Picking out the Star Performers from the Nations Knocked out of the World Cup
The group stage of the World Cup is over—the eight quarter-finalists are now set in stone.
Like a television game show, not everyone can be winners. Some competitors have to go home early, with six nations failing to clear the first hurdle in the tournament.
The journey for the four ICC Associates has come to an end, though Ireland only missed out on reaching the knockout rounds on run rate.
William Porterfield's side recorded wins over West Indies and Zimbabwe, as well as United Arab Emirates, but a final defeat to Pakistan in Group B saw them packing their bags.
England were the biggest casualty in the opening round. Their loss to Bangladesh in Adelaide meant it was they, and not the Tigers, who finished outside of the top four in Group A.
Before looking ahead to those countries still in with a chance of lifting the trophy, let us take a minute to pick out some of the star performers who will be watching the rest of the World Cup sat at home.
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Afghanistan: Shapoor Zadran
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Wickets: 10 (average of 26.50)
Runs: 17 in five innings (no average)
Shapoor Zadran became a cult hero during the World Cup.
A left-arm paceman with long, flowing hair and a run-up that seems to go on forever, the 27-year-old was fast and always a threat to opponents.
He claimed four for 38 against Scotland, though his most important contribution in that match actually came with the bat.
It was last-man Zadran who hit the winning boundary to see Afghanistan record their maiden World Cup win.
He celebrated in style, rushing towards the pavilion before sinking to his knees and stretching out his arms. It was a historic moment for the country and one that will certainly be replayed several times over.
Honourable mentions go to Hamid Hassan, a bowler who wore a headband and war paint but was quick enough to get away with it, and Samiullah Shenwari, who was comfortably the team's highest scorer with 254 runs.
England: Moeen Ali
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Runs: 192 (average of 38.40)
Wickets: 4 (average of 50.25)
It was a dismal World Cup campaign for England. In fact it was so bad, it would seem quite appropriate to avoid picking a star performer at all.
However, Moeen Ali did provide one rare moment of joy for Eoin Morgan's squad.
England had already been badly beaten by Australia and New Zealand by the time they headed into a potential banana skin against neighbours Scotland.
Moeen, though, calmed any nerves with a superb hundred. His knock of 128 helped his side register the first of just two victories they managed in their six group games.
The all-rounder was also a useful performer with the ball.
While he did not take many wickets, his economy rate of 5.28 was the best of any English bowler who played in more than two matches.
While there will be serious questions over the future of some of the underperforming squad, Moeen is the type of player England should look to build their one-day team around.
Ireland: Ed Joyce
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Runs: 246 (average of 41)
There were several strong candidates to be selected as Ireland's leading light in the tournament.
However, Sussex batsman Ed Joyce gets the nod because he played crucial roles in two of their three victories.
The left-hander scored 84 off just 67 deliveries to help stun West Indies in Nelson, with Ireland chasing a target of 305 with ease to start their World Cup in fine style.
He then followed up with a century against Zimbabwe, his knock of 112 helping Ireland pile up 331 for eight at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart, Australia.
Joyce is a former England one-day international—perhaps his former side will now be regretting they don't still have him in their ranks.
An honourable mention goes to skipper William Porterfield, who hit a century in a losing cause against Pakistan and was also outspoken about the ICC's plans to reduce the next World Cup to 10 teams.
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Scotland: Josh Davey
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Wickets: 15 (average of 20.73)
Runs: 55 (average of 13.75)
Josh Davey found himself in illustrious company near the top of the wicket-taking standings after the group stage of the World Cup.
The seamer picked up 15 scalps in total. That number becomes even more impressive when you realise no other bowler for Scotland took more than seven.
The 24-year-old finds himself just one behind Australian Mitchell Starc and level with New Zealand's Trent Boult and India's Mohammed Shami in the charts ahead of the quarter-finals.
His best figures were four for 68 against England in Christchurch and only against Australia, in Scotland's last outing, did he fail to pick up more than one wicket in an innings.
A special mention should also go to Kyle Coetzer. The opening batsman scored Scotland's first ever World Cup century in the defeat to Bangladesh.
United Arab Emirates: Shaiman Anwar
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Runs: 311 (average of 51.83)
Shaiman Anwar showed that age is no barrier to one-day success.
The 36-year-old was comfortably United Arab Emirates' leading scorer, only failing to make it into double figures in one of his six innings at the World Cup.
He began impressively enough, hitting 67 against Zimbabwe, and followed on with a superb century—his first in ODI cricket—in a losing cause against Ireland.
His knock of 106 versus the Irish in Brisbane came off just 83 deliveries after the right-hander had come to the crease with his team struggling at 78 for four.
Shaiman also defied Pakistan's impressive bowling attack to make a half-century, while he finished the tournament with a strike-rate of 91.47 runs per hundred balls.
Amjad Javed also deserves a mention for his efforts for UAE. While slightly expensive with the ball, going at 6.52 runs an over, he showed his all-round talents by contributing 170 runs with the bat.
Zimbabwe: Brendan Taylor
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Runs: 433 (average of 72.16)
Brendan Taylor underlined his value to Zimbabwe during the World Cup, scoring two hundreds and a half-century in his six innings.
The wicketkeeper never failed to make it into double figures, with his lowest score being the 37 he made against West Indies.
Taylor made 121 in a game Zimbabwe narrowly lost to Ireland, a result that meant his team were going to be eliminated from the tournament after the group stage.
However, he still made the most of the chance to shine in a dead rubber against India, hitting 138 from 110 deliveries at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand.
Sadly for Zimbabwe, that century will also be the final innings Taylor plays for his country for a while.
The 29-year-old has signed a three-year contract to join English county Nottinghamshire as a Kolpak player, during which time he is ineligible to play international cricket.
With Taylor gone, even more will be expected of Sean Williams. The left-hander also had an excellent World Cup, scoring 339 runs at an average of 67.80.
All stats used in this article were provided by ESPN Cricinfo
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