ICC Cricket World Cup: Decoding each team's most valuable player
The ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 will be upon us shortly, and fans are already very excited about the mega event. The biggest festival of cricket will start on October 5 in India as 10 teams from all over the globe will fight it out for the ultimate prize. Here we analyze the most valuable players from each team.
Mitchell Starc has the best bowling average in WC history
Five-time champions, Australia will rely heavily on their star speedster Mitchell Starc, who has been in great form recently. He further raises his level in multilateral events and is the joint fifth-highest wicket-taker in World Cup history with SL's Chaminda Vaas. He has claimed 49 wickets in 18 matches. His tally of three WC fifers is the most by any bowler.
Virat Kohli will be crucial to India's success
Despite the emergence of many youngsters, Virat Kohli remains India's main asset. He is their second-highest scorer in World Cup matches, with 1,030 runs in 28 matches at 46.81. Kohli is also India's second-highest scorer in ODIs, with 13,083 runs in 281 matches at an average of 57.38. The experienced batter needs three more centuries to overtake Sachin Tendulkar's hundreds tally.
Shakib can be exceptional for Bangladesh
Among active players, Shakib Al Hasan has scored the most World Cup runs with 1,146 runs in 29 WC matches. The Bangladesh skipper has also scalped 34 wickets and claimed a fifer in World Cup matches. He is the only cricketer with 1,000-plus runs and 30-plus wickets Shakib is Bangladesh's highest run-scorer and highest wicket-taker at the World Cup.
Theekshana to spearhead SL's bowling at the World Cup
In Wanindu Hasaranga's absence, Maheesh Theekshana will be pivotal for Sri Lanka. The spinner will be playing his maiden World Cup but has already shone at the qualifiers, with 21 wickets in nine matches. In 2023, Theekshana has been SL's most successful bowler (31 wickets in 15 matches at 17.45). He will bowl in two phases for SL and create a massive difference.
Netherlands will depend on Bas de Leede's all-round heroics
Bas de Leede is one of the most in-form all-rounders in this format. He has been consistent in both departments for the Netherlands. He has claimed 24 wickets in 30 ODIs at a bowling average of 32.08. De Leede smashed 765 runs at 27.32 (50s: 2, 100: 1). He became the fourth cricketer to register a fifer and a ton in the same ODI.
Babar Azam is Pakistan's MVP
Pakistan will bank upon Babar Azam to score the bulk of runs. He is Pakistan's highest run-getter in ODIs this year with 745 runs in 16 matches at 49.66 (50s: 6, 100s: 2). In eight World Cup matches, Babar has hammered 474 runs at 67.71 while slamming a hundred and three fifties Babar has scored 5,409 ODI runs at 58.16.
Rashid Khan will be Afghanistan's flagbearer at the World Cup
If Afghanistan want to have a decent World Cup, a lot will depend on their talismanic spinner Rashid Khan. He is Afghanistan's highest wicket-taker (174 wickets in ODIs) and will thrive in Indian conditions. Rashid is the only Afghanistan bowler with four fifers in this format. Rashid can also score handy runs lower down the order. He has amassed 1,211 runs from 94 matches.
NZ's most successful bowler at the World Cup
Trent Boult will be a crucial player for New Zealand at the 2023 World Cup. He is the most successful Kiwi bowler in World Cups with 39 wickets from 19 matches. Among active bowlers, only Starc has more WC wickets than Boult. Overall, the latter has 197 wickets in 104 ODIs at 23.56. Boutl will make the new ball talk and scalp early wickets.
South Africa's Temba Bavuma will lead from the front
South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma can be their MVP in this event as he is in terrific form. Bavuma is SA's highest run-getter this year with 637 runs in 10 ODIs at 79.62. He has hammered three centuries. He will look to hand SA good starts throughout the tournament. Overall, Bavuma has compiled 1,367 runs in 30 matches at 54.68 (50s: 4, 100s: 5).
Dawid Malan will be England's X factor
Dawid Malan has been England's most successful batter in 2023, with 591 runs in only nine matches at 73.87. He has hammered three centuries and as many fifties this year. Malan plays spin decently and will be crucial for the Three Lions in this World Cup. He owns an ODI average of 61.52 while scoring 1,046 runs in 21 matches (50s: 5, 100s: 5).
