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Who are the favourites at ICC World Cup 2023? Akram, Murali and Sehwag weigh in
The former players believe teams from the sub-continent could have an edge in the tournament that will be held in India from October 5 to November 19
In this photo taken on October 24, 2021, India's Virat Kohli (R) and Pakistan's Babar Azam are seen before the start of the Twenty20 World Cup cricket match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. (AFP)
The countdown to the ODI World Cup officially began with the announcement of the tournament schedule on Tuesday. The International Cricket Council (ICC) unveiled the match fixtures at an event in Mumbai, India.
The matches will be played across 10 venues, in India, from October 5 to November 19. While the World Cup is still a few months away, former cricketers and experts have shared their picks for the business end of the tournament.
Former India batter Virender Sehwag backed sub-continent teams to do well in the showpiece tournament. Sehwag, at the launch event of the World Cup, said players from the subcontinent have better ideas on how to deal with the spin-friendly wickets in India. “A player from the subcontinent has a better idea (of playing spin) than someone coming from outside,” he said.
Sehwag said arch-rivals India and Pakistan could qualify for the semi-final of the World Cup. "If I have to pick four teams…Australia, England, India and Pakistan. These are the semi-finalists," he added.
Muttiah Muralitharan, the former Sri Lankan spinner and the man with the most wickets in ODIs, agreed with Sehwag. He said that since the World Cup is being played in the subcontinent, spinners will have a big role to play.
“The subcontinent teams will be favoured by the wickets, a lot of good spinners are there. Afghanistan's batting is not that great but their spin attack is tremendous. India and Sri Lanka have good spin attacks,” Muralitharan said.
Muralitharan predicted that sub-continent teams were likely to play in the final. He admitted that the Sri Lankan unit was unlikely to be the favourites to win the tournament, but they could pose a serious threat to their opponents.
Pakistan great Wasim Akram also believes subcontinent teams have an upper hand in this edition of the World Cup. Akram, who won the trophy for Pakistan in 1992, said that his country could do it again this year.
“We have a good side...a very good one-day side and are led by one of the modern-day greats in Babar Azam. As long as they are fit and as long as they play according to the plan, they will have a chance of doing well in that World Cup because it is played in our type of conditions in India on the sub-continent," Wasim Akram told ICC.
The ICC World Cup semi-finals are set to be played in Mumbai on November 15 and in Kolkata on November 16. The final is scheduled for November 19 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
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