A final of New Zealand and Australia feels a bit inevitable, doesn’t it? South Africa was always going to find a way to lose—painfully. India had the air of a paper tiger throughout the tournament. At no point during the competition did Pakistan seem convincing. And that’s to say nothing of a West Indian side that seemed to take glee in tiptoeing on the edge of a precipice; a Bangladeshi squad punching above its weight; and a team of Sri Lankans that have already taken to blaming their woes on a lack of cardio. The less we discuss Zimbabwe, the better.
(Are there any member nations I’m forgetting? No? Alright then.)
The spirited play of the associate nations has been my personal highlight of the tournament, but an Anzac final is a fitting coda to the cricketing marathon of the past two months.
I’ll spare you a point-by-point breakdown that nearly every cricketing site of repute has posted an iteration of by now, but one note: Australia has won their last six ODIs at MCG. New Zealand’s result their last ODI on the same ground? A six wicket victory against Australia in 2009 that came down to the final seven balls.
Let’s hope this meeting will be similarly close.
Prediction: New Zealand over Australia—but just barely.
Credit: ICC-cricket.com
From Hyderabad to Hove 
