Which record of Canada in ICC World Cup did they break in 2003? This question may stump most of the followers of the game except those belonging to the tribe of ardent number crunchers as Canada are neither a force to reckon with in international cricket nor known for creating and breaking records. However, the dubious record of getting bowled out for the lowest score in the World Cup belongs to them. In fact, it was theirs since 1979, when they were bundled out for 45 by England at Old Trafford and they slipped low further in 2003 when Sri Lanka bowled them out for 36 at Paarl in South Africa.
In the ongoing edition of the World in India, Sri Lanka faced the ignominy of being bowled out for 55 against India. Unlike Canada, who have never risen above the status as minnows in this game, Sri Lanka come with a formidable reputation. They were winners in 1996 and finalists in 2007 and 2011 and widely considered as one of the sides that could spring an upset in 2023. But they lost their moorings completely against an Indian team, which is presently flying high, and crumbled without a fight. The visitors did not even have the option of blaming the pitch or or other conditions as the hosts had piled up a total of 357/8 in their allotted overs. Hence this was a straightforward instance of bowlers getting better of the batsmen in a brutal manner.
What made this meek surrender appear even more ignoble was the fact that this was second straight occasion where the Lankans had been shot out for a low score by India. In the final of the recently held Asia Cup, Sri Lanka were dismissed for a paltry total of 50 by the same opponents. These two successive poor performances with the bat against the same team is bound to haunt Sri Lanka for a long time.
Why do such events happen in a tournament like the World Cup where only the top performers of the game play against each other? It has been stated and also proved repeatedly that there exists very little difference between the skillsets of sides taking part in this championship. Hence matches between teams in this arena are expected to provide thrilling finishes, rather than ending up as one-sided affairs. Players who form part of the sides have plenty of cricket behind them and are experienced in handling tense situations. Despite this, why do such debacles happen?
The most common reason given by players themselves is that this occurs due to “a bad day in office”. Such days, when nothing goes right and everything possible ends up on the wrong side, can happen to even the best of the players and sides. In cricket, batting side looks upon the batsmen at the top of the order to give a good start on which others can capitalise. If the opening batsmen and those who follow them in the order are dismissed cheaply, considerable pressure is brought on the others. At such junctures, the presence of a senior player who keeps his cool and refrains from panic is required to steady the ship. We saw Virat Kohli do this in India’s game against Australia in India's World Cup opener when three wickets fell for next to nothing. However, when there is no batsman capable of holding the innings together, bowlers will use the upper hand they gained to run through the rest of the batting.
Another factor could be one or more of the bowlers having an extraordinarily good day. The splendid bowling of Mohammed Siraj in the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka is a good example of this phenomenon. Such destructive spells invariably hit the batting side like a tsunami and overwhelm them. However, the restriction on the number of overs that a bowler can send down in limited overs cricket acts as an automatic speed breaker that comes to the aid of the batting side, if they have not succumbed completely by then.
Bad or poorly prepared pitches and atmospheric conditions favouring bowlers invariably lead to low-scoring games. An example of this is the match played between Australia and England at Headingly, Leeds, in the semifinals of the inaugural World Cup in 1975. After being put in to bat in overcast conditions on a green top, England could not cope with the swing and seam bowling of Gary Gilmour, who sliced through the batting line-up like a knife through butter. England were left tottering at 52/8 by the time Gilmour finished his spell, but they managed to recover to score 93. The Aussie batsmen too could do no better when their turn to bat came. They lost their top 6 batsmen for 39 runs before Gilmour came to the rescue with an unbeaten knock of 28, which saw them home without any further loss of wickets.
How does the humiliation of low scores impact the teams at the receiving end? It depends on the resilience of the side and the experience of the players who are part of it. It requires considerable fortitude and grit to black out the humiliation faced and walk back to the field with their heads held high and determination in eyes. The role of the captain also acquires significance here as he is the key person responsible for keeping the morale of the side high. If the skipper himself becomes despondent, other members of the squad will also follow suit and the team goes into a downward spiral. But a real leader will keep his chin up and inspire his teammates to put the past behind them, even while identifying the positives amid the disappointing performance.
There are many rousing instances in the history of World Cup where teams that were bundled out for very low scores bounced back with a vengeance. The first took place in Australia in 1992 where Pakistan had a bad start to their campaign. They lost their first match against the West Indies by 10 wickets and had to face the ignominy of being dismissed for 74 against England. However, weather Gods intervened and the match was called off before England could complete an easy win. Imran Khan, then leading Pakistan, saw this as a divine intervention and urged his players to thank the blessings of the Almighty by putting their best foot forward in their remaining games. Though they faltered against India and South Africa, Pakistan came back strongly to defeat Australia and New Zealand to earn a place in the last four. After that they played like a side possessed and won the trophy, defeating England in the final.
The West Indies had ceased being the all conquering side by the time ICC World Cup was held in the Indian sub continent in 1996. But they were still a very strong side having top performers such as Brian Lara, Courtney Walsh, Curtley Ambrose and Ian Bishop, besides skipper Richie Richardson. But their performance in the World Cup was insipid in the initial stages and they suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Kenya, where they dismissed for an abysmally low total of 93 runs, while chasing 166. The West Indies were stung by this setback and roared back like wounded tigers. First, they defeated the mighty Australia to qualify for the last eight stage, where they outclassed the highly fancied South Africa to reach the semifinals. Though they lost to the Aussies in a closely fought encounter in the semis, their inspired performances after the loss against Kenya helped to redeem their image and reputation.
India reached the shores of South Africa for the World Cup in 2003 with dreams of winning the championship. It was a star- studded squad led by Sourav Ganguly and having in their ranks stars auch as Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan. But they got off to a poor start with a low key performance against the Netherlands. Things took a turn for the worse when they went down by a margin of nine wickets against Australia, after being dismissed for a total of 125. Howls of protest emanated in India over this disappointing show. But the team recouped well and came back strongly to win all the remaining matches in the league phase. Though they lost to Australia in the final, the improved performance enhanced the standing of the side in the eyes of the public and they received a rousing welcome when they landed back in India.
How will Sri Lanka fare after their massive defeat at the hands of India? The points table tells us that, come what may, the side will not be able to make it to the knock out phase. They have two matches to go - against Bangladesh and New Zealand - and all eyes of their countrymen will be on the side. The players, on their part, will be looking forward to winning both the games as an inspired show will help to wipe away the bitter memories of embarrassment suffered against India.
Victory and defeat are two sides of a coin and players know this better than anyone else. All sportspersons who make it to the international level are superb athletes and, more importantly, proud human beings. They take tremendous pride in their performance and nothing can be more demeaning to them than being ridiculed by the public for putting up a poor show. Hence one can expect the Lankan cricketers to pull up their socks and bounce back with renewed energy in the days ahead.
(The author is a former international cricket umpire and a senior bureaucrat)
