Clean up format for 2003 Pakistani players come under attack back home Click here for more on this story Posted: Thursday June 24, 1999 11:21 AM   Pakistani protests against their team's loss in the final provides an interesting backdrop for the 2003 World Cup. AP By CNN/SI's Tunku Varadarajan Inzamam-ul-Haq's home in Multan has been attacked by angry vandals. Wasim Akram's mother has made an appeal at a press conference in Lahore, asking volatile fans for tolerance towards Pakistan's cricketers. The World Cup may be over but in some quarters, it seems, the real action is only just beginning. The Cup came to a sad end. The better side won, of course, and no one -- not even the most rabid "Pakistan zindabad" supporter -- should begrudge the Aussies their triumph. It was a shame, however, that they won so easily, so flavorlessly. It was a shame that the Pakistanis played such a wimpish, unmanly game. (Just a question from a neutral cricket-watcher: why didn't Akram post four slips, two gullies and a forward short leg when Waugh and Gilchrist came out to open the Australian innings? Didn't he know he had to bowl the opponents out for less than 132?) In a way, it was a fitting end for what proved to be, with the exception of those two South Africa versus Australia games, a largely uncompetitive World Cup. Here are a few thoughts: Let the next edition to be held in England NOT be played in the first half of summer. We want runs, so hold the cup in the second half, when the pitches are harder and the days are hotter. And if we're going to have daytime matches, please can we stick to the normal red ball. The white ball used here was an unhelpful killjoy. Why did we need it anyway? Were floodlights in use? Gimmicks that serve no practical purpose should be condemned. Here are a few more thoughts, directed toward Ali Bacher and the organizers of the 2003 World Cup in South Africa. Please reform the points system. It was wrong that Zimbabwe might have qualified for the semifinals without winning a single Super Six match. It was wrong that India should have started the second stage on zero after posting some fine victories in the first round, making their Super Six stage one of perpetual catching up. In common law, there's a rule against double jeopardy. Why, in the cricket World Cup, should a team be "punished" repeatedly for the same "offence"? Let one round end and another begin, afresh. There have been calls for the finals to be played in a best-of-three format. These should be ignored. We want upsets. We want momentous victories. Who can forget India's day in 1983? Or Sri Lanka's in the last Cup? We do not want battles of attrition. Let the team that plays best on the day take home the trophy. There should be no second chance. Mr. Bacher has also indicated that he hopes to expand the next Cup to 16 teams. This is a disastrous idea. Cricket fans don't want a series of lopsided matches, where an established side tramples on a minnow, rewriting record books in a way that mocks at earlier scores made in tougher, more competitive games. The World Cup is a showcase for the best teams in the world. Spare us, for God's sake, the spectacle of a match between Namibia and Holland. I, for one, won't be watching that.   Related information Stories CNNI Q & A:Imran Khan Terry Baddoo: Matter of perspective Tunku Varadarajan: Chemistry just right Multimedia Click here for the latest audio and video Search our site Watch CNN/SI 24 hours a day Sports Illustrated and CNN have combined to form a 24 hour sports news and information channel. To receive CNN/SI at your home call 1-888-53-CNNSI.

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