Previews of Semi-finals, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 28, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

SEMI-FINALS

1st Match- AFGHANISTAN v NEPAL

Match Facts

Nov 29, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Despite qualification achieved by both the sides, this one should be a cracker of a match between two sides with deeply passionate followers. Nepal would be keen to show their remarkable improvement by beating their biggest Asian rivals for the first time in almost a decade, whereas Afghanistan would be hoping to continue its mental hold over Nepal and continue on its dream to win the tournament so as to avoid Bangladesh in the pre-qualifier round.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

22 November 2013- Nepal 73/3 (7 overs) Afghanistan 78/1 (6.2 overs) – Afghanistan won by 9 wickets.

In a rain-affected match, Mohammad Shahzad bludgeoned a 22-ball 43 to power the Afghans to a win.

Watch out for…

Mohammad Shahzad vs Avinash Karn

The young Nepali medium-pacer has been a revelation in the latter part of Nepal’s campaign, drying up runs and taking wickets as well. It would be interesting to see his plan against the Afghan wicket-keeper batsman.

Sharad Vesawkar vs Samiullah Shenwari
After Khadka, Vesawkar seems to have become the most important batsman in the side, as his cool head to provide Nepal a famous win over Hong Kong showed. How will he treat the top wicket-taker for the Afghans?

Team news

Afghanistan (probable): 1 Noor Ali Zadran, 2 Mohammad Shahzad (wk), 3 Karim Sadiq, 4 Gulbodin Naib, 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Najibullah Zadran, 7 Samiullah Shenwari, 8 Mirwais Ashraf, 9 Hamza Hotak, 10 Dawlat Zadran, 11 Shapoor Zadran

Nepal (probable) 1 Subhash Khakurel (wk), 2 Sagar Pun, 3 Gyanendra Malla, 4 Paras Khadka (capt), 5 Binod Bhandari, 6 Sharad Vesawkar, 7 Pradeep Airee, 8 Basant Regmi, 9 Shakti Gauchan, 10 Jitendra Mukhiya, 11 Avinash Karn.

2nd Match- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v IRELAND

Match Facts

Nov 29, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

The hosts have proven themselves to be tough competitors on the field, as their hard-fought win against the Dutch showed. However, the Irish are a completely different proposition. With the Irish growing in confidence throughout the tournament, the UAE would have to fire on all cylinders to beat them. The Irish, meanwhile, seem confortable on the road to get another piece of ICC Associate silverware and would wish to caner to another win tomorrow.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

17 November 2013- Ireland 138/5 (20 overs) United Arab Emirates 133 (19.5 overs) – Ireland won by 5 runs.

The Irish got out of jailbreak as the bowlers choked the UAE batsmen and forced them to commit silly mistakes.

Watch out for…

Gary Wilson vs Khurram Khan

The Irish keeper seemed the only one comfortable against the UAE’s battery of spinners in the earlier match. He would be hoping to continue in the same fashion tomorrow. Will the UAE captian snare him with his leg-breaks?

Mohammed Shafiq vs Trent Johnston
The former understudy to Rashid Latif has been playing crucial little cameos for his new team. The Irish spearhead, while containing runs in the death overs, hasn’t threatened to take wickets. This battle of veterans would surely be the key to the UAE’s batting performance in the death overs.

Team news

United Arab Emirates (probable): 1 Mohammad Azam 2 Shaiman Anwar, 3 Khurram Khan (capt), 4 Saqib Ali, 5 Swapnil Patil, 6 Rohan Mustafa, 7 Amjad Javed, 8 Mohammed Shafiq (wk), 9 Nasir Aziz, 10 Shadeep Silva, 11 Manjula Guruge

Ireland (probable): 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Niall O’Brien, 4 Gary Wilson (wk), 5 Kevin O’Brien, 6 Alex Cusack, 7 John Mooney, 8 Max Sorensen, 9 Trent Johnston, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 George Dockrell.

PLAY-OFFS

5th place play-off – HONG KONG V NETHERLANDS

Match Facts

Nov 29, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With rumours emerging that the winner of this match would be placed in Zimbabwe’s group, it remains crucial for both the sides to get a victory so as to avoid the in-form home team at the World T20. Will the Dutch once again fail against the Hong Kong spinners?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

20 March 2012- Netherlands 201/5 (20 overs) Hong Kong 118/7 (20 overs) – Netherlands won by 83 runs.

A combined batting performance helped the Dutch post a huge total, well beyond Hong Kong’s reach.

Watch out for…

Babar Hayat vs Paul van Meekeren

The Hong Kong middle-order batsman was key to reviving his side’s fortunes against PNG. Will the strapping Dutch pacer strike to get his wicket?

Wesley Barresi vs Nadeem Ahmed

The Dutch keeper was in fine flow today against the Scots. How would he deal with the spin threat of Nadeem Ahmed?

Team news

Hong Kong (probable): 1 Irfan Ahmed, 2 Waqas Barkat (capt & wk), 3 Mark Chapman, 4 Nizakat Khan, 5 Babar Hayat, 6 Kinchit Shah, 7 Munir Dar, 8 Aizaz Khan, 9 Nadeem Ahmed, 10 Tanwir Afzal, 11 Haseeb Amjad.

Netherlands (probable) 1 Stephan Myburgh, 2 Ben Cooper, 3 Wesley Barresi (wk), 4 Michael Swart, 5 Eric Szwarczynski, 6 Peter Borren (capt), 7 Tim Gruijters, 8 Mudassar Bukhari, 9 Pieter Seelaar, 10 Paul von Meekeren, 11 Ahsan Malik

7th place play-off – Papua New Guinea v Scotland

Match Facts

Nov 29, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With both the sides deeply disappointed to miss out on a place for the World T20 today, it will be interesting to see how they treat tomorrow’s match. Will they use it to provide practice for some of the unused players of the squad?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

21 November 2013- Scotland 181/5 (20 overs) Papua New Guinea 97/9 (20 overs) – Scotland won by 84 runs.

Scotland walloped PNG, thanks to Rob Taylor and Gordon Goudie’s excellent bowling.

