World Cup 2019: Rating the performances of the teams at the halfway point of the tournament

World Cup 2019 is well and truly into its business phase and despite few games being washed out due to rain, it has lived up to expectations in terms of cricketing standards if not for the surprising performances of few teams. We got to see how certain experiments and plans tried out by teams fared while we have got few injuries which have threatened to seriously expose the team in that area.

And with 25 games of this World Cup done and dusted, teams like South Africa and Afghanistan might as well be going back home after abysmal performances saw them get knocked out, although the Proteas have a slim mathematical chance of going through.

On the other hand, we have also seen some inspiring performances from teams who have performed very well.

With the points table shifting after every fixture and every game growing in importance, let's take a look at the performances of the teams thus far and rate them.

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South Africa

South Africa have lacked the bite with the bat.

Games Played: 6 |Games Won: 1 |Games Lost: 4| No Result: 1

Rating: 4/10

South Africa are in a really bad place in the points table with 1 win from 6 games and are virtually knocked out of the tournament. The Proteas' only win came against bottom-placed Afghanistan with injuries to key players plaguing them along with some poor batting shows and lack of intent. They opened their tournament with 3 losses on the spin against England, Bangladesh and India before getting a point against West Indies due to a washout.

Their campaign virtually ended when they lost to New Zealand at Edgbaston and with their opening combination not clicking, middle order lacking intent, things don't seem to be getting better for them. Kagiso Rabada, Andile Phehlukwayo and Chris Morris seemed to be the only good players for South Africa in a largely disappointing show so far.

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Afghanistan

Afghanistan have produced a largely disappointing performance.

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 0| Games Lost: 5

Rating 4/10

Afghanistan, as predicted by many have been the weaklings of this World Cup, unable to win a single game despite having a clear chance to beat Sri Lanka in a rain-affected game only to be thwarted by Nuwan Pradeep and Lasith Malinga. Apart from that game, they have been beaten quite easily with oppositions bowling them out with ease and adding to their net run-rate.

Their spinners, apart from Mohammad Nabi, have struggled with Rashid Khan clearly finding it hard to cope with bowling to the top teams. Their batting has largely revolved around Rahmat Shah and Hasmatullah Shahidi with Najibullah Zadran chipping in with runs.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 1| Games Lost:2 | NR: 2

Rating: 5.5/10

Sri Lanka's only win of the tournament came against Afghanistan, thanks to a spirited bowling performance but apart from that, they have looked shambolic with only 2 or 3 players chipping in with good performances. They were comprehensively beaten by New Zealand and Australia while they were pretty lucky when their 2 fixtures against Asian rivals Pakistan and Bangladesh were washed out.

While skipper Dimuth Karunaratne and keeper Kusal Perera have done well, the rest of the team, especially the senior players, must step up in the latter half of the tournament.

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Pakistan

Pakistan.

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 1| Games Lost: 3| NR: 1

Rating: 5.5/10

Pakistan's World Cup campaign opened with a horrific loss to the West Indies when their entire side got bundled out for 106, thanks to the barrage of short balls which the Caribbean bowlers delivered. They, however, managed to come back strong and stun hosts England in their 2nd game and just when it seemed that they were back on track, they suffered losses to Australia and India putting their campaign at risk.

Pakistan have played good cricket with the performances of Mohammad Amir and Babar Azam being the highlight but they need to deliver as a team and make the most of their remaining playoff hopes.

West Indies

West Indies.

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 1| Games Lost: 3| NR: 1

Rating: 6/10

West Indies turned themselves into a team to be afraid of as they rattled Pakistan to coast to victory in their opener at this World Cup. But since then, they have looked jaded and haven't managed to get a win. They have losses to England, Australia, and Bangladesh respectively with a game against South Africa where they had a positive start was washed out.

The opening bowlers, Sheldon Cottrell, in particular, have been brilliant while their lack of a good spinner and the performance of their middle order should be addressed.

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Bangladesh

Bangladesh.

Games Played: 6| Games Won: 2| Games Lost: 3| NR: 1

Rating: 6.5/10

Bangladesh have delivered a decent performance at this World Cup with 2 stunning wins over South Africa and Bangladesh. They opened their campaign with a win over the Proteas which was followed by losses to England and New Zealand and after a washed out fixture against Sri Lanka, they played tremendously well to beat the West Indies.

They also succumbed to the might of the Australian batting unit to lose their third game of the tournament.

They have played very well as a team while Shakib Al Hasan's performance needs to be applauded. They have a chance to make it to the semis but need to be at their best from here on.

England

Joe Root has been simply brilliant.

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 4| Games Lost: 1

Rating: 8.5/10

England have played very well at this World Cup, justifying their imperious 'favorites' tag. Apart from a loss to Pakistan, they have been clinical against their opponents, cruising past them with ease courtesy of some tremendous performances with both bat and ball. They beat South Africa in the opener before losing to Pakistan. Then they won 3 games on the spin against Bangladesh, West Indies, and Afghanistan.

However, they are yet to face the top teams like Australia, New Zealand and India and players like Joe Root and Jofra Archer must maintain the same level of consistency throughout.

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Australia

Australia.

Games Played: 6| Games Won: 5| Games Lost: 1

Rating: 9/10

Australia have been pretty clinical against their opponents and apart from a loss to India, the Aussies have had a very good World Cup campaign thus far. With skipper Aaron Finch, David Warner and Steve Smith all in good touch with the bat, they have made a mockery of the opposition, while the fire of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc has rattled the opposition batsmen. With each passing game, they seem to grow in confidence and have a really strong coherence in the team.

They have had a couple of injury troubles and a few problems with their spinners but they will be ready to rise to the task as they take on stronger sides like England and New Zealand in the upcoming matches.

India

India

Games Played: 4| Games Won: 3| Games Lost: 0| NR:1

Rating: 9/10

India have been simply outstanding in this World Cup and Virat Kohli and co. have handled the toughest of oppositions with ease and only have England to get past before the group stage ends. They do have their share of problems with star opener Shikhar Dhawan ruled out of the tournament and Bhuvneshwar Kumar sidelined for a few games.

However, the players have clicked and fired in unison and can move higher in the points table with some easier fixtures approaching.

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New Zealand

New Zealand's key batsmen have been pretty good so far.

Games Played: 5| Games Won: 4| Games Lost: 0| NR:1

Rating: 9/10

The Black Caps have been absolutely brilliant in this World Cup and are unbeaten with 4 wins and one NR from 5 games. They have beaten Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and South Africa with one washed out fixture against India.

They are, however, yet to face the stronger teams like West Indies, England, and Australia and need their batsmen and strong bowling unit to unite and deliver a strong performance.