Re: WC Format - Knockout Rounds
Your suggestion is not a bad one although I disagree with BO3 at every KO stage. The Final perhaps should be a best of three affair
The only problem is the world cup w’d be just too long. You cannot have 6 minnows (incl. Bang) partcipating as well as BO3
Ideally the top 8 countries should play each other in a round robin competition with the top 4 qualifying for SF (cf 1992 WC minus the stupid rain rule!!) but then the cricket world cup will lose some of it’s global appeal!
i.e. 7 games (for each team) + SF + Final (BO3)
What if in a BO3 Final, Team A beats Team B by < 10 runs or 1 wicket (hardly a convincing win) in the first game. The second game then becomes effectively a KO Final! And what if the second game is also a nail-biter?
Let’s just accept that the best team does not always win the cricket world cup (cf. any major sport). The team that plays better and/or gets lucky (with 1 or 2 umpiring decisions) on the day wins. Let’s not completely discount the latter factor 