Watch out for…

Asad Vala vs Gordon Goudie

A final chance for the young PNG opener to show his potential. Will the promising Scottish fast bowler get his wicket?

Michael Leask vs Charles Amini

This contest between the two young guns would be interesting to watch.

Team news

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Amini (capt), 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Willie Gavera, 10 Pipi Raho, 11 Andrew Hicks

Scotland (probable) 1 Calum Macleod, 2 Richie Berrington, 3 Matt Machan, 4 Michael Leask, 5 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 6 Matthew Cross (wk), 7 Rob Taylor, 8 Majid Haq, 9 Neil Carter, 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Gordon Goudie

Previews of Qualifying Play-Offs, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 27, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

QUALIFYING PLAY-OFFS

1st Qualifying Play-Off – HONG KONG v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 28, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Hong Kong must be gutted after losing today’s nail-biter of a match. Also, the injury to the influential captain and batsman, Jamie Atkinson, would have caused concern in the Hong Kong camp. The biggest concern, however, will be the confidence of the side after today’s los and whether they will be able to pick themselves up and respond back tomorrow.

Meanwhile, Papua New Guinea’s confidence will be sky-high after today’s performance against Namibia. Despite the batsmen struggling, the bowlers came back strongly to get a win for the side. They would surely love to emulate Nepal and qualify to the World T20.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Nizakat Khan vs Pipi Raho

The Hong Kong middle-order batsman was crucial in getting the side’s batting chugging along after the early loss of their two influential batsmen, before he got run out in an awful mix-up. With doubts on Atkinson tomorrow, Nizakat might have to bear more responsibility. Will he be able to keep the impressive PNG fast bowler at bay?

Geraint Jones vs Munir Dar
The Kent batsman would be keen to prolong his run-scoring spree and represent his country of birth in his first World T20. How will he treat the Hong Kong veteran spinner, who had an off-day today in an otherwise excellent tournament?

Team news

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Amini, 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Willie Gavera, 10 Pipi Raho, 11 John Reva

2nd Qualifying Play-Off – NETHERLANDS v SCOTLAND

Match Facts

Nov 28, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

In a low-scoring match, the Dutch implosion has converted this match into a virtual final between the two European powerhouses for the final spot in the World T20. Since their comfortable wins in the early part of the tournament, the Netherlands have started showing frailty in combating spin, as the matches against Nepal and UAE showed. This match is the last chance for them to correct this weakness and go for the required win.

On the other hand, Scotland have emerged like a phoenix with dominating wins against PNG, Denmark, Netherlands and Italy, after being rolled over by Kenya. They would be hoping to repeat the result from the earlier match in this tournament to book their tickets to Bangladesh.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

22 November 2013- Scotland 165/4 (20 overs) Netherlands 150/6 (20 overs) – Scotland won by 15 runs.

Despite Barresi’s 70, the Scottish bowlers led by Haq managed to restrict the Dutch to secure a win.

Watch out for…

Peter Borren vs Majid Haq

With the top order struggling today, will the Dutch captain try to lead his team by example? And how better to do it than by smashing one of the best Associate spinners out of the park?

Richie Berrington vs Ahsan Malik
The Scottish opener struck a quick 50 today and would be hoping to continue in the same vein. How will he cope with the top wicket-taker of the tournament?

Team news

Netherlands (probable) 1 Michael Swart, 2 Stephan Myburgh, 3 Wesley Barresi (wk), 4 Eric Szwarczynski, 5 Daan van Bunge, 6 Ben Cooper, 7 Peter Borren (capt), 8 Mudassar Bukhari, 9 Michael Ripon, 10 Paul von Meekeren, 11 Ahsan Malik

PLAY-OFFS

9th place play-off – ITALY v NAMIBIA

Match Facts

Nov 28, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

A chance for both sides to finish their tournament in a win. After a last-ball win for Namibia earlier, Italy would be hoping to come on top this time, while the disappointed Namibia would surely try to put up a much better performance.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

19 November 2013- Italy 121/6 (20 overs) Namibia 122/7 (20 overs) – Namibia won by 3 wickets.

van Schoor, Snyman and Williams bludgeoned the Italian attack to score a huge total. Despite the best efforts of Bonora, the Italians failed to chase the target.

Watch out for…

Craig Williams vs Damian Crowley

The Namibian batsman would love to put up one of his aggressive innings for one time before leaving. Will the Italian skipper stop him?

Peter Petricola vs Sarel Burger
The Italian all-rounder too would like to finally put up a good performance this tournament. Will the Namibian captain peg him back?

Team news

Italy (probable) 1 Gareth Berg, 2 Andy Northcote (wk), 3 Peter Petricola, 4 Damian Crowley (capt), 5 Carl Sandri, 6 Alessandro Bonora, 7 Joy Perera, 8 Michael Raso, 9 Vince Penazza, 10 Gayashan Munasinghe, 11 Mandupa Fernando

Namibia (probable) 1 Louis van der Westhuizen, 2 Raymond van Schoor (wk), 3 Stephan Baard, 4 Craig Williams, 5 Sarel Burger (capt), 6 Jaen Kotze, 7 Nicolaas Scholtz, 8 Christi Viljoen, 9 Bernard Scholtz, 10 Louis Klazinga, 11 JJ Smit

Previews of Quarter-Finals, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 26, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

QUARTER-FINALS

1st Quarter-Final- HONG KONG v NEPAL

Match Facts

Nov 27, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

The business end of the tournament is here, with the most important matches set to start. Now on, each team can afford to make very few mistakes, for each one can prove very costly to their aim of qualification. This match would be particularly crucial to both the teams, as both seek to become the first national teams from their country to play in a World Cup in any sport.

