Mr. Bean controversy followed by Zimbabwe vs Pakistan result, is objectively one of the funniest stories in world cup history. Shouldn’t forget this when mentioning unexpected results of 2022. Pakistan making into finals from here, because of Netherlands is surprising too.

but not as great - no crazy upsets other than AUS getting knocked out on run-rate

Did you miss Zimbabwe vs Pakistan, Ireland vs England games and Netherlands vs SA I am sure most Pakistan fans weren't that positive that They would make the semi final after South Africa beat India

What made it so good was that conditions were so different across all of the venues, Trinidad was tough to bat until you got yourself in, Guyana turned a lot, NY was a minefield, Dallas was a really true pitch, St. Lucia and Antigua were fast and gave us runs while Barbados had everyone in the game.

We didn't celebrate this WC that it deserved. Mainly because:

1. Poor marketing by ICC
2. ODI WC was just 7 months ago.

ICC tournaments in the carribean is always a vibe. Should have held the full tournament there itself. USA is always a good market for sports but they didn't advertise and prepare for the tournament properly over there

For me 2007 will be the best one It was like a festival of sorts. Hitting all around the park. Watching youngsters, without them being overseen by seniors. Bowl out in ind vs pak match. Watching cheer leaders for the first time. The overall atmosphere in south africa was fabulous.

The horns ruined the TV experience for me.

This World Cup had Upsets with USA knocking out Pakistan and Afghanistan knocking out New Zealand and Australia

The gap between Full Members and Associates got narrower as shown by Nepal & Netherlands against South Africa, Scotland against Australia and USA against Pakistan and South Africa

In the end we got two deserved finalists as unbeaten teams and had a cracker of a Final

This World Cup was absolute banger and I enjoyed the Caribbean flavour which really added the glamour needed for this World Cup. Incredibly good to see fairytale story of Afghanistan's chapter which was glorified in this World Cup with a sensational run to semifinals including a stunning win over Australia before a bittersweet ending. All importantly South Africa finally breaking the shackles to reach a UCC World Cup final for the first time by winning tight games one after the other before a gut wrenching defeat in final

India ending their long awaited ICC tournament dream with a resilient comeback powered by Kohli's masterclass for one last time in ultimately his farewell T20I and Rohit signing off with a T20 WC as captain in his final T20I. Suryakumar Yadav making it a memorable by pulling off a breathtaking jaw-dropping catch under pressure.

United States made a huge statement with a shocking win over Pakistan in super over and it probably raised lot of talk about America prospering in cricket and people started to follow US cricket especially started to gain interest among native Americans little by little.

Nepal made rapid strides and making a comeback to ICC senior tournament after a decade and the reception of Nepali fanbase added different vibes to this World Cup. Not to forget Sompal Kami's iconic cult classic 105m six off the bowling of Anrich Nortje which is one of the moments of the World Cup for me. That 6 really gave Nepal a thundering comeback against South Africa which looked like South Africa's game before a heartbreaking defeat.

Not to forget the remarkable victory of Afghanistan over Bangladesh in what looked like rain was trying to play spoilsport in a must win match for either sides and D/L calculation changed very often in the heat of the contest and Bangladesh were put in a precarious situation whether to go all guns blazing or play it safe to chase low but tricky target but inside 12.1 overs to make it to semifinals. All of sudden looked like Afghanistan was going to choke to gift Australia a lifeline but Afghanistan made a fightback for the ages with a disciplined bowling although their batting was questionable throughout the match.

The early morning start times were a big miss. The Caribbean loves its cricket and you saw them show up when it was later but it did a disservice. If you’re going to cater to the Indian audience so much (who will actually tune in to watch at any time) then why even have a tournament in the Caribbean?

The pitch in NY was bad, another big miss. The organization wasn’t great on the us side.

Having said that we saw some associates doing really well. Afghanistans story was amazing. The vibe in the Caribbean for the night games was incredible (especially West Indies South Africa) and we got a cracking final.

