They think it’s all over

They think it’s all over

Technically a fortnight and two high scoring predictions to go but you are virtually unanimous in choosing Spain to win the Davis Cup and virtually nobody choose Chelsea who will barring silly results next weekend be the answer to the final question. With 2021 all but settled, it’s time to turn your thoughts perhaps to Quiz 2022,attached to this email and available on the website.

Two predictions settled since the last update and though both were won by the Bookies’ third favourites, the double eluded all but the canny quizzing duo of AUDREY HUISH and JON NICHOLS, and most stayed put, having invested in India and Djokovic.

42)As predictable, the departure of the ATP Finals from London to Turin cut the coverage in the British media to almost zero, despite the presence of a Brit in the Doubles Final and of the new British Number One in the singles. Andy Murray’s 2016 win in Britain’s second most important tennis week seems a world away.

Many quizzers were disconsolate before the start with no sign of Fed, Raf and Thiem, all with more or less career ending injuries. Injury still had a role to play-Berretini and Tsitsipas played only one match each before giving way to players from the subs’ bench. Your overwhelming favourite (but not mine)Djokovic seemed in princely form, not losing a set in the group stages; princely until he lost to Zverev in the semis, perhaps the start of a long holiday ahead for our Serb villain who may not satisfy Australian vaccine rules. Boo HOO. Medvedev had seemed in less princely form, losing a set in each of his group matches. The Final was a replay of Medvedev’s first match against Zverev in the group stage but with a different result. ZVEREV won in straight sets and added the ATP title to his Olympic Gold. Perhaps he can move on from the scandals of his private life.

41)Neil Southwood was glued to every ball of the T20 World Cup.

This World T20 was originally scheduled to be held in India before being switched to the United Arab Emirates due to the pandemic. The tournament became dominated by teams winning the toss, choosing to bowl first and successfully chasing down the target. The winning nation was much more difficult to predict however. After a year of very mixed T20 performances, it was AUSTRALIA who put a run of victories together at just the right time to claim their first international T20 crown, an ominous marker for the Ashes series starting in less than a month.

The qualifying rounds saw notable moments for Scotland and Namibia, both beating more illustrious opponents to progress to the Super Six group stage. The surprises soon continued with India comprehensively beaten by 10 wickets by neighbours Pakistan, then losing to New Zealand – these two defeats gave them a mountain to climb to qualify from their group and they were unable to recover. The pre-tournament favourites and overwhelming quizzers choice were out before the semi-finals.

In the other Super Six group, England started their campaign superbly with four straightforward victories over West Indies, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Australia. Wicketkeeper Jos Buttler was in particularly brutal form, smashing 71 off just 32 balls against the eventual champions and a century against Sri Lanka. The bowlers were equally impressive until an injury to Tymal Mills upset the balance of the attack. The final group game against South Africa also saw opening batsman Jason Roy pull up with a calf injury that ruled him out of the rest of the tournament. England’s momentum slowed dramatically with these two setbacks and a narrow defeat to the South Africans, who weren’t quite able to triumph by the margin required to go through themselves. Australia squeezed through unconvincingly on run-rate. Sometimes it is those fine margins that prove decisive.

The knock-outs saw two thrilling games in successive days, both following very similar paths. The two group winners, England and Pakistan, batted first after losing the toss and set competitive targets. England seemed to be in control against New Zealand with the Kiwis needing 57 off the last four overs. Then Jimmy Neesham and Daryl Mitchell unleashed a flurry of sixes to dramatically turn the game around and end England’s hopes with an over to spare. Exit the quizzers’ second favourite team. 24 hours later Pakistan suffered a similar experience. Australia were struggling at 96-5 with less than eight overs remaining until Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade launched another devastating counter-attack. Wade’s four successive sixes in the penultimate over after being dropped on the boundary saw Australia triumph from nowhere.

The Antipodean final couldn’t quite live up to those dramatic semi-finals. New Zealand’s inspirational captain Kane Williamson kept Kiwi hopes alive with a wonderfully crafted 85 but the momentum was all with Australia once David Warner was joined at the crease by Mitchell Marsh. They put on 92 for the second wicket in less than 10 overs to grab the initiative in the run-chase. The match ended in a comfortable victory by 8 wickets with an over to spare. Australia could finally claim the international crown that had eluded them up to now and will get the chance to defend their title at home in less than 12 months time. On this evidence, Australia won’t be written off again. Our runaway leader Rob and his closest pursuers, Emma and Peter did not make that mistake.