Hong Kong have acted as a very efficient unit till now, with both the batsman and the bowlers contributing at crucial times. With 5 impressive wins, they would be hoping to maintain their run against a talented Nepal. If their explosive batting and economical bowling clicks again tomorrow, Hong Kong would be on their way to the World T20.

As their matches have shown, Nepal have grown by leaps and bounds this year, and have particularly shown a hunger to fight tooth and nail, even when the odds are against them- something absent in the previous sides. With their charismatic captain, Nepal would be hoping that their array of spinners stop the Hong Kong batsmen, particularly the top order, and the batsmen handle the pace of Tanwir Afzal, Aizaz Khan and Haseeb Amjad.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

27 March 2013 – Nepal 115/9 (20 overs) Hong Kong 116/4 (16.3 overs) – Hong Kong won by 6 wickets

Nadeem Ahmed spun the Nepali batsmen in a tangle to grab 3/18, as Nepal stuttered to 115. Irfan Ahmed and Nizakat Khan proceeded to thrash the Nepali spinners to give a comfortable win.

13 March 2012 – Nepal 130/6 (20 overs) Hong Kong 102/9 (20 overs) – Nepal won by 28 runs

Paras Khadka struck 68 off 62 balls and Chandra Sawad ripped the Hong Kong top order to get Nepal a win.

Watch out for…

Irfan Ahmed vs Basanta Regmi

The Hong Kong explosive all-rounder is undoubtedly the talisman of the Hong Kong side. Will he shred the Nepali bowlers to grab another win? Or will the senior Nepali spinner get him before too much damage is inflicted?

Paras Khadka vs Haseeb Amjad

Despite impressive displays by all other batsmen, the Nepali skipper is still the key to his side’s batting. Will the Hong Kong fast bowler snare his wicket?

Team news

Hong Kong (probable): 1 Irfan Ahmed, 2 Waqas Barkat, 3 Jamie Atkinson (capt & wk), 4 Mark Chapman, 5 Nizakat Khan, 6 Babar Hayat, 7 Munir Dar, 8 Aizaz Khan, 9 Nadeem Ahmed, 10 Tanwir Afzal, 11 Haseeb Amjad

2nd Quarter-Final- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v NETHERLANDS

Match Facts

Nov 27, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

In spite of losing key players, the Netherlands have put together wonderful displays to comfortably win 5 matches, with two shock losses against Papua New Guinea and Scotland. The Dutch would be hoping to qualify for their second World T20 with a handsome victory over the hosts.

The UAE have quietly gone about their job collecting wins. However, the loss against Italy and almost another one against the USA would surely have raised some alarm bells in the camp. Still, as the Nepal match showed, the free-flowing Dutch batsmen had troubles facing spin, and the UAE would be hoping to leverage their strength of parsimonious spinners against them. This sets up an interesting match.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

10 February 2010 – Netherlands 164/8 (20 overs) United Arab Emirates 168/4 (18.5 overs) – United Arab Emirates won by 6 wickets

Daan vaan Bunge’s 76 led the Dutch to 164, despite Qasim Zubair’s 5/24. After a stutter at the start, Naeemuddin Aslam and Khurram Khan helped chase the target down.

Watch out for…

Shaiman Anwar vs Mudassar Bukhari

The UAE opener has a reputation of being a big-match player, as his 86 against Pakistan proves. Will he rise up to the occasion tomorrow as well? Or will the Dutch seamer strike?

Michael Swart vs Nasir Aziz

Since coming back from his injury, the Dutch opener hasn’t had a good time with the bat. He would be hoping to finally contribute tomorrow. Will the UAE spinner get him early?

Team news

United Arab Emirates (probable): 1 Mohammad Azam 2 Shaiman Anwar, 3 Swapnil Patil (wk), 4 Saqib Ali, 5 Khurram Khan (capt), 6 Rohan Mustafa, 7 Amjad Javed, 8 Ahmed Raza, 9 Nasir Aziz, 10 Shadeep Silva, 11 Manjula Guruge

QUALIFYING PLAY-OFF SEMI-FINALS

1st Qualifying Play-Off Semi-Final- NAMIBIA v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 27, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Despite not looking at their best, Namibia have grinded out wins and it is this quality which will be tested tomorrow. The Namibian camp would be hoping that their big-hitting batsmen finally show up tomorrow to help them wrap a comfortable victory.

Similarly, Papua New Guinea would be hoping that the batsmen repeat their exploits from their earlier matches against Kenya and the Netherlands. If that happens and the bowlers perform to their potential, Papua New Guinea would be sure of a victory.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Namibia and Papua New Guinea haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Louis van der Westhuizen vs John Reva

The Namibian opener hasn’t set this tournament on fire so far. He would be hoping to channel his form from the previous tournament tomorrow. Will the tight-bowling PNG seamer frustrate him into throwing his wicket away?

Tony Ura vs Nicolaas Scholtz
Similarly, the PNG opener’s batting would be crucial for his team’s fortunes. Will the Namibian leg-spinner beguile him?

Team news

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Amini, 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Willie Gavera, 10 Andrew Hicks, 11 John Reva

2nd Qualifying Play-Off Semi-Final- ITALY v SCOTLAND

Match Facts

Nov 27, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 2, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Italy has managed to surprise everyone with their good displays, especially the win against the hosts. This might be their toughest test yet, as a red-hot Scotland would be hoping to continue silencing its critics with its commanding results. Italy might take heart from the Scots’ loss against Bermuda, where they showed a tendency to get complacent, and would love to continue its giant-killing spree.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

19 March 2012 – Italy 136/8 (20 overs) Scotland 137/3 (18 overs) – Scotland won by 7 wickets

Richie Berrington struck a 45-ball 67 to help the Scots canter to the target set by the Italians.

