I cannot say I was over the moon when the Netherlands beat England in the opening game of the 20 20 World Cup.Clearly as a neutral it is great when a minnow beats a big gun, especially when said big gun is hosting the tournament. To win such a game at the “Home Of Cricket” is even more exceptional. However I am not a neutral, I want England to do well, and thus I could appreciate the excitement of the result, it felt horrible, we looked like we were going out.
Last night however, when England beat Pakistan comfortably I felt a little robbed of a close game. But again I was more than happy that the result meant that England definitely qualified. From despair to elation, via Maths. Because the other beauty of the 20 20 World Cup is that its 3 team league structure leaves us open nicely for surprisingly complex maths to work out who can do what. At which point I shall bow to out betters at the terrific cricket blog Kridaya to explain exactly how England qualified, and What the Dutch need to do to get through.
Note however the reason why I want Pakistan to qualify is in the bottom left hand side of this pie-chart from Friday’s game (like I say Kridaya is good for the maths and the graphs).
