3 notable absentees from the commentary panel for 2023 World Cup ft. Isa Guha
With the 2023 World Cup less than a week away, ICC announced the list of commentators for the mega event to be held in India from October 5, 2023, to November 19, 2023.
The list of English commentators includes some big names. The commentary team for the mega event is as follows:
Ricky Ponting, Eoin Morgan, Shane Watson, Lisa Sthalekar, Ramiz Raja, Ravi Shastri, Aaron Finch, Sunil Gavaskar, Matthew Hayden, Waqar Younis, Shaun Pollock, Anjum Chopra, Michael Atherton, Simon Doull, Mpumelelo Mbangwa, Sanjay Manjrekar, Katey Martin, Dinesh Karthik, Dirk Nannes, Samuel Badree, Athar Ali Khan, Russel Arnold, Harsha Bhogle, Kass Naidoo, Mark Nicholas, Natalie Germanos, Mark Howard and Ian Ward.
But the aforementioned list has some notable absentees, who will be missed in the upcoming tournament. Here is a look at three such commentators from the 2023 World Cup panel.
#1 Isa Guha:
Isa Guha has made a name for herself as one of the leading female commentators. She was a part of the commentary panel for the 2019 World Cup and has covered many ICC events.
The list of English commentators for the 2023 World Cup includes five female commentators in Anjum Chopra, Lisa Sthalekar, Natalie Germanos, Kass Naidoo and Katey Martin. But Guha's name is missing from the said list.
The former England cricketer's voice is well-recognized by cricket fans and her deep insights of the game will be missed at the upcoming World Cup.
#2 Alan Wilkins:
Wilkins is one of the most loved commentators and broadcasters in the sports world. He has covered numerous ICC events and has also been part of the IPL commentary panel.
It is therefore a surprise that Wilkins is not a part of the commentary panel for the 2023 World Cup. His astute analysis of the game will be missed during the mega event in India over the next month and a half.
#3 Michael Clarke:
Clarke was the captain of the Australian men's team that won the 2015 World Cup. Post-retirement, Clarke has taken up commentary and is loved by fans around the world.
From 2016 to 2018, he was a commentator for Nine's Wide World of Sports. Clarke was also a part of the panel of commentators for World Cup 2019.
Early this year, he was a part of the team that covered the 2023 Border Gavaskar Trophy in India. However, he was removed from the panel after a video of his altercation with his girlfriend Jade Yarbrough went viral on social media.