Watch out for…

Gareth Berg vs Majid Haq

The Middlesex all-rounder would surely be the key to the Italians’ batting performance. Will the Sottish off-spinner restrict him?

Matt Machan vs Gayashan Munasinghe
The Italian seamer has been in excellent form this tournament. Will the in-form Scottish batsman upset his rhythm?

Team news

Italy (probable) 1 Gareth Berg, 2 Andy Northcote (wk), 3 Peter Petricola, 4 Damian Crowley(capt), 5 Alessandro Bonora, 6 Joy Perera, 7 Michael Raso, 8 Carl Sandri, 9 Vince Penazza, 10 Gayashan Munasinghe, 11 Dilan Fernando

Previews of Play-Offs, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 25, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

PLAY-OFFS

11th place play-off- CANADA v KENYA

Match Facts

Nov 26, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

The 2 teams with T20I status have 10 teams ahead of them, including 6 teams with non-T20I status, showcasing yet another folly of the ICC of providing different status to equal teams. This also shows how far Canada and Kenya have fallen behind the pack. Ahead of the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers, this would surely ring the alarm bells at the respective cricket boards. If this continues, both the teams run the chance of losing their HPP funding, and with it, sponsors.

In such a dismal scenario, this match is little more than a chance to leave the tournament in a winning note, and gain some confidence for the crucial months ahead.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

16 March 2013 – Kenya 139/7 (20 overs) Canada 118 (18.5 overs) – Kenya won by 21 runs

Collins Obuya precipitated a Canadian collapse of 5 wickets for 13 runs in 3 overs, as they went from 83/3 to 96/8. The Canadian tail dragged the team to 118, giving a victory of 21 runs to Kenya.

15 March 2013 – Kenya 126/9 (20 overs) Canada 128/5 (18.3 overs) – Canada won by 5 wickets

Rakep Patel and Nehemiah Odhiambo dragged Kenya from 45/6 with a 50 run partnership to an eventual total of 126. Hiral Patel’s 40 helped the Canadians to chase down the target.

Watch out for…

Hiral Patel vs Elijah Otieno

Since blasting Shaun Tait in the 2011 World Cup, the Canadian opener has not really stepped up to realize his obvious talent and has had a disappointing tournament. Will he blast the Canadians ahead? Or will the Kenyan pacer stop him?

Steve Tikolo vs Junaid Siddiqui
Despite his best efforts, the Kenyan legend failed to get his team over the line. Will he shine in this final swansong? Or will the Canadian leg-spinner put a spanner in the works?

Team news

Canada (probable): 1 Hiral Patel, 2 Ruvindu Gunasekara, 3 Ashish Bagai (capt & wk), 4 Jimmy Hansra, 5 Raza-ur-Rehman, 6 Rizwan Cheema, 7 Usman Limbada, 8 Junaid Siddiqui, 9 Harvir Baidwan, 10 Jeremy Gordon, 11 Henry Osinde.

Kenya (probable): 1 Alex Obanda, 2 Steve Tikolo, 3 Collins Obuys (capt), 4 Maurice Ouma(wk), 5 Rakep Patel, 6 Thomas Odoyo, 7 Ragheb Aga, 8 Nehemiah Odhiambo, 9 Hiren Varaiya, 10 Shem Ngoche, 11 Elijah Otieno.

13th place play-off- BERMUDA v UGANDA

Match Facts

Nov 26, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Perhaps, the biggest surprise this tournament has been the bad performance of Uganda. Good performances in the East Africa Premier League, where the Ugandan teams out-shined the Kenyan, in the Division 1 T20 and against the MCC, sparked hope that the promising side were beginning to finally mature. But this performance only shows the general state of East African cricket at present, which seems to have fallen behind the EAP region.

Bermuda, being in a freefall since 2007 World Cup, nevertheless put together a couple of strong showings, including a shock win over the Scots in their opening match. Despite not qualifying from the stronger group, the team would love to carry back a final win from here.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

23 March 2012 – Bermuda 179/4 (20 overs) Uganda 138/5 (20 overs) – Bermuda won by 41 runs

The veterans Lionel Cann and Janeiro Tucker thumped the Ugandan spinners to all parts of the park as they hit 9 fours and 6 sixes to score 42 off 22 balls and 62 off 42 balls to power Bermuda to a formidable total, which proved beyond the Ugandan batsmen.

© Matthew Lewis

Watch out for…

Lionel Cann vs Davis Karashani

The Bermudan all-rounder would be hoping to repeat his exploits from the last time. Will the Ugandan captain restrict him this time?

Roger Mukasa vs Derrick Brangman
One final chance for the Ugandan batsman to shine for his team with his aggressive batting. Will he take on the Bermudan spinner?

Team news

Bermuda (probable): 1 Dion Stovell, 2 Chris Douglas, 3 David Hemp, 4 Janeiro Tucker (capt), 5 Lionel Cann, 6 Allan Douglas, 7 Kwarme Tucker (wk), 8 Malachi Jones, 9 Derrick Brangman, 10 Kamau Leverock, 11 Jacobi Robinson

Uganda (probable) 1 Roger Mukasa, 2 Arthur Kyobe, 3 Hamu Bagenda, 4 Hamza Saleh, 5 Richard Okia, 6 Phillemon Mukobe (wk), 7 Patrick Ochan, 8 Davis Karashani (capt), 9 Frank Nsubuga, 10 Brian Masaba, 11 Charles Waiswa.

