Cricket Worldcup

absolut

India just won their first match against Netherlands. Actually a poor score for such a weak opponent. Will this team be strong enough to win the cup? Anyway, i think first of all everybody is looking forward now to the match against Pakistan on 1st of march. Unfortunately no cricket here on the cable in Belgium

archits

ah mytvc is not showing cricket in belgium...well you can catch the radio commentary! try bbc . by the way for a fee i think you can watch it live over the internet.

Krakovian

Alas, here in the UK SKY (a satellite subscription channel) have exclusive TV rights - they do show all the games live though, assuming of course you don't mind being camped in a pub for most of the day !

India have a great team and are probably second favourites to win the tournament, now that SA lost to the Windies in their first game. In Sehwag & Tendulkar they have two batsmen capable of doing some serious damage especially in the first 15 overs with the restricted field.
I wouldn't worry too much about their quiet performance against Holland. In fairness the Dutch proved if you can keep your head and bowl a consistent line & length is difficult to get the ball away.

Its better to start slowly and build up from there and India have notoriously been bad travellers in recent years. Group A is tough but with England in disarray and probably defaulting points against Zimbawe and precocious Pakistan likely to self-implode, India and the mighty unstoppable Aussies should take the top 2 places and most probably meet again in the final.

But then again the fun of sport is the unthinkable....

steven_ber

anyone new to india who will be anywhere in india on the 1st of march will find out just how much cricket means to indian people.

INDIA .V. PAKISTAN

you try getting a rickshaw or anything on this day you will get a shock.

if india look like they are about to lose you are best to get back to your hotel.

i am sure you wouldnt be in any danger, but i would'nt take a chance.

indians love everybody and everything except losing at cricket and pakistan, the combination could be explosive.

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steven_ber

By Krittivas Mukherjee, Indo-Asian News Service


Kolkata, Feb 16 (IANS) Security has been increased outside Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly's home here after furious fans heaped obscenities and staged protests against him following India's humiliating loss to Australia in the World Cup.

Another group of cricket supporters took out a procession to the banks of the Ganges river in a symbolic "funeral" of the Indian team.

"What is the point in losing our sleep over this bunch of players?" fumed Amit De, one of the organisers of the "funeral".

"So it is better we save ourselves the bother and also relieve the cricketers of their habit of losing regularly," De contended.

After two insipid performances, first against minnows Holland and then against defending champions Australia, Ganguly has probably become the most hated figure in sports crazy Kolkata.

A group of cricket fanatics couldn't suppress their disappointment with the Ganguly-led team's performance and staged a protest outside his home Saturday night soon after the Australia-India match ended.

They shouted slogans demanding that the skipper step down and hurled invectives against their-once adored "Prince of Calcutta".

Police intervened to restore order and security outside Ganguly's home was tightened soon after.

The Indian team, which had tasted success in one-day tournaments in England and West Indies in 2002, hit a bad patch in December in New Zealand. And now, after its poor start in the World Cup campaign, India faces an uphill task in making it to the Super Six stage of the tourney.

Crestfallen fans even demanded India stop playing international cricket for a while.

Only last week, cricket fans led by Kolkata Mayor Subrata Mukherjee had performed religious rituals to invoke divine blessings for the Indian team.

Memories of that have faded away and in their place, a strong sense of disappointment and anger has set in.

Said one incensed fan: "We had so much faith in Ganguly and had hoped he would be up to the task. We were wrong. More than the defeat, it's the way we succumbed to that irks me."

The dejected fans also blamed the media for making heroes of the Indian cricketers and thus helping them earn millions of rupees from endorsements.

"When they lose, they humiliate the country. But, that doesn't seem to have any effect on their bank balance," a cricket enthusiast complained.