CWC 2019: Ranking the best finisher of each team

In less than a week’s time, England and Wales will jointly co-host the Cricket World Cup in what promises to be the most anticipating two months of cricket in 2019.

The tournament which is slated to feature in a round-robin fashion for the first time ever since 1992, is touted to be one of the most closely fought editions ever in the history of the World Cups. However, it is debatable whether the conditions will suit the bowlers or will it be a run-fest with the kind of flat decks seen in England in the past few years, especially for white-ball cricket.

With T20 cricket playing a major role in today’s white ball cricket, such flat decks are a perfect foil for the batsmen and an absolute graveyard for the bowlers. Taking this fact into consideration, teams seem to have built their strategies around strengthening their batting line up.

With bat expected to play a major role in this year’s World Cup, we rank teams based on their finishers’ prowess in CWC 2019.

#10 Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan)

The most experienced campaigner in the Afghanistan side, Mohammad Nabi is also their best player in the side, be it with the bat or ball. The all-rounder brings a lot to the table with his experience with the bat. Batting lower down the order, Nabi has been instrumental in paying the finisher’s role on many occasions for his team.

However, in the World Cup the team would want much consistent hitting from the senior pro to offer more competition to other teams in the tournament.

#9 Mahmudullah (Bangladesh)

A vital cog in Bangladesh’s campaign at the World Cup, Mahmudullah is one of the consistent players for the Tigers. The 33-year old right-handed batsman who bats in the lower-middle order holds the batting order together and plays the anchor role before going for the final flourish in the final ten overs.

His ability to manoeuvre the strike and go bonkers in the death overs acts a perfect foil for his team for someone batting at that position.

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#8 Thisara Perera (Sri Lanka)

A senior member of the Sri Lankan team now, Thisara Perera has a lot to offer when it comes to his role with the bat in ODI cricket. In the past few years, his hard-hitting prowess has come to the fore more frequently with ample opportunities in the middle-order.

He is someone who can tonk a ball to the fair distance without much effort. He has the ability to muster runs at a quick pace and can take the game away from the opposition at any moment in the game.

#7 David Miller (South Africa)

An attacking, flamboyant middle-order batsman for the Proteas, David Miller is a certain in South Africa’s starting XI for almost all the games at the World Cup. His exploits with the bat lower down the order play a pivotal role in helping his side convert defendable totals to match-winning targets.

However, his recent form isn’t much promising as he has often failed to get going in the final few overs. His struggles with the bat aren’t a great sign for the team but the skipper and the team would hope for him to return to form as quickly as possible.

#6 James Neesham (New Zealand)

The Kiwi all-rounder James Neesham has a key role to offer to his side both with bat and ball. Being a lower-order batsman, his team relies a lot on his finishing abilities, especially in ODI cricket. His recent performances in the past have allowed the Black Caps to invest faith in his abilities by giving him a long run in the shorter versions of the game.

Going into the World Cup, his team would want the all-rounder to get into the groove and make the maximum use of his potential with the bat for the much-needed lower-order flourish down the order.

#5 Asif Ali (Pakistan)

A product of Pakistan’s domestic T20 tournament, Asif Ali has been fast-tracked into Pakistan’s limited overs set up as a reliable No.6 in the batting line up. A pinch-hitter who can strike the ball hard, Ali is the man to produce killer blows for Pakistan lower down the order.

Asif, who was originally not included in the World Cup squad of 15, was eventually drafted into the side after seeing what he brings to the table for the team. Sarfaraz and the team would hope that the flat surfaces in the tournament will act as a perfect foil for the 27-year old to inflict the damage in the end.

#4 Marcus Stoinis (Australia)

One of the better things to happen for Australia during their fall-out after the Sandpaper Gate controversy was the arrival of Marcus Stoinis as one of the core members of their limited-overs setup. In past twelve months or so, Stoinis has shown his ability with the bat as a reliable finisher alongside Glenn Maxwell in the national colours.

Stoinis is a handy all-rounder and can smack the ball a fair distance to provide the flourish during the later stages of the game. Batting at No. 6, the 29-year old has played some spectacular cameos and has even shown the ability to bat long and take the game close and deep.

The all-rounder has batted 14 innings at number six in ODIs and scored close to 500 runs with an impressive strike rate of 95. Australia will hope that he continues his rich vein of form even in the World Cup.

#3 Andre Russell (West Indies)

One of the most dangerous T20 batsmen of all time, all eyes will be on West Indies’ Andre Russell who will don the Maroon jersey for his team at the World Cup 2019. After a destructive IPL season, a lot will rest upon him to play the finisher’s role for the Caribbean team.

While there was never a question on his prowess with the bat, there has always been concerns over his ability to replicate his exploits in the 50-over format. He’s been ever so consistent in the shortest version but has often failed to produce a similar show for his national team.

In the last four years, the right-hander managed to play only one ODI for West Indies. If the ‘Men in Maroon’ are to do well in this World Cup, Russell will have to deliver the knockout punch with his bat to give the much-needed impetus at the back end of the innings.

#2 Hardik Pandya (India)

It seems that India has found a genuine finisher in Hardik Pandya in the limited-overs format of the game. Pandya fits into the Indian line up as a No. 7 batsman who can go gung-ho from ball one. His ability to take the attack to the opposition came to the fore in the recently concluded IPL. He was at the height of his powers, finishing games consistently for his franchise in the IPL.

Hardik will be a vital cog for Kohli-led side if they are to close out matches or set up huge scores in excess of 330 or 340. His clean striking and the confidence in his ability to clear the fence on most occasions makes him even more successful and thus, comes second in this list of best finishers at the World Cup 2019.

He has batted at number five in the warmup-game against New Zeland. Hence that could be his batting position in the main event too.

#1 Jos Buttler (England)

There isn’t a better white-ball player than Jos Buttler who can torment the opposition at will. The 28-year old wicket-keeper batsman has been one of those players who has changed the perception of how England have played the limited overs cricket in recent times. If England goes in as the favourites to lift the World Cup, the onus will be on Buttler to provide the flourish with his attacking stroke play in the fag end of the innings.

His hard-hitting in death is a terrifying sign for any opposition. In the recently concluded series against Pakistan, Buttler even smashed the second-fastest ODI century for England off just 50 balls at Southampton. This goes to show the kind of form he’s in and can turn this destructive on his day. He is one of the primary reason why England posting a massive total in recent days.

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