15th place play-off- DENMARK v UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Match Facts

Nov 26, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

From a horror start when they were smashed by every team with the aim to improve their respective NRRs, Denmark finally started showing up some fight in their last two matches against Afghanistan and Scotland, where Hamid Shah’s two sixes upset Scotland’s plans to end 3^rd in the standings. Will they try to end the tournament with a first win?

On the other hand, since the amazing win over Canada, all has gone downhill for the Americans, ending with a walloping at the hands of the Irish and an all-too-familiar collapse against the UAE. Do the Americans have it in them to put up a fight to avoid going back as the lowest ranked team of the tournament?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Denmark and United States of America haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Freddie Klokker vs Elmore Hutchison

The best Danish batsman has virtually contributed nothing with the bat, making Denmark’s job difficult in the tournament. Will he finally show up in this match? Will the American left-armer peg him back?

Steven Taylor vs Bashir Shah
The young US opener has cut a forlorn figure as the rest of the team has been throwing away the starts provided by him. Will he try to do the task all by himself? Will the parsimonious Danish spinner keep him quiet?

Team news

Denmark (probable): 1 Freddie Klokker (wk), 2 Carsten Pedersen, 3 Michael Pedersen (capt), 4 Aftab Ahmed, 5 Kamran Mahmood, 6 Rizwan Mahmood ,7 Pawan Kumar, 8 Jakob Rubin, 9 Bashir Shah, 10 Hamid Shah, 11 Kasper Rubin

United States of America (probable) 1 Steven Taylor, 2 Akeem Dodson (wk), 3 Orlando Baker, 4 Barrington Bartley, 5 Karan Ganesh, 6 Timroy Allen, 7 Elmore Hutchinson, 8 Srinivasa Santhanam, 9 Adam Sanford, 10 Muhammad Ghous, 11 Neil McGarell (capt)

Previews of Day 10, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 24, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- CANADA v ITALY

Match Facts

Nov 24, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

After Canada’s loss against Namibia and Italy’s shock win over the UAE today, the five spots in Group A have been decided, with only the final positions left to fight for. Nevertheless, Canada would surely like to leave the tournament with a win to assuage some of their pride.

With it looking like Scotland or an inspired Nepal will end up 4^th in Group B, Italy would love to win this match and hope Namibia get defeated by Uganda, in order to avoid the resurgent Scots in the play-offs.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Canada and Italy haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Ashish Bagai vs Gayashan Munasinghe

The Canadian skipper would be bitterly disappointed to not end up in top 5 in what was considered to be the easier group. It would be interesting to see how he responds in tomorrow’s match, especially against Italy’s impressive seamer Munasinghe.

Andy Northcote vs Jeremy Gordon
The Italian opener has had a torrid time with the bat. How will he face the pace of the Candian fast bowler?

Team news

Italy (probable) 1 Gareth Berg, 2 Andy Northcote (wk), 3 Damian Crowley(capt), 4 Peter Petricola, 5 Alessandro Bonora, 6 Michael Raso, 7 Joy Perera, 8 Carl Sandri, 9 Vince Penazza, 10 Gayashan Munasinghe, 11 Dilan Fernando

2nd Match- NAMIBIA v UGANDA

Match Facts

Nov 24, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Despite not looking as impressive as last year, Namibia have churned out results in their favor and are now sitting at 4^th. They only need a victory against their African rivals to confirm that place, and face either Papua New Guinea or Kenya in the playoffs. With a comfortable win against Canada, a huge victory here would help their confidence and also send a statement of intent to the Group B teams likely to face it.

Uganda have had a very poor tournament, with almost all of their old failings still present. With a brittle batting order, Ugandan bowlers have tried to drag the team as much as possible, but to no avail. Given that they would face most of these teams in the 2014 World Cup Qualifier, this match would be a golden chance for the batsmen to finally step up and improve their confidence ahead of that crucial tournament.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

16 March 2012 – Namibia 140/5 (20 overs) Uganda 136/6 (20 overs) – Namibia won by 4 runs

Raymond van Schoor’s 60 and Sarel Burger’s 2/15 helped Namibia register a close win.

15 July 2011- Namibia 148/8 (20 overs) Uganda 149/4 (17.4 overs) – Uganda won by 6 wickets

Despite Louis van der Westhuizen’s 52 off 32 balls, Deusdedit Muhumza’s 3/26 and Roger Mukasa’s 42 off 31 balls helped Uganda ease to a comfortable win.

Watch out for..

Raymond van Schoor vs Frank Nsubuga

The Namibian wicket-keeper batsman seems to be getting back in form with his half-century against Canada. His duel with the pick of the Ugandan spinners would be key to Namibia getting a good total.

Hamza Saleh vs Nicolaas Scholtz

The Namibian all-rounder took a five-for with his keg-spin and would love to continue in this vein. Will the Ugandan batsman keep him at bay?

Team news

Namibia (probable) 1 Louis van der Westhuizen, 2 Christi Viljoen, 3 Raymond van Schoor (wk), 4 Craig Williams, 5 Sarel Burger (capt), 6 Jaen Kotze, 7 Gerhard Erasmus, 8 Nicolaas Scholtz, 9 Bernard Scholtz, 10 Louis Klazinga, 11 JJ Smit.

3rd Match- HONG KONG v IRELAND

Match Facts

Nov 24, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

The battle for automatic qualification. Both the sides have put up professional performances until now and have been clinical, except for a few hiccups on the way. Hong Kong would be hoping that their X-factor might surprise the Irish into getting them a win. Whereas, the Irish would love to maintain its superiority among Associates by direct qualification.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Hong Kong and Ireland haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Irfan Ahmed vs George Dockrell

The aggressive Hong Kong opener would love to target the Irish spinner. Will he succeed in his attempt, or will the spinner fox him?

