Cricket World Cup 2015 Tables: List of Qualified Teams After Final Group Results
West Indies did what they had to do on the final day of the 2015 Cricket World Cup group stages, beating United Arab Emirates by a wide margin and leaping over Ireland in the Pool B standings as a result.
The Irish put up a valiant effort but lost by seven wickets (with 23 balls remaining) against in-form Pakistan, as their tournament came to a disappointing end.
Pakistan and Windies join India and South Africa in the quarter-finals as Pool B representatives, while New Zealand, Australia, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh had already qualified from Pool A. The full standings after the group stages:
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| New Zealand | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +2.564 | 1232/195.2 | 1123/300.0 |
| Australia | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | +2.257 | 1419/215.2 | 967/223.1 |
| Sri Lanka | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +0.371 | 1788/295.4 | 1703/300.0 |
| Bangladesh | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | +0.136 | 1392/248.1 | 1362/248.5 |
| England | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -0.753 | 1327/268.1 | 1338/234.4 |
| Afghanistan | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1.853 | 1033/274.3 | 1419/252.4 |
| Scotland | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.218 | 1199/300.0 | 1478/237.5 |
| India | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | +1.827 | 1444/243.3 | 1231/300.0 |
| South Africa | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | +1.707 | 1878/297.0 | 1371/297.0 |
| Pakistan | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 | -0.085 | 1430/293.1 | 1474/297.0 |
| West Indies | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -0.053 | 1485/278.3 | 1524/283.0 |
| Ireland | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -0.933 | 1623/295.1 | 1820/283.0 |
| Zimbabwe | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -0.527 | 1680/296.0 | 1840/296.4 |
| United Arab Emirates | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.032 | 1245/300.0 | 1525/246.4 |
West Indies (176/4) knew a big win was needed against UAE (175) on Sunday, and the side came through when it mattered most, winning by six wickets (with 117 balls remaining).
As shared by BBC Sport, the result all but guaranteed the side would progress to the next round:
The only possible result that could have kept Windies out of the quarter-finals was a draw between Ireland and Pakistan, and that never happened. Powered by William Porterfield's 107 from 131, the Irish put together a solid total of 237, but against Pakistan's explosive batsmen, such a total would always be tricky.
Ahmed Shehzad and Sarfraz Ahmed combined for 164 runs, and the chase became fairly straightforward from that point. Haris Sohail's early dismissal provided a minor scare, but Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Akmal kept their composure and got the job done.
Ed Joyce felt as if the team came up short, but he admitted Ireland gave it everything they got:
The Irish can look back on a wonderful tournament in which they shocked West Indies and played some of the top teams very close, but in the end, Pakistan and Windies proved to be just a class above. The future looks bright for Irish cricket, and this year's World Cup is something they can build on.
Looking ahead at the quarter-finals, there are a number of interesting fixtures on the schedule. The full bracket, courtesy of ICC:
South Africa's batting has been a sight to behold during the tournament, but the Proteas have shown signs of weakness. AB de Villiers and David Miller rank near the top of the rankings as far as batting average goes, but the Pakistan bowlers showed the wickets are there for the taking.
Lasith Malinga hasn't been perfect this tournament, taking just one wickets in six matches so far, but he leads an underrated group of bowlers that is backed by the sensational duo of Kumar Sangakkara (124.00 average) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (79.00 average).
Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle likes the matchup, given it will be played on Sydney's slower wicket:
West Indies' inconsistency is a bad recipe going up against a surging Black Caps squad, and while Bangladesh have been in tremendous form, defending champions India have too much firepower to fall at this stage of the tournament.
On paper, Australia should comfortably beat Pakistan, with pace bowler Mitchell Starc carrying his fantastic group-stage form into the next round. Pakistan have grown in this tournament, however, and always seem to play their best cricket when it matters the most.
Regardless, it looks like we're in for a fantastic round of quarter-final matches.
All statistics courtesy of ESPN Cricinfo.
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