No hot favourites for Gilchrist

Rohit Mahajan

Tribune News Service

Perth, March 4

Adam Gilchrist, one of the rare three-time winners of the World Cup, says that the thriller between Australia and New Zealand, won by the latter, has opened up the tournament. “The other teams can now believe that the two hosts can be bowled out,” he says. Gilchrist adds that there is no one favourite to win the tournament, and that AB de Villiers is doing things with the bat that even he, Gilchrist, could not think of.

Excerpts from an interview:

What do you think of this Indian team?

They look quite well, don't they? They're building some nice momentum after those good wins early in the tournament.

But the bowling attack is not really that good, is it?

I don't know, I think the bowling looks OK. It worked here the other day (against Afghanistan), didn't it? And they did very well against South Africa and Pakistan also.

Are you surprised how well India have played after their display in the Test series and the tri-series?

Clearly, they've managed to put it behind them. The World Cup is all about building up the momentum as you go along. No use looking like champions at the start and then missing out at the end. I think they look like as if they're gaining some nice momentum. Once you get into the knockout stages, anything is possible.

Which is the team you would rate to win?

India seem to have gone about it in a professional manner. New Zealand have been very impressive. Australia are very good.

Australia had a shocker against New Zealand. Can they beat Australia twice in 30 days? New Zealand might need to do that if they're to win the World Cup.

I think they're playing some nice cricket, New Zealand. I think the problem for New Zealand would be that they're playing all their games at home... And then to suddenly come to Australia, should they make the final... That will be a big mental hurdle for them. But they're playing very attractive cricket.

The favourites, then?

I don't think there's only one favourite at the moment. I think what that game has done is that, for the rest of the tournament, the rest of the teams would now be able to believe that New Zealand and Australia can be bowled out. Equally, both are very dangerous. So I think there are four-five teams that could win it.

What do you think of AB de Villiers? How would you rate yourself against him?

Oh, he does things that I didn't even think of doing. He's the most versatile cricketer in the world... I believe he's probably the guy who brings the most value to all forms of the game. I think he's an exceptional talent.

Do you think he could turn out to be the star of the tournament?

He's made a big mark, hasn't he? He missed out in the first couple of games, but he's made a bit statement now with his innings against West Indies, reminded everybody of what he can do.

It's become so easy for a team to get a 300-plus score in Australia, almost like it is in Asia.

Yes, it's down to using two balls and the change in field restrictions. So we're seeing big, big totals. Traditionally, the runs came the fastest in the first 15 overs in the past. But now, we're seeing more and more runs coming in the last 10 overs. We've seen 100, 120 runs made in the last 10 overs. That extra fielder that you have to have up in the ring, that clearly has led to more scoring opportunities for the batsmen. That's where the difference lies.

And the pitches are flatter too?

I don't think too much has changed in the pitches. I don't think there's any significant change in the type and quality of the wickets. These are pretty nice wickets, and One-day cricket always had nice wickets.