Kevin O’Brien vs Haseeb Amjad

The Irishman has not scored a big one, despite good starts throughout the tournament. H might try to finally right this tomorrow. Will the impressive Hong Kong fast bowler stop him?

Team news

4th Match- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Match Facts

Nov 24, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

Despite the loss against Italy, the UAE would be feeling confident ahead of their match against the USA and would love to get a win out of their last group match under the belt.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

7 February 2010- United Arab Emirates 141 (19.5 overs) United States of America 142/9 (19.2 overs) – United States of America won by 1 wicket

Timroy Allen’s late charge of 57 off 26 balls helped USA chase down the UAE’s total by 1 wicket.

5 February 2010- United States of America 134/8 (20 overs) United Arab Emirates 135/5 (18.1 overs) – United Arab Emirates won by 5 wickets

The spinners Ahmed Raza and Fayyaz Ahmed combined to take 7 wickets, and Mohammed Iqbal scored a 21 ball 43 helped UAE canter to a win.

Watch out for…

Rohan Mustafa vs Karan Ganesh

The UAE all-rounder has been instrumental in providing big runs in the death overs. How will he face the economical Ganesh?

Akeem Dodson vs Shadeep Silva

Despite a number of good starts, Dodson hasn’t gone on to convert them into high scores. It will be interesting to see him take on the experienced UAE spinner.

Team news

GROUP B

1st Match- DENMARK v SCOTLAND

Match Facts

Nov 24, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Unlike Group A, Group B is still wide open, with 3 sides fighting for a place in the play-offs. After a pathetic start, Scotland have rallied from behind with a thumping of PNG and a win over the Dutch. A huge win against Denmark would raise their NRR, and could land them in 3^rd spot if other matches’ results go in their favor and gain two chances to go for qualification in the play-offs. On the other hand, Denmark would like to continue its good form from the Afghanistan game into this match to make life difficult for the Scots.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Denmark and Scotland haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Carsten Pedersen vs Safyaan Sharif

Pedersen helped Denmak get off to a steady start with his opening partnership with Iqbal, something which Denmark sorely needed throughout the tournament. If he succeeds in doing the same today as well, Denmark have a good chance of scoring many runs. Will the best Scottish bowler of this tournament get him out early?

Richie Berrington vs Kamran Mahmood
The Scottish opener hasn’t been in the best of form. However, with NRR set to play a huge role in getting the play-off spots, his explosiveness is exactly what Scotland need at the top of the order today. Will the Danish seamer be able to clip his wings and dismiss him early?

Team news

Scotland (probable) 1 Calum Macleod, 2 Richie Berrington, 3 Matt Machan, 4 Michael Leask, 5 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 6 Matthew Cross (wk), 7 Rob Taylor , 8 Majid Haq, 9 Neil Carter, 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Gordon Goudie.

2nd Match- AFGHANISTAN v KENYA

Match Facts

Nov 24, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah

Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

© Afghanistan Cricket Board/Hasrat Sadaat

The Big Picture

The equation is pretty simple for both sides. Kenya need to win to make it to the play-offs. Afghanistan need to win to get the top spot in the group and direct qualification to Bangladesh. In such a must-win situation, it is obvious that both the teams go hard at each other, setting up an exciting encounter.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

11 October 2013- Kenya 149/4 (20 overs) Afghanistan 115/8 (20 overs)- Kenya won by 34 wickets

Elijah Otieno’s spell of 3/16 in 4 overs restricted the Afghans from chasing the target set up due to a good batting performance by the Kenyans.

30 September 2013 – Afghanistan 162/6 (20 overs) Kenya 56 (18.4 overs) – Afghanistan won by 106 runs

The Afghans crushed Kenya in a one –sided contest, thanks to Hamid Hassan’s spell of 3/4 in 4 overs and Shenwari’s 39 off 14 balls.

Watch out for…

Gulbodin Naib vs Thomas Odoyo

The young Afghan all-rounder has not yet been able to transfer his batting form from the Dhaka Premier League to this tournament. Will he do so today? Or will the black Botham produce another piece of magic in his swan song to ruins his opponenet’s day?

Ragheb Aga vs Samiullah Shenwari

The Kenyan all-rounder has been key in the death overs withis ability to strike a ball cleanly, as demonstrated in the match against Scotland. With the Afghan leggie snare him , like the other batsmen he has snared many times this tournament?

Team news

Afghanistan (probable): 1 Noor Ali Zadran, 2 Karim Sadiq, 3 Mohammad Shahzad (wk), 4 Gulbodin Naib, 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Najibullah Zadran, 7 Samiullah Shenwari, 8 Mirwais Ashraf, 9 Hamza Hotak, 10 Dawlat Zadran, 11 Shapoor Zadran.

3rd Match- BERMUDA v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 24, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

After a promising start, Papua New Guinea have fallen by the wayside due to a combination of factors including bad luck in matches against Denmark and Afghanistan. The path for them is pretty simple now. Crush Bermuda, and hope that the Kenyans lose, to get a place in the play-offs. Meanwhile, Bermuda would like to round off a disappointing campaign with a win.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

19 March 2012 – Papua New Guinea 155/6 (20 overs) Bermuda 158/5 (19.3 overs) – Bermuda won by 5 wickets

PNG crumbled in the final over of Bermudan innings, where Bermuda needed 18 runs to win, as the Bermudan big-hitter Tucker hit three towering sixes off Rarua Dikana to cap off an amazing win for Bermuda.

Watch out for…

Janeiro Tucker vs John Reva

The Bermudan skipper would love to continue his six-hitting ways. Will the death overs specialist Reva succeed where Dikana failed?

