We review the final of the T20 World Cup and end of India's wait for an ICC trophy.

Talking Points:

• How trophy wins don't define India's legacy.
• The unfairness of labelling South Africa chokers.
• The peerless Bumrah.
• Virat Kohli's change of approach and his great swansong T20 innings in the final.
• Rohit, Pant and the fallacy of "shot selections".
• How India finally managed to construct a well balanced squad for the conditions.

Participants:

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@⁠sidvee⁠)

Ashoka (⁠@ABVan⁠)

Mahesh (@cornerd)

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Buy books republished by 81allout:

⁠War Minus the Shooting by Mike Marqusee⁠

⁠Cricket Beyond the Bazaar by Mike Coward⁠

⁠The Summer Game by Gideon Haigh ⁠

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Related:

• 'The Worm Turns for India's Greatest Generation"- Cricketingview.

We review the Super 8 phase of the T20 World Cup and touch upon Afghanistan's glorious triumph, India's sweet win against Australia, and the hopes for the semis and final.

Talking Points:

• Afghanistan's historic wins over Australia and Bangladesh
• Gurbaz and Zadran - the rocks around Afghanistan's journey
• Playing their first official cricket match to 2004 to a semi-final in 2024
• The political question around Afghanistan - and absence of public pressure
• Rohit Sharma's assault against Australia in St Lucia
• India and South Africa thriving with their Test-quality attacks
• The mystery of Kuldeep - and his indecipherable fastish spin
• Looking ahead to the semis and final

Participants:

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee)

Ashoka (@ABVan)

Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) | Substack | ESPNcricinfo

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Buy books republished by 81allout:

War Minus the Shooting by Mike Marqusee

Cricket Beyond the Bazaar by Mike Coward

The Summer Game by Gideon Haigh

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Related:

• ‘Cricket is the only source of happiness back home’ - Ben Morse and Masoud Popalzai - CNN
• The World catches up with Australia - Gideon Haigh - Cricket et al. substack
• Perfect Imperfection for Imperfect Tournament? - Neil Manthorp - Manners-on-cricket substack
• Human rights question hangs over success story of Afghanistan's men - Sidharth Monga - ESPNcricinfo

We review the first two weeks of the T20 World Cup and chat about the heartwarming performances of USA and other Associate teams. Plus Pakistan's insistence on opening with Babar and Rizwan; Kohli's attempts to change; Pant's hitting training; and the umpiring decision that Bangladesh are furious about.

Talking Points:

• Why a 20-team World Cup seems so much more inclusive
• Why USA beating Pakistan is not as shocking as it may have been 10 years ago
• Many teams have struggled to score freely but the games have been close
• Pakistan's RizBar problem
• The importance of a T20 batter having a wide range of strokes
• Rishabh Pant's trained hitting - and how he embraces risk at all times
• Bangladesh's close defeat to South Africa - and the lbw

Participants:

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan (@sidvee)

Ashoka (@ABVan)

Kartikeya Date (@cricketingview) | Substack | ESPNcricinfo

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Buy books republished by 81allout:

War Minus the Shooting by Mike Marqusee

Cricket Beyond the Bazaar by Mike Coward

The Summer Game by Gideon Haigh

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Related:

• BAN lose to SA Despite A DRS Reprieve for Mahmudullah - Kartikeya Date - Cricketingview substack
• What will be the legacy of Cricket World Cup’s New York adventure? - Andy Bull - Guardian
• How India vs Pakistan converted an American sports fan to cricket - Michael Dominski - New York Times
• Saurabh Netravalkar and Harmeet Singh: two Mumbai boys living the American cricket dream - Nagraj Gollapudi and Shashank Kishore - ESPNcricinfo
• Cricket stadium opponents relieved with ICC’s decision to nix Van Cortlandt Park proposal, opt for Long Island site - Camille Botello - Bronx Times