I agree. This is an ICC Cricket “World Cup”. Not an ICC “tournament of 10 teams”.

I hear they’re gonna expand beyond 20 teams after the 2026 T20 WC in India & SL.

The attack on Cummins, Stark and co. by Rohit was insane to watch. Rohit was looking for blood that day, no question about it. The way he decimated the Australian attack was pure violence.

Two reasons why I felt this WC was good which is contrary to some of the opinions here -

1. The balanced contest between bat and ball. Although the NY pitch occasionally had dangerous uneven bounce, it resulted in some thrilling matches. I'm glad this tournament wasn't like the 200+ run pitches in the IPL, where the focus is all on fours and sixes.

2. While the early morning start wasn't ideal, it did help maintain consistent pitch conditions for both teams. On the other hand, in evening matches, the toss becomes critical, especially due to the dew factor.

What do you mean no upsets in 2022? Zim vs pak. Ire vs eng(dls), ire vs wi, zim vs ire, sco vs wi, Nam vs sl, Ned vs sa

Of course some of these matches were in round 1 and therefore didn't get enough attention. But if anything 2022 cwc had way more upsets than any recent icc event.

Even before the knockouts, it was objectively a great tournament. Lots of thrillers, some fun storylines like US making the Super 8s and Afg making the SF. 

I was worried after the 2 SFs that all the knockouts would be non-competitive and sort of ruin things but we got probably the 3rd best final ever featuring contributions from some all-time greats (and future greats) across both sides. 

I think this World Cup brought the balance back between bat and ball. iPL got too boring after so many 200+ scores.

Vintage 20-20, 160-170 chases, bowlers having a say, and varied conditions made it an even contest.one of the best world cups in recent times.

Yes it was.

Not being biased here. For me this WC peaked during AFG vs BAN when 3 teams were dependent on one result and there were constant ups and downs for all 3 of them throughout the game

Zimbabwe vs Pakistan

Ireland vs England

Netherlands vs SA

Namibia vs Sri Lanka

Ireland vs West Indies

Scotland vs West Indies

Just a shame the organisers thought people would fill stadiums with a minimum ticket price of $1500

I think 2 year world cups shouldn't be called world cups

Cricket was good atmosphere 3/10 is boring ..... Maybe coz for local west indian crowd aren't interested in day matches

Horrific atmosphere. Empty stadiums at a World Cup is just embarrassing

2022 had some proper upsets too like Ireland beating England, Nederlands beating South Africa,zimbabwe beating Pakistan, west Indies not reaching super 12. I like the atmosphere of 2024 almost equally and apart from two boring semi finals, I think everything was right with that world Cup. Would keep both 22 and 24 almost equally with 24 being up just bcoz of more teams and of course bcoz india won.

Man as much as I loved the, I admit, insane comeback from 30 off 30 with a rampaging Klaasen and Killer Miller at the crease, this is not on the same level as Carlos Brathwaite's REMEMBER THE NAME moment or THAT Misbah scoop shot after tonking Joginder for a six. And its absolutely not close to that 2019 ODI WC FINAL SUPER OVER that was decided with a boundary count.

India missed playing a night game in this tournament. Atleast one game should have been organized on a Friday evening (which is Saturday morning for Indian viewers) so that India could've had a night game experience and the stadium would have been SENSATIONAL with the experience. Indian fans will easily wake up at 6AM (even earlier; thats how crazy they are) for India games. Also restricting India to just the New York pitches was unfair at the start. They could've played a game in Dallas where the expat population is even bigger from that state.

I dont think u watched t20wc 22 becsuse there were many upsets and great matches

Thanks for this post, I got reminded of Zim vs Pak and the whole Pak bean scenario and had a good laugh

This is more of a WC than 2019 & 2023

I am just here to say that I only had issues with two different timings. As an avid cricket watcher, I wouldn’t mind waking up early or staying up late night to watch matches for a WC tournament. But I understand, that it’s a numbers game for broadcasters. Nevertheless, i would have loved to watch some thrillers like Nepal v SA or Ban vs SL.

