1) SHOAIB AKHTAR
Much was expected of this mercurial fast bowler, playing in his last world cup. After spending two years in the wilderness-fighting bans, drugs and the PCB, Shoaib Akhtar suddenly found himself back in the thick of things with the new captain Shahid Afridi showing a special liking for him.
Having proved his form and fitness by playing 14 international matches on a trot without injury-something which he had done only once before in his career-he was expected to be Pakistan’s lethal weapon at the World Cup, in the company of Umar Gul. But it turned out to be an anti-climax for him. While Pakistan made reasonably good progress, Shoaib Akhtar slowly found himself out of favor after the defeat against New Zealand- with the ever improving Wahab Riaz being preferred over him.
Having started the tournament on the right note, with 10 tight overs and 2 wickets in the win against Sri Lanka, he was surely off the radar against New Zealand. Going for 28 in his last over and 6 on his last ball in international cricket was certainly not a fitting end for one of the most feared fast bowler in recent years.
2) KEVIN PIETERSON
One of England’s undisputed match winner, Kevin Pieterson was expected to have the same impact on this World Cup as he had had on the T-20 World Cup in Caribbean ,a couple of years ago.
Having played an important part in both, England’s T-20 World Cup triumph-where he was the Man of the Series as well as the historic Ashes win, he was expected to be the pioneer of England’s 1st trophy in one day cricket’s summit tournament. A lone success in England’s disastrous campaign 4 years ago, Pieterson was promoted to the top of the order to provide the early initiative which is so important on the sub-continental pitches. But apart from a well-made fifty in the lost cause against Ireland, he failed to make much impact.
His decision to return home because of his hernia was also a topic of much controversy with the coach Andy Flower saying that he could have made it through the tournament with proper management and remarked that the player might have tried to “bite the bullet”.
3) CHRIS GAYLE
West Indies most charismatic player and the heart and soul of their side, Chris Gayle failed to have an impact on this edition of World Cup. One of the hardest hitters of the cricket ball, Chris Gayle was expected to be the star of the tournament, with the flat sub continental pitches suiting his style of batting. His deceptive off breaks were also a useful commodity to have on these turning pitches. He himself expressed his desire to be the tournaments best all-rounder at its inception.
Chris Gayle’s record in India-where he had scored 6 tons at an average of 55+ was considered as a sign for ominous things to come. But he failed to impress in any of the big matches. While against South Africa and Pakistan he even failed to get in double figures, against England he threw away a good start while chasing a moderate total, which allowed England to choke West Indies to defeat. In fact it is ironical that a player, who was expected to be one of the top scorers of the tournaments, was convincingly outscored by his own batting partner.
4) GREAME SMITH
Leading South Africa in an ICC event is not an easy task and nobody knows this better than Greame Smith. Despite leading them to the top of rankings in both Tests and Odi’s, an ICC silverware is something which has eluded him during his 8 year realm. This was his last opportunity to have a go at it as he had decided to step down after the World Cup.
This fact seemed to have weighed heavily on him and he never looked his fluent self while batting. A batting average of 26 and a strike rate of 61 is not something you associate with a batsman of Smith’s caliber.
His scoring runs were all the more important for South Africa in the presence of a fragile lower-middle order. But runs never came and South Africa choked not only against England in the league stage but also against New Zealand in the quarters.
5) CAMEROON WHITE
As Australia’s T-20 captain and someone who was tipped to be the future ODI captain, Cameroon White had a disastrous World Cup to say the least. As a hard hitting batsman, he had built a good reputation for himself with a spate of good performances over the past couple of years.
In theory, he was expected to play the sort of role Andrew Symonds played in the previous two editions-to guide the lower middle order and then provide the flurry at the end. In practice, he did neither of these.
He struggled on the slow, low Indian pitches and never looked like scoring runs. Many questioned his place in the side in the crucial quarterfinal against India, ahead of the versatile Steven Smith. In the end a total of 70 runs in the series at an average of 17 and a strike rate of 61 were just not good enough.
