The 50-overs Cricket World Cup is the most prestigious of ICC tournaments across all formats. This is the platform which gives supremacy to any performances or failures coz the world over is watching and reading about the cricketers during the tournament.
So, let’s discuss about some cricketers who were touted as most valuable players of this world cup but couldn’t perform to their best to stay that way during the World Cup. Here’s our 6 failures from the Cricket World Cup 2019, which daunted the chances of their teams:
6. Shoaib Malik (Pakistan):
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As one of their most senior rankers in the team, Shoaib Malik was seen as someone who’d balance the Pakistan team with his batting and off-break bowling. But that was not to be for a team which couldn’t finish into the semifinalists.
Shoaib Malik couldn’t perform to his best and could only muster 101 runs from the six matches he played. In bowling, the Pakistan Sports Awards recipient could take only 2 wickets- clearly something which put pressure on younger players who couldn’t match that to keep the team alive in the tournament.
5. Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
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Rashid Khan came into the Cricket World Cup 2019 as someone with many records that any spinner from top teams would be proud of- like he’s the most successful Afghan leg-spinner, youngest to top the ICC ODI Bowlers Ranking in 2018 and number one all-rounder in ICC ODI rankings in 2018.
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But this leggie could only muster 6 wickets from 9 matches. If this was not to dampen the hope of the Afghanistan team, he became the most expensive bowler in Cricket World Cup 2019 as he gave away 110 runs off his spell against hosts England on June 18.
4/3. David Miller/JP Duminy (South Africa):
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David Miller has the repute of a cricketer who has been involved into some records at the Cricket World Cups. Like the Cricket World Cup Century on Debut, highest 5th wicket partnership in Cricket World Cup (with JP Duminy) and highest 9th wicket partnership in Champions trophy. With that repute of being a performer in ICC tournaments, he came into Cricket World Cup 2019.
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Miller, people expected, along with JP Duminy will give balance to a South African Middle order which is missing their superman, yes, AB de Villiers, but both failed to live up to the expectations. Duminy has taken the first hat-trick for South Africa in Cricket World Cup (2015).
2. Chris Gayle (West Indies)
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The Universe Boss has the credentials that none else have, the swashbuckling batsman has thrashed almost all the bowlers of contemporary cricket. A strokeplayer with the fastest Cricket World Cup Double Century and second highest individual scorer in the Cricket World Cup history.
The Second West Indian to aggregate 10,000 ODI runs wasn’t that successful in Cricket World Cup 2019 to even justify being there. He scored just 242 in the 9 matches he played, plus the 2 wickets he took during these.
Result was, West Indies couldn’t get the start they needed to be front runners in Cricket World Cup 2019.
1. Martin Guptill (New Zealand)
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This Strokemaker of Kiwi team is not only the most successful opening batsman for New Zealand, but also the highest individual scorer in the Cricket World Cup history. Guptill is also the first New Zealander and fifth overall to score a double century.
He has just scored 166 runs in Cricket World Cup 2019 with a poor average of approx 24 and just one half-century. New Zealand has qualified for the Semi Finals as the fourth team but it is very close to the first team Pakistan who they could only surpass in net run rate. New Zealand fans will expect better from him in Semifinals onward to take their team to first title win at the Cricket World Cup/