Cricket and footballing powerhouses - where they meet

If we scan through the history of both major footballing and cricketing nations, some startling similarities start to emerge. Here is an attempt to draw comparisons between the powerhouses of cricket and football.

#1 Australia (Brazil)

The yellow and baggy green outfit. The consistency over 100 years. All matches up to Brazil. If 1958-1970 was Brazil's supreme period, 1996-2008 are the 12 years that Australia will be truly proud of. Both Australia and Brazil are going through a transformation period with their current crop easily the worst in a long time. The selectors of both the sides have always faced the happy problem of too much talent pool to select from.

The teams’ players have a larger than life image outside their country, too, and are always up for grabs in events such as IPL, EPL, La Liga, etc. Brazil lost their chance of re-establishing their supremacy when they lost in the 2014 FIFA World Cup semi-final fixture concluded 3 months ago at their home. With the World cup 2015 scheduled in Australia next year, what lies ahead for the Brazil of cricket?

#2 New Zealand (Greece)

The Kiwis are akin to Greeks. Nobody talks about them, yet they manage to feature and surprise people at major tournaments. The Martin Crowe-dominance in the 1992 world cup can be compared to the Greek Euro Victory.

#3 Bangladesh (Ivory Coast)

Small nations. talented bunch of players, almost there. The most dangerous of all minnows. Other ideas for Bangladesh were Greece and Portugal, but both nations have a long footballing history unlike Bangladesh. Ivory Coast boasts of players like Yaya Toure and Didier Drogba. Similarly, Shakib Al Hasan is the only world-class Bangladeshi cricketer. We are not very far away from a Bangladeshi Ranatunga or a Ivory coast Kanu.

#4 Pakistan (Netherlands)

This is the toughest one. Only Netherlands come somewhere close to the tendency of implosion that Pakistan show so frequently. However, Pakistani set-up is much more fickle by the standards of any international team. They have regularly reached the last stages of many tournaments to only bow out in dramatic fashion. If Netherlands is the biggest footballing nation to have never won the World Cup, Pakistan has achieved very less when the amazing talent that they produce is taken into account.

#5 England (Spain)

England last reigned supreme in 1966. Spain won just one in 2010. Both countires spin large moolah into their sports, but their performances have been not to those standards. By that logic, the England cricket team can almost be compared to their own football team. They invented both these sports, anyway. The English cricketing outfit is only ahead of their footballing counterpart because of their dominance in Test cricket.

#6 Zimbabwe (No Comments)

We should talk about the inflation. Maybe in some another article

#7 West Indies (Uruguay)

Their best is past them. Enough said.

#8 Sri Lanka (Argentina)

Their arch rivalry with Australians is legendary. Same for Brazil and Argentina. The Lankans may have been the world champions for a short period, but they have been trying consistently to again achieve that pinnacle that Arjuna Ranatunga helped them get. Argentina are not different, either. It has been 28 years now since they lifted the highest prize. Another contender is the French football team who won in 1998 surprising everybody like Sri Lanka and are now trying hard to get there again.

#9 South Africa (Germany)

Sublime team play. No star player bigger than others. No good and bad performances on the extreme. Now, South Africa might not have won so many cups as Germany has, but I request you to count the 22 years the Proteas were banned from cricket and also consider the fact that the cricket world cups started 45 years later.

#10 India (Italy)

This is largely because of the extremes that their fans go to. On both positive and negative side of the fanaticism spectrum. the Azurri Blue attitude is not far different from the bleeding blue attitude. Both Indians and Italians follow a sinusoidal wave when it comes from performance.

They have the strongest line-ups on paper yet come out underachieving more often than not. The huge quantity of strikers that Italy provides to the leagues world over has an uncanny similarity to the large number of batsmen that the Indian domestic cricket can provide.