Top 3 talking points from ODI World Cup 2023

The 2023 ODI World Cup has come to an end with Australia lifting the title for the 6th time. The Indian team remained unbeaten throughout but stumbled at the final step and could not add a third star to their jersey. The World Cup was a giant spectacle dazzled by some great performances. 

Here are some talking points from this World Cup, let’s take a look at the top 3 of them:

1. The emergence of the minnows

This World Cup will be remembered for the emergence of cricketing minnows like Afghanistan and the Netherlands on the biggest stage of world cricket. These teams have shown the cricketing world that if they are provided with enough resources and assistance, they can evolve into a proper cricketing nation. Afghanistan managed to beat 3 former world champions in South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan, which speaks volumes of their upward trajectory and their growth story. The Dutch also displayed promise with their win over South Africa and Bangladesh.

2. The Proteas Are Back

One of the biggest positives from this World Cup is the re-emergence of South African cricket. South Africa qualified for the semi-finals of the World Cup after a disappointing 2019 World Cup campaign where they were eliminated from the group stage. The Proteas had a poor show in the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cup as well. 

But this World Cup has brought a lot of hope for international cricket as one of its powerhouses is on the track to regain dominance in world cricket. For the health of Cricket, South Africa needed to go back to their glory days when they used to be strong contenders for every multilateral tournament. Now it finally appears that South African cricket is back on the international stage with a bang.

3. The Apex Cricket Council has a job on their hands

Before the commencement of this World Cup, the chatter in the global cricket community was that the One-Day format was dying a slow death. But it is very evident after the biggest event in World Cricket has come to an end that this format of cricket is going nowhere until the Apex Cricket Council cares for this format. This World Cup has rekindled the interest of fans in ODI cricket and now it is the council’s job to make this format more interesting by taking some necessary corrective measures that can maintain the charm and appeal of ODI cricket.