Cricket World Cup 2015 Results: Final Tables and Updated Knockout Schedule

The pool stages of the Cricket World Cup have been an arduous slog for all the teams involved, but the climax of the round-robin saw delighted West Indies and Pakistan teams secure spots in the knockout stages.

The West Indies booked their place in the quarter-finals of the competition—providing the later game doesn’t end in a tie or abandonment—after securing an important six-wicket win over United Arab Emirates. The Associate nation were put into bat and bowled out for 175 by Jason Holder's men; the Windies chased it down within 31 overs.

In the day's later game a balanced bowling display helped Pakistan limit Ireland with the bat, that despite a fine century from William Porterfield. But the 1992 champions chased down the Irish score easily thanks to a century from Sarfraz Ahmed.

Here’s a look back at the action as the pool stages of the competition wind down to a close.

Points Tables

Morne de Klerk/Getty Images

Pool A

Team	Played	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Points	Net Run Rate
New Zealand	6	6	0	0	0	12	+2.564
Australia	6	4	1	0	1	9	+2.257
Sri Lanka	6	4	2	0	0	8	+0.371
Bangladesh	6	3	2	0	1	7	+0.136
England	6	2	4	0	0	4	-0.753
Afghanistan	6	1	5	0	0	2	-1.853
Scotland	6	0	6	0	0	0	-2.218

Pool B

Team	Played	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Points	Net Run Rate
India	6	6	0	0	0	12	+1.827
South Africa	6	4	2	0	0	8	+1.707
Pakistan	6	4	2	0	0	8	-0.085
West Indies	6	3	3	0	0	6	-0.053
Ireland	6	3	3	0	0	6	-0.933
Zimbabwe	6	1	5	0	0	2	-0.527
United Arab Emirates	6	0	6	0	0	0	-2.032

Upcoming Schedule

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ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 Fixtures

Quarter-Finals

Mar. 18 Quarter-final 1,  South Africa vs. Sri Lanka, Sydney (3:30 a.m. GMT)

Mar. 19 Quarter-final 2, India vs. Bangladesh, Melbourne (3:30 a.m. GMT)

Mar. 20 Quarter-final 3, Australia vs. Pakistan, Adelaide (3:30 a.m. GMT)

Mar. 21 Quarter-final 4, New Zealand vs. West Indies, Wellington (1 a.m. GMT)

Semi-Finals

Mar. 24 Semi-final 1, Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF3, Auckland (1 a.m. GMT)

Mar. 26 Semi-final 2, Winner QF2 vs. Winner QF4, Sydney (3:30 a.m. GMT)

Final

Mar. 29 Final, Melbourne (4:30 a.m. BST) 

Schedule courtesy of BBC Sport.

Pakistan Progress with Easy Victory over Ireland

James Elsby/Associated Press

Pakistan (241/3) beat Ireland (237) by seven wickets

Pakistan beat Ireland to confirm their spot in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, running out comfortable seven-wicket victors at the Adelaide Oval. 

Batting first, the Irish players struggled for rhythm, and had it not been for a fine century from William Porterfield, they would have been well short of their eventual total of 237. The Pakistani seamers were exemplary in their bowling, though, especially towards the end of the innings.

The team’s batsmen carried that initiative into their innings, as they piled on the runs after a slow start. Openers Ahmed Shehzad and Sarfraz Ahmed both played superbly, as their first-wicket stand of 120 gave Pakistan a perfect platform to push on from. The latter top-scored, bagging a magnificent 101.

 As noted by BBC Test Match Special, that win means that Pakistan are in the quarter-finals:

"

Pakistan win by seven wickets and go to the quarter final, and Ireland's World Cup is over... #IREvPAK #CWC15 #bbccricket

— Test Match Special (@bbctms) March 15, 2015"

Ireland won the toss and chose to put on some pressure with the bat. But aside from the diligent efforts of Porterfield at the top of the order, it was a disappointing day for the men in green. 

They lost regular wickets throughout the innings as the Associate nation’s batsmen failed to cope with some canny Pakistan bowling. The Ireland stars became frustrated quickly in such a high-pressure occasion, and some rash shots emerged as a result.

Wahab Riaz shone with the ball once again taking three for 54, while Sohail Khan and Rahat Ali also bagged a couple of wickets each. 

Porterfield played well for Ireland, though. As noted by former England captain Michael Vaughan, the skipper’s innings gave his team a fair chance: 

"

Brilliant Will Porterfield....Giving @Irelandcricket a great chance.. #CWC2015

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) March 15, 2015"

But he also lost his wicket to a loose shot and left the tail-enders facing Pakistan’s array of classy bowlers with the overs ticking down. As you might expect, the runs didn’t flow in the latter stages, and Ireland stuttered towards an eventual total of 237. 

Cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle paid tribute to the strength in depth within this Pakistani bowling attack:

"

No Umar Gul, no Junaid Khan, no Mohd Irfan,no Sohail Tanvir....and yet 4 fast bowlers who can get the job done for Pakistan. #productionline

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) March 15, 2015"

Ireland will have been acutely aware of the fact that their total was well short, and early wickets were imperative if they were going to stand any chance of defending it. But Pakistan bunkered in early on with the bat before Shehzad and Sarfraz moved through the gears to pile on the runs.

Their 120-run opening stand settled any lingering nerves in the Pakistani camp, and although Shehzad lost his wicket, Sarfraz was an imperious presence throughout the course of the innings for his team. 

As noted by Cricket Record, his century was a long time coming for a Pakistan player at the World Cup:

"

Last Pakistani to score a century in World Cup was Imran Nazir (160 v Zim in 2007). Sarfraz Ahmed may hit today. #CWC15 #PAKvIRE

— Cricket Record (@cricinfo_record) March 15, 2015"

Ireland have been a credit at this tournament and should be proud of how they’ve acquitted themselves, but ultimately, they didn’t have quite enough here. By contrast, Pakistan relished the occasion and will take a lot of confidence into their quarter-final match with co-hosts Australia.

West Indies Secure Quarter-Final Spot with Easy UAE Win

Phil Walter/Getty Images

West Indies (176/4) beat United Arab Emirates (175) by six wickets

The West Indies ensured their spot in the knockout stages of the contest is almost certainly secure after bagging a comfortable win over Pool B whipping boys UAE.

After being put into bat by captain Jason Holder, the Associate nation were in massive trouble at 46 for six at one stage but a fine partnership between Amjad Javed (56) and Nasir Aziz (60) helped the UAE to a respectable score of 175. The Windies skipper impressed with the ball, taking four wickets for just 27 runs.

Despite losing Chris Gayle to injury on the cusp of this one the Windies’ chase never looked likely to be in vain. The opener’s replacement was Johnson Charles and he hit a brisk 55 at the top of the order; despite losing some cheap wickets, the two-time champions eventually got over the line with time to spare as Jonathan Carter notched an unbeaten 50.

As noted by BBC Test Match Special, this victory for the Windies means it’s winner takes all in the day’s final match:

"

The West Indies beat UAE inside 31 overs and QUALIFY for 1/4 finals. So Pakistan v Ireland is winner takes all #CWC15 pic.twitter.com/2WDQGhUO4c

— Test Match Special (@bbctms) March 15, 2015"

You never quite know what you're going to get when it comes to the West Indies and as such there will have been some hope on the part of the Associate nation that they could potentially spring a big shock. But from very early on that looked unlikely.

Holder led by example in the opening stages, bamboozling the UAE batsmen with pace and bounce to claim the wickets of the top three in the space of 16 balls. After Jerome Taylor chipped in to rearrange the stumps of Khurram Khan and the dangerous Shaiman Anwar, Holder bagged his fourth victim and UAE were in big trouble at 46 for six.

As noted by Cricket Buzz, Holder was in such a fine groove, he just kept on going:

"

Jason Holder finishes (10-1-27-4). He is the first bowler to bowl unchanged in #CWC15 #WIvUAE

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) March 14, 2015"

But credit must go to Javed and Aziz, who showcased remarkable fight to get their team to a respectable score. As noted by cricket statistician Mohandas Menon, the partnership between the duo was almost unprecedented in World Cup matches:

"

In WC history only two 100+ stands for the 7th wkt and both stands were for 107 runs and both by UAE pairs #WIvUAE #CWC15

— Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) March 15, 2015"

Eventually the Windies ended the UAE rearguard response, though, and with the final three wickets offering little resistance, the Associate nation were all out for 175. 

It was a target that Charles seemed intent on getting to sooner rather than later as he took on the role of aggressor at the top of the innings, that despite another failure from opener Dwayne Smith. His 55 came off just 40 balls as he plundered nine fours and two sixes.

As noted by the Cricket World Cup Twitter account, his innings served as critical early impetus for his team:

"

Great 50 from Johnson Charles! He has kicked this #WI innings into gear! http://t.co/ZfdYcCYZPI #WIvUAE pic.twitter.com/ieAeirQMk9

— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) March 15, 2015"

Despite Marlon Samuels and Andre Russell both falling for meagre scores either side of Charles’ own dismissal in the 16th over, the Windies never looked in danger of falling short of the target. Eventually a 58-run partnership between Carter and Dinesh Ramdin saw the Caribbean Islanders to victory after 30.3 overs.

Barring a majorly unfortunate turn of events the Windies will be in the quarter-finals and for the tournament’s sake, that can only be a good thing. While this team can be perilously frustrating at times, on any given day they can turn it on and get a result against anyone. In the final knockings of a World Cup, it’s those kinds of teams that add to the excitement.