The group stage of the ODI World Cup 2023 Qualifiers ended yesterday as Group B teams played their final games. The hosts, Zimbabwe topped Group A with 4 wins in 4 games while Sri Lanka topped Group B with 4 wins in 4 games as well. Here is a preview of the Super Six.
The group stages of the World Cup 2023 Qualifiers saw two big upsets. West Indies were involved in both upsets as they lost to hosts Zimbabwe and the Netherlands. Zimbabwe defeated West Indies by 35 runs but the bigger upset came in their game against the Netherlands.
West Indies vs The Netherlands
West Indies batting first had scored 374 runs. The target seemed to be unsurmountable at the halfway stage. The chase of the target would have meant that the Netherlands chase the second-biggest total in ODI history. Netherlands needed 30 runs in the final two overs to win the game. They hit 21 runs in the penultimate over bowled by Roston Chase which meant Alzarri Joseph had to defend nine runs in the final over. After a four on the first ball, five runs were needed in five balls. One single was needed to win the game on the final ball when West Indies managed to dismiss Logan van Beek to take the game into Super Over. The Netherlands sent in van Beek to bat in the Super Over. He smashed 30 runs in the super over against Jason Holder. In response, West Indies managed to only score eight runs as they lost two wickets. Beek capped off an all-round performance as he bowled in the Super Over as well.
The defeats against the Netherlands meant that West Indies finished the group with just two wins and in third place.
Super Six Points Table
| Position | Team | Matches | Won | Loss | Points | NRR |
| 1 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | +2.698 |
| 2 | Zimbabwe | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | +0.982 |
| 3 | Scotland | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -0.060 |
| 4 | Netherlands | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -0.739 |
| 5 | West Indies | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -0.350 |
| 6 | Oman | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -3.042 |
West Indies and Oman finished third in their respective groups which means that they enter the Super Six with no points, while second-placed Scotland and the Netherlands have two points. Table toppers Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe have 4 points each.
Each team in the Super Six will play three games against the three teams from the other group. The top two teams from the Super Six will be qualified for the World Cup in India. Sri Lanka looks clear favourites to qualify. Two wins in three games for Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe would mean that they qualify for Cricket World Cup 2023. If any team even ties with Sri Lanka on points their massive NRR would be advantageous for them.
West Indies
For West Indies to qualify, they would have to win all three games with a good margin. Winning three games would not be enough as they would have to rely on Sri Lanka, Scotland and Oman to defeat Zimbabwe twice and the Netherlands and Scotland also lose at least one of their three games.
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