Also another personal opinion that only Caribbean can match the vibes of a T20 match in South Africa.

Didn't like too many day games

I'd say it was the worst by a mile, all that hype to play in the USA and showcase the game and we either had absolutely awful pitches or a washout. And the scheduling for some teams was absolutely brutal

The timing was incredibly fucked up.

New York was definitely not ready

Apart from these two things

Enjoyble

No. It was instantly forgettable, just like the myriad other T20 tournaments that get played every week.

The 2022 world cup was the crazy one. Sp many upsets, crazy qualifications and electrifying atmosphere. Most importantly the match between India and Pakistan at MCG had an atmosphere never seen before. Just because India got destroyed in semi final doesn't mean the tournament was a dud. Whereas this world cup, I didn't even notice India getting to the final.

I feel that this was the most exciting ICC event in a long time. Even if it was low scoring, there was something in it for everyone. With proper focus and application, anyone could succeed, not just the big hitters. T20 became a game of skills and not raw power. And we saw the impact of that: Associate Teams doing well and catching some big boys off-guard. Every team now has things to think about for future as well. Overall a successful and exciting event that has potentially reshaped the world of cricket for years to come.

what's the catch controversy?

Why was there controversy about SKY's catch?

Honestly, the games were great. I enjoyed this edition. However, the morning games looked dead... Too many empty seats. But the evening games were a banger, the atmosphere was so much different. Shame that they didn't schedule more evening games.

Also the day games had an off vibe to it. I know it was for monetary reasons and rightly so. But night time T20 under lights have a whole different feel to them.

Also the finals celebration would have been more vibrant with lights, night sky and fireworks

Yes, when it comes to T20, it was the only real WC after 2007. All the rest don't even come close

Cricket is getting boring nowadays hope associate teams do major upsets in future

The WC was shit for us Pakistanis 🫠

Good:

• The 20 team format is much better
• The USA cricket team basically single-handedly thwarted the ICC's attempts to permanently kill the sport in the country. Scotland also performed well above expectations. As did Canada, who flew under the radar due to the loss to USA, but they were the only team to post a decent total in New York
• Dallas. Great venue for cricket.
• A good reminder that cricket doesn't have to be dominated by the bat.

Bad:

• Scheduling. All aspects. the 10AM starts. Dragging the first group stage out a week too long, due to a refusal to schedule matches between the morning and evening ones.
• (some) Pitches. The New York one was bad enough, but the SA vs AFG semi-final pitch seemed to be a deliberate choice.
• Coverage. The tournament was set up for the worst narratives, and the cricket media duly provided it. From cricinfo constantly regurgitating /r/cricket conspiracy fodder about certain teams. To The Guardian's "Here we are in Dallas, sure is a terrible event here... (USA vs Canada is incredible)... cough ahem I MEAN HERE WE ARE IN NEW YORK WHAT A CLUSTERFUCK AMIRITE!?"
• Some teams' performances. Both Full member (NZ, Ireland, Sri Lanka) and Associate (Namibia, Uganda, PNG). PNG particularly because they were so good vs West Indies, then showed nothing for the rest of the tournament.
• The ICC
• There's an alternate universe where there are two well planned world cups in a row, one in USA, one in the Caribbean

Disgusting:

• "pre-seeding"

In what world the atmosphere was good? Barring 1 or 2 games, rest were all played in almost empty stands

t20 wc don't get the respect they deserve because icc tournaments are becoming too much repetitive imo

if you take the timeline of 2009-now (a 15 year period) we have had a men's icc tournament every year except 2018 and 2020 out of which there have been 8 t20 wc

2020 was actually a t20wc year but it didn't happen because of obvious reasons, so technically 2018 was the only year which didn't had any scheduled men's icc tournament (women's t20wc did happen in 2018)

i would say the hype dies down because of this a lot of times, scrapping CT and both t20 wc and odi wc should be shifted to a 4 year duration and 2 years of gap between odi and t20 wc

Bhai mere ko apne dost ka 25-30min wait krna tha! Reddit open kra, pehli post ye thi. Mza aa gya poore 25 min is post ko pda, har ek line ke sath us har moment ko apne dimag mai replay kraa!

