Cricket World Cup 2015 Schedule: List of Fixtures for Remaining Pool Matches
The group stages of the 2015 World Cup are drawing to a close, with several top teams in danger of returning home early from the tournament in New Zealand and Australia.
Pool B is particularly interesting, with India and South Africa likely heading for the top two places, but West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland and Zimbabwe all still in the mix to fill the final pair of qualifying spots.
Obviously, several teams will be departing at the group stages, and here are the remaining pool fixtures that will decide the teams who qualify for the quarter-finals, which begin on March 18:
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| Date | Time (GMT) | Fixture | Venue |
| March 6 | 6:30 a.m. | India v West Indies | Perth |
| March 7 | 1 a.m. | South Africa v Pakistan | Auckland |
| March 7 | 3:30 a.m. | Zimbabwe v Ireland | Hobart |
| March 8 | 10 p.m. (day before) | New Zealand v Afghanistan | Napier |
| March 8 | 3:30 a.m. | Australia v Sri Lanka | Sydney |
| March 9 | 3:30 a.m. | England v Bangladesh | Adelaide |
| March 10 | 1 a.m. | India v Ireland | Hamilton |
| March 11 | 3:30 a.m. | Sri Lanka v Scotland | Hobart |
| March 12 | 1 a.m. | South Africa v UAE | Wellington |
| March 13 | 1 a.m. | Bangladesh v New Zealand | Hamilton |
| March 13 | 3:30 a.m. | England v Afghanistan | Sydney |
| March 14 | 1 a.m. | India v Zimbabwe | Auckland |
| March 14 | 3:30 a.m. | Australia v Scotland | Hobart |
| March 15 | 10 p.m. (day before) | West Indies v UAE | Napier |
| March 15 | 3:30 a.m. | Pakistan v Ireland | Adelaide |
Friday sees in-form India take on the inconsistent West Indies in Perth, with the defending champions looking to make it four wins from four in the competition.
MS Dhoni's side came into the competition in rotten form but have turned things around in spectacular fashion, crushing Pakistan in their opener, followed by huge 130-run victory over the hotly tipped Proteas.
They then made very short work of the United Arab Emirates on Saturday and currently sit firmly on top of Pool B with a very healthy net run rate.
The likes of Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli are in impressive form, the latter most certainly the man for the big occasion, per cricket statistician Mohandas Menon:
The West Indies, on the other hand, saw their total of 304 chased down in defeat to Ireland, ahead of two big victories against Pakistan and Zimbabwe, followed by a crushing defeat to South Africa.
In the batting department, the Windies are very dangerous, with the likes of Chris Gayle, Lendl Simmons, Darren Sammy and Marlon Samuels all capable of scoring heavily.
However, in the absence of Sunil Narine, the West Indies bowling attack is simply not potent enough to significantly trouble strong batting units.
India are certainly the favourites for Friday's match at the WACA, and they will be eager to take another step towards securing top spot in Pool B.
However, the West Indies will provide a serious challenge with the bat and will be eager not to see their World Cup fate come down to their final encounter with the UAE.
In a similarly precarious position, Pakistan face a destructive South African outfit in Auckland on Saturday, and a victory for Misbah-ul-Haq's men would prove invaluable for their quarter-final ambitions.
Pakistan have turned things around since losing heavily to India and the West Indies in their opening two encounters, beating Zimbabwe narrowly ahead of Wednesday's routine win over UAE, which sees them fourth in Pool B per ESPNcricinfo:
It was a fine batting display from Pakistan against the UAE—they posted their first 300-plus total of the tournament—but they come up against arguably the fiercest batting lineup in the World on Saturday.
South Africa come into the Eden Park clash on the back of consecutive totals of over 400 against West Indies and Ireland, in which Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers all hit centuries.
With the likes of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Imran Tahir in the bowling unit, South Africa's all-round strength is such that they are considered one of the favourites to go on and win the whole thing.
While unlikely to top Pool B after being demolished by India, the Proteas will be eager to secure second spot in the group to give them an easier matchup in the quarter-finals.
Thus, they will not let up against Pakistan, who look likely to be left needing to beat Ireland in the final group match to make it through to the quarter-finals.
Pakistan are improving through the tournament, but South Africa have quite phenomenal quality in their ranks, and they should take the two points on offer in Auckland.
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