The expected clash in Pool A of the ODI World Cup was washed out today without a single ball being bowled. How England would have wished that it was them who benefited from that kind of result against the mighty Aussies, as Bangladesh perhaps 'enjoyed' not having to face the co-hosts of the tournament in Brisbane and instead gained what may prove to be a valuable point from the game. By contrast, Pakistan slumped to yet another heavy defeat in Pool B at the hands of the West Indies.
Brisbane was deluged with heavy rain overnight and then throughout the day, preventing the match between Australia and Bangladesh from starting.
It led to a decision to abandon play all together for the day at the Gabba. The visitors gained little ground on early pool leaders New Zealand as a consequence, but by taking a point they remain level with Australia on three points. The total washout was something of a rarity at World Cups, being only the second such match to suffer that fate, after the last one being all the way back in 1979 between Sri Lanka and the Windies.
The current day West Indies' side fared rather better in their game in Christchurch today, hammering their Pakistan opponents by a massive 150 runs, to dispel some of the anguish after losing their initial pool match to Ireland. It sets them back on track in their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals but leaves Pakistan in a similar position to England in the other pool, as they desperately need a victory in their next match, following two successive defeats.
West Indies were invited to bat first after Pakistan had won the toss, but they failed to control the Caribbean side's progress significantly, as they were able to post a sizeable score of 310-6 in their 50 overs. Handy knocks of 49 by Darren Bravo, 51 for Denesh Ramdin and a half-century for Lendl Simmons, ensured that they would set a decent target for their opponents.
Bravo may have scored more, but had to retire injured after tearing a hamstring. Their total was boosted beyond the 300 mark by a wonderful cameo by Andre Russell as he pummelled 42 seemingly priceless runs off just 13balls, including four sixes.
Pakistan slumped to 1-4 in reply, as bowler Jerome Taylor sent three batsmen back to the pavilion for ducks, with captain Jason Holder also striking in a whirlwind first 19 balls of their innings. That was the worst start to an innings in World Cup history and Pakistan were never able to completely recover, being bowled out for just 160 with eleven overs remaining to be bowled. Taylor's destructive spell ensured he ended with amazing figures of 3-15.