London: Former England batsman Ian Bell has hailed the recently concluded ICC Champions Trophy 2017, which was won by Pakistan after they thrashed India in the final on Sunday at the Kennington Oval, London.
"I don't think anyone can argue that the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy was anything but a roaring success, and while we didn't see nail-biting final over victories, we saw upsets and heroes being made," wrote Bell in a column for the International Cricket Council (ICC).
He said that during the course of the tournament, the fans witnessed some fantastic cricket and that it was fitting that the final between the two arch-rivals was settled by some truly fantastic performances from some very special players.
"The atmosphere around the ground was sensational and was great to see so many people enjoying seeing Pakistan taking their first global 50-over title since 1992. While it wasn't a tight contest, the quality and unpredictability of the match made it enthralling to watch," said Bell.
The former England batsman further asserted that the tournament, however, turned out to be a disaster for teams like Australia and South Africa, who were considered among the favourites to win the title."For some nations - Australia and South Africa - it was a bit of a disaster," he said.
Bell insisted that the tournament was a bit of a mixed bag for the hosts."For England, it was a bit of a mixed bag. Make no bones about it, England wanted to win it. And it could have.It had the quality, but just didn't perform when it mattered.
Some of its performances in the group stages were fantastic - particularly Ben Stokes' tremendous unbeaten century against the Aussies - but knowing this group, it will see a semi-final defeat as a missed opportunity," he said.
"I'm sure we'll see the lessons they players learned in this competition taken forward to the World Cup in two years' time. In fact, that tournament promises to be a special occasion all round.
We've got teams like Australia and South Africa, who'll be desperate to make up for their performances from this time around, while England will feel then that it will be its time, and India will have two years to sit on yesterday's loss and I know it will do everything in its power to make amends.
"I'm proud of England for hosting such a brilliant tournament and I'm equally proud of the fans from all nations who made it such a competition to remember, with their brilliant support at each venue," he concluded.
