ICC World Cup 2011- Quarterfinal and Semifinal Previews and Predictions

Ok so I wanted to write a preview of all the quarterfinals and semifinals of this World Cup but got my account approved only today so anyway, here are my predictions for the rest of the tournament:

Quarterfinal 3 : South Africa vs New Zealand(Mirpur) :

Group B toppers South Africa come into this match against the fourth-best team in Group A as strong favorites and rightly so. They have played some outstanding, consistent cricket for a while now and barring a dare I say it, "choke" against the English, have won every game in this World Cup thus far.

The Kiwis on the other hand, save for a comfortable win against the mercurial Pakistanis, have failed to light up this tournament. Easy wins over the minnows have been set off by convincing losses against their fellow Test-playing nations, Australia and Sri Lanka. While the bowling looks OK, the batting has been found wanting on numerous occasions over the past year.

Prediction(South Africa to win): The South Africans are infamous for their ability to dominate the early stages and lose when it matters most, in the knockouts. The phrase "choke" has been used time and time again, and I'm sure Graeme Smith and his boys will want to put that tag to rest.

While the Kiwis have won their last two meetings in World Cup competition, the South Africans should win this rather comfortably and move to Colombo where they will play either Sri Lanka or England.

Quarterfinal 4: Sri Lanka vs England(Colombo):

The Sri Lankans return home after a brief trip to Mumbai where they beat the Kiwis, thus confirming second place in Group A and setting up a repeat of their 1996 quarterfinal clash against England.

In the same encounter 15 years ago, the insipid English were blown away by the might of Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana, and while none of the players from either side will play tomorrow, history may well repeat itself.

The Sri Lankans have blown hot and cold through the tournament, losing a humdinger against the Pakistanis while comfortably beating the Kiwis in the aforementioned encounter in Mumbai.

The English, as has been rightly said by many during this World Cup, are definitely doing their bit to keep 50-over cricket alive. Every single match played by the Andrew Strauss-led team has been a nailbiter.

While the English have suffered shock losses after being in winning positions against weaker teams like Bangladesh and Ireland, they have raised their game when it mattered, scoring tight but crucial wins against South Africa and the West Indies, the latter of which was a must-win game.

Prediction(Sri Lanka to win): While they may take some confidence into the match against the Sri Lankans, the Colombo pitch plus a noisy home crowd should prove the last straw for the weary English, and they could well be going home for a well-deserved rest after nearly five months on the road.

Semifinal 1: South Africa vs Sri Lanka(Colombo):

This has the potential to be the best match of the tournament thus far. The Sri Lankans, like the South Africans, possess one of the most lethal fast bowlers in the tournament in Lasith Malinga, famous for his toe-crushing yorkers and a quality spin attack, with the legend Muttiah Muralitharan and the wily Ajantha Mendis.

Whatever the result, this will be the last game for Murali at home as he is set to retire after this World Cup, and he will be eager to go out on a high in front of his adoring fans.

It would be interesting to see how the South Africans play the spinners on what is likely to be a spinner-friendly track and the battle between the Sri Lankan spinners and the South African middle-order could well decide the outcome of this contest.

The Sri Lankans have a pair of decent openers in Dilshan and Tharanga, followed by the two legends, Sangakkara and Jayawardene but don't seem to have much else in their middle-order. A few early wickets and the untested middle order could find itself under serious pressure from the South Africans.

The South Africans bat deep and the only thing that could get in their way is a collapse against the Sri Lankan spinners and of course, NERVES.

Prediction(South Africa to win):South Africa have been known to choke in the semifinals, the most famous of them being the '99 World Cup semifinal against Australia, the, "WHY DIDN'T DONALD RUN?!" match and will be up against a partisan Sri Lankan crowd in addition to the 11 on the field.

However, I feel that the Proteas have too much class and are playing with super confidence and self-belief in this tournament and should progress to the final.

Semifinal 2: India vs Pakistan(Mohali):

The only thing that could trump this clash is these two sides meeting in the final. A World Cup in the subcontinent, the two major cricketing nations of the region (Sri Lanka have only been a force in the last 20 years or so, no offence intended) doing battle for a place in the final of the World Cup; the script could not have been written better.

The Pakistanis are high on confidence, with a surprisingly comfortable win over the Aussies followed by a total demolition job over the hapless West Indians in the quarterfinals. Umar Gul is probably in the best bowling form of his life, and with a number of all-rounders in the side, like Mohammad Hafeez, Abdul Razzaq and the captain Shahid Afridi, who is incidentally the highest wicket-taker in the tournament, they will be a tough side to beat.

On paper, the Indians have a better side. The batting is infinitely stronger, and while the bowling may be a bit weak, Zaheer Khan is in super form, along with the spin combination of Harbhajan Singh and Ashwin.

The story of this tournament however has been the rebirth of Yuvraj Singh. The talented southpaw was almost out of favour with the selectors a few months ago but has turned the corner in dramatic fashion, bagging four man-of-the-match awards in this World Cup, shining with both bat and ball.

The Indians handled the pressure well in a titanic quarterfinal against the mighty Aussies and will have to go through near-unbearable pressure in the semifinal.

Prediction(India to win): Honestly, there's no bias here. While the Pakistanis have been playing some good cricket through the tournament, the Indians are simply a better side.

With the crowd on their side, it all depends on how they handle the pressure. While they could crumble, a more likely situation is the Indians coming out trumps and reaching their third World Cup final.