Geraint Jones vs Derrick Brangman

PNG’s middle-order has been a source of worry. Will Jones hold on end firm this time to ensureno batting collapses? Will the impressive Bermudan spinner trouble the batsmen?

Team news

Bermuda (probable): 1 Dion Stovell (wk), 2 Chris Douglas, 3 David Hemp, 4 Janeiro Tucker (capt), 5 Lionel Cann, 6 Allan Douglas, 7 Tre Manders, 8 Malachi Jones, 9 Derrick Brangman, 10 Kamau Leverock, 11 Jacobi Robinson.

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Amini, 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Willie Gavera, 10 Andrew Hicks, 11 John Reva

Previews of Day 9, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 22, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- CANADA v NAMIBIA

Match Facts

Nov 23, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With today’s loss against the UAE, the equation is simple for Canada to make the play-offs- win the rest two matches and pray for an UAE win over Italy. With Namibia looking off-key throughout the tournament, this could be their final chance to finally set their tournament right.

Namibia are in no such trouble and are comfortable ensconced in the 4^th position. Two wins and a loss for UAE in 1 of their remaining 2 matches could lift them up to 3^rd position.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Canada and Namibia haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Ruvindu Gunasekera vs Nicolaas Scholtz

The left-handed opener would be expected to lead Canada’s charge with a commanding performance. With Namibia using Scholtz’s leg-spin to open the bowling to great effect, it would be interesting to see how Gunasekera counters it.

Sarel Burger vs Harvir Baidwan
The Namibian captain has been making good contributions with the ball, but hasn’t yet provided something similar with the bat. How will the Canadian medium pacer stop him to extend his own good form with the ball?

Team news

2nd Match- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v ITALY

Match Facts

Nov 23, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With 5 wins in its 6 matches, the UAE would be hoping to gain its 6^th win to make it to 2^nd position in Group A to avoid Netherlands or Afghanistan in the play-offs. Meanwhile, Italy would have to win its remaining two matches to pip Canada for the final play-off spot.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

United Arab Emirates and Italy haven’t played each other in T20s yet.

Watch out for…

Swapnil Patil vs Vince Pennazza

The UAE batsman is yet to shine in this tournament. Will he do so tomorrow by taking on the Italian seamer?

Peter Petricola vs Manjula Guruge

Similarly, the Italian all-rounder too hasn’t made much of an impact. He would be hoping to do so tomorrow, and could face the UAE seamer in a tricky duel.

Team news

GROUP B

1st Match- KENYA v NETHERLANDS

Match Facts

Nov 23, ICC Academy, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With Scotland’s win, the group once has been blown open. Kenya have the unenviable task to beat the top two sides of their group to ensure their place in the play-offs. They just need to draw confidence from their past two wins, where they absolutely dominated the opposition. With the senior pros of Tikolo and Odoyo back in form and the bowling finally clicking, the Kenyans would believe that they could execute yet another dominating performance.

Meanwhile, the Dutch have not looked the best in their last two matches. The batting faced a few nervous moments against Nepal, while the bowling imploded against Scotland in the death overs. With Afghanistan beating Nepal, the Dutch would be hoping to pull all stops out to get a win to gain direct qualification to Bangladesh, and avoid play-offs against the UAE or Hong Kong .

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

20 April 2013- Netherlands 113 (18.4 overs) Kenya 114/3 (12.2 overs) – Kenya won by 7 wickets.

Shem Ngoche’s 4/34 curbed Netherlands to a low total, chased easily by the Kenyans, thanks to a 20-ball 46 by Rakep Patel.

19 April 2013- Netherlands 172/5 (20 overs) Kenya 176/5 (19 overs) – Kenya won by 5 wickets.

Michael Swart’s excellent 89 off 55 balls went in vain, as the Dutch bowlers went in meltdown in the death overs and Collins Obuya blasted a 37-ball 75.

Watch out for…

Collins Obuya vs Michael Swart

The Kenyan skipper hasn’t yet produced the best of his batting displays, but if he does it tomorrow, Kenya will almost certainly produce a huge total. With Swart’s darts playing an important role in restricting the run rate, how will Obuya play him?

Eric Swarczynski vs Hiren Varaiya
The senior Dutch pro, who came close to a century against South Africa, hasn’t yet showcased his talent in this tournament. He seemed particularly troubled by left-arm spinners of Nepal, and Kenya would be hoping to capitalize on this flaw by utilizing their reliable performer against him. Will Eric rise to the bait?

Team news

Netherlands (probable) 1 Wesley Barresi (wk), 2 Stephan Myburgh, 3 Eric Szwarczynski, 4 Michael Swart, 5 Daan van Bunge, 6 Ben Cooper, 7 Peter Borren (capt), 8 Mudassar Bukhari, 9 Michael Rippon, 10 Pieter Seelaar, 11 Ahsan Malik

2nd Match- BERMUDA v NEPAL

Match Facts

Nov 23, ICC Academy, Dubai
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

Despite yesterday’s loss, Nepal are relatively in a comfortable position and should, barring an extremely unlikely series of results by Kenya, should make it to the playoffs. Nevertheless, the coach Dassanayake would surely urge his wards not to leave anything to chance by beating Bermuda to ensure their place.

Bermuda have a lot more at stake and still have an outside chance of making the play-offs if they manage to win their remaining two matches against Nepal and Papua New Guinea. However, with their atrocious NRR, even two simple wins might not be enough. With Bermuda out of reckoning for the 50-over World Cup, one can expect the Bermudan veterans to have a desperate final go for the glory of playing another World Cup tournament.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

18 March 2012 – Nepal 151/6 (20 overs) Bermuda 127/5 (20 overs) – Nepal won by 24 runs.

Paras Khadka’s unbeaten 48- ball 65 and Gauchan’s 3/17 helped Nepal achieve a comfortable win.

