Amazing atmosphere in the stadium, with 20k people, of which 97% must have been Pakistan supporters, v many with flags.
Steyn did some light warm-ups, but, was never going to play, and its dubious if we shall see him, sometime soon. A great shame.
The contest was billed as the side who can't bowl (S.Africa),v the sideshow can't bat (Pakistan), which is a trifle unfair on S.Africa,but spot -on, re Pakistan.
S.Africa won the toss, and De Villiers decided to bat. It's interesting his, alleged fitness, doesnt seem a worry.
Eng scored a pedestrian 270 on the same ground 2 days ago, and a similar score should be enough for S.Africa to win the game.
Pakistan bowled well, with a couple of chances missed, and finally got to 238, which made it an even game, and gave the home supporters, much to shout about.
Unfortunately, the Pakistan reply was v pedestrian .. Something like 50 off the first 20 overs, 135 off 40, and with a mounting run-rate, lost more wickets, and the game.
Chris Morris is a fun player to watch. (Bowler for SA). I watched a few of his games in the T20 Champions trophy, and he was clearly v nervous, with many wides .. A feature he hasn't as yet, managed to totally eradicate. He got a surprising $650k contract for the IPL, and he is quickly maturing. It was fun to watch his 1st ball called a wide, but equally fun, to see wkts cart-wheeling out the ground, when he hits them. If S.Africa have injury worries with their fast bowlers, he's a v decent alternative.
There are many players you could point the finger at.
Pak now have no pints from 2 games, and its highly unlikely they can progress out of the group.The game at the same stadium on Saturday, v India will have a great atmosphere, whatever .. But, maybe will have a little less intensity for Pakistan, if that's possible.
The tournament as a whole is going fairly well. I do like quick tournaments, thou the travelling between venues, can be tedious. Crowds have been generally v good, and the Crickekeers .. Volunteer helpers, v friendly. Prices are not cheap, especially for food etc at the ground, but tickets are fairly well priced, at about £40 for a decent seat.
Most games involving Pak/India/England are full, and the website selling the tickets, works well, which is a pleasant change. I have seen touts outside grounds, but, it's v hard to police.
The ICC seem overly strict on people using tablets in the ground, with all being asked to put them away, fairly quickly. Anyone who thinks about using a laptop, soon changes his mind, which is fair enough .. It's too busy.
It will be hard to tell which side is at home here, as its reasonable to think both sides will get v strong support, and the atmosphere, is entitled to be electric.
Hoping for a decent contest. Pakistan have a really good bowling attack,but, their batting has a few holes, and they need to someone restrict the Windies to no more than 300.
If they happen to bat first, and score 320 or so, u would think they would definitely win - thou, Gayle/Pollard etc,can, make a mockery of that.
The bookies can't decide with team is favourite, but its probably a huge toss to win (and bat).
Well, W.Indies won the toss, and decided to have a bowl.
Pakistan batting holes, caused massive leaks, and despite a good effort by the captain, Misbah .. They crawled to a poor total of 170.
As we said, they bowl v well, but its not a score to exert any pressure, and it will take a monumental effort by W.Indies to lose this one.
Almost .. Pakistan bowlers would win the Tourny for the team, if only they had 4 solid batters, who could make 230+ per game.
Fine effort by them, and the usual nervy stuff from Windies. Need a strong stomach, to follow these guys over a cliff.
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