It was for the first time in the tournament when New Zealand stepped out of their home to play a match in Australia. The home team made full used of conditions to bowl New Zealand out cheaply and Captain Clarke made sure that the team crossed the line easily. Australia with this won their 5th world cup title.
It was a batsmen friendly tournament where they scored some numerous runs. Chris Gayle, Martin Guptill was the double centurions while most of the matches saw scores above 350. In this batsmen friendly tournament some bowlers made sure that they make their presence felt as Mitchell Starc topped the chart taking 22 wickets and was named as man of the series. Indians on the other hand created a record of taking 70 wickets in 7 continuous matches. It was one of the best world cups and with this season getting ended the wait now started for 2019 England world cup.
ODI Cricket World Cup Records