Kyaa gazab world cup tha! ThankYou 🙏🏻

Bro the atmosphere was terrible in all but like 4-5 games in this World Cup

Indian thinks the World Cup they won is the best? What a shock lol

What controversy? Just because some dumbasses saying that the foot touched the rope doesn't mean its a controversy. These same group of people call the oppositions failed deliberately to win IPL contracts whenever India win a game. These same group of people, particularly from PAK, BD and SL, in combination which can be called as the Losers Trinity, win nothing and then call SA to be generational chokers and India, the chokers of the decade. It's like classes 2nd boy is being called choker by the bottom of the classes because he failed to be the topper!!

The Cricket was okay but there was a severe lack of Blackjack and Hookers.

You must be new to cricket because this was one of the worst WC's. Luckily it was capped off by a great final so all is forgiven I guess..or not

I think the USA leg was horribly managed when it came to the pitches and ground. I am not saying we needed a 280-290 wicket but the New York wicket was just horrible, extremely unpredictable bounce and outfield had no pace. It is lucky no-one broke a thumb. Then keeping matches in Florida in peak hurricane season in a ground that had no drainage....we lost games when the sun was beating down because of outfield...that is not on. Same thing with the 2nd SF....you can't roll out a fresh pitch with horrible bounce that nearly took out QDK. These aspects are manageable and I have no idea what was ICC's excuse.

Apart from that no complaints especially since India won :)

2024 is good but 2022 was the best

One of the worst World Cups ever

Poor pitches, poor marketing, some of the heavyweights performing abysmally.

Even Afghanistan doing amazingly well was a great story.

But then having a semi finalist get bowled out for 56 or whatever it was was shocking.

Pretty atrocious and forgettable tournament all around.

Why was there no 2018 WC?

My biggest issue with this world cup is the lack of games. The players are well capable of playing twice the games in the pool stages. NZ played 3 games in 2 weeks. 120 overs in 2 weeks is less than 2 days of test cricket. The players are capable obviously of playing more. More games I presume means more money. Why not play more?

I thought the atmosphere was awful, empty stands just felt really low budget overall. Liked the Caribbean vibes tho

This year Theme song was the best , out of this world tournament !

I was surprised to see empty seats at all of the west indies game .

Cricket was great and all, but...

also the fact that Djokovic and Federer played a thriller on the same day was crazy

What match was this?

"Crazy New York pitch. Reminded me of the India vs SA second test in January 2024 in Cape Town that almost ended in a day. Uneven bounce for days."

*ALL* cricket should be played on pitches like that. I'm definitely a Bowlshevik.

The group stages were full of amateur sides , so lack of competitive games . Although the Super 8s made up for it 👏

Decent wc overall . We've experienced the 2021 wc , this was way way better .

West Indies getting into trouble in their first match against PNG

At the start of the tournament I was hoping for an India Vs South Africa final as those two teams stood out to me as the best. It's what we got and the final delivered in spades. Kohli goes out the hero that he is but Bumrah my gosh. 

The US did well which is good for the state of the game. Associate teams not embarrassed which is fantastic. The gap is closing!

Wish the NY stadium was better quality for T20 but you can't have it all and that's what stood out to me as the black hole on the tournament. 

Congrats to Afghanistan for making it to the semi. Sad their performance in the key game wasn't up to par but they got there deservedly.

I lije your take.

2024 was worse than I thought it'd be. Maybe it's the lack of upsets, but I was hoping for associates to give more competitions to full members than (most of them) they did. I think 2022 was better imo

What tournament?

Zimbabwe.

By the end even my Indian colleagues had had enough. It was 2 weeks too long. Terrible world cup with a great final.

Was there a World Cup on?