Watch out for…

Pradeep Airee vs Kamau Leverock

The battle of two promising, but frustrating, players. Both Airee and Leverock have had a torrid time in this tournament, and both would be keen to rectify it. Who will succeed?

Dion Stovell vs Amrit Bhattarai

The Bermudan opener would be hoping to exploit the supposed weak element in Nepal’s bowling line-up to blast his team ahead. Will Bhattarai surprise him and get him early?

Team news

Previews of Day 8, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 22, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v CANADA

Match Facts

Nov 22, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Rain played spoilsport in yesterday’s matches and is set to do so today too if one is to believe the forecasts. In this context, Canada urgently needs to start winning matches to stop its campaign to reach the play-offs from getting derailed. With the hosts generally being acknowledged as formidable competitors, Canada have a tough task ahead of them

and would be hoping for a crucial win to put them in a more comfortable position.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

11 August 2013- Canada 137/7 (20 overs) United Arab Emirates 140/3 (18.4 overs) – United Arab Emirates won by 7 wickets.

Nasir Aziz’s 3/21 restricted the Canadians to a decent total, and the Emirati batsmen chased it down without much fuss.

10 August 2013- United Arab Emirates 157/7 (20 overs) Canada 85 (16.2 overs) – United Arab Emirates won by 72 runs.

Mohammad Azam’s 51-ball 70 lifted the UAE to a tough target, and the Canadians crumbled to spin again with Nasir Aziz, Shadeep Silva and Ahmed Raza taking 7 wickets between them

Watch out for…

Jimmy Hansra vs Nasir Aziz

With spin supposed to play a crucial part in the UAE bowling attack, It would be upto the experienced Canadian batsman Jimmy Hansra to hold the innings together. It would be an interesting duel between him and the Canadians’ nemesis of recent past, Aziz.

Khurram Khan vs Jeremy Gordon
The Canadian captain has been leading from the front with useful contributions with the bat. Will the Canadian fast bowler be able to unsettle him with his pace?

Team news

2nd Match- IRELAND v UGANDA

Match Facts

Nov 22, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With Irish sitting at the top of the table, it would be interesting to see if they make any changes to their XI against the punching bags Uganda and bring in the youngsters McBrine and Thompson to give some break to their players. For Uganda, who are now out of running for the play-offs, they would be playing for pride, especially that of beating the best Associate side.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

19 March 2012- Ireland 179/5 (20 overs) Uganda 97 (19.5 overs) – Ireland won by 82 runs.

Ireland hammered the Ugandans in a comprehensive victory, with a combined good batting and bowling performance.

Watch out for…

William Porterfield vs Davis Karashani

The Ugandan captain would be hoping to snare his opposite number with his off-spin. Will he succeed?

Richard Okia vs John Mooney

The Ugandan batsman has been one of the very few bright spots in his team’s batting performances. Meanwhile, the Irish all-rounder seems to have bounced back into form with a fine performance against the Yankees. Will Okia try to target Mooney?

Team news

Ireland (probable): 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Niall O’Brien, 4 Gary Wilson (wk), 5 Kevin O’Brien, 6 Andy McBrine,7 Stuart Thompson, 8 John Mooney, 9 Max Sorensen, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 George Dockrell.

Uganda (probable) 1 Roger Mukasa, 2 Hamu Bagenda, 3 Hamza Saleh, 4 Arthur Kyobe, 5 Richard Okia, 6 Phillemon Mukobe (wk), 7 Patrick Ochan, 8 Davis Karashani (capt), 9 Frank Nsubuga, 10 Brian Masaba, 11 Charles Waiswa.

3rd Match- HONG KONG v UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Match Facts

Nov 22, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 2, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

As many predicted before the tournament, Hong Kong have shown how extremely dangerous they could be in this format. With the UAE snipping at its heels, Hong Kong would try to safeguard its position as 2^nd to possibly meet Nepal rather than Afghanistan or the Netherlands. So, expect them to take a leaf out of the Irish book and go hammer and tongs against the Americans.

The USA would be ruing a golden chance to gain points as their match against Uganda got rained off. One can expect USA to again employ as many as 9 bowlers in their XI in order to curb the attacking Hong Kongers.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

23 March 2012- Hong Kong 177/4 (20 overs) United States of America 100 (16.2 overs) – Hong Kong won by 77 runs.

Jamie Atkinson struck a 38- ball 63 and Aizaz Khan took a 5/25 to complete the rout.

Watch out for…

Jamie Atkinson vs Karan Ganesh

The Hong Kong captain would be hoping to repeat his exploits from the last meeting. How will the only impressive US bowler against the Irish respond?

Steven Taylor vs Munir Dar

A battle between the young explosive American and the veteran Hong Konger should make for an interesting watch

Team news

GROUP B

1st Match- NETHERLANDS v SCOTLAND

Match Facts

Nov 22, ICC Academy, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

The European rivals meet again, this time with huge possible consequences for the whole group B. The Scots would be hoping to carry their form forward from yesterday’s drubbing of Papua New Guinea. A win against the Dutch would throw the whole group open, while a loss would make lead to them not making the play-offs. So, much is at stake here.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

22 March 2012- Scotland 166/6 (20 overs) Netherlands 169/3 (19.1 overs) – Netherlands won by 3 wickets.

A closely contested match, the Dutch managed to huff and puff their way over the line, thanks to a 32- ball 60 by Tom Cooper.

4 August 2008- Scotland 107/8 (20 overs) Netherlands 110/5 (18 overs) – Netherlands won by 5 wickets.

Ryan ten Doeschate starred with the bat and the ball to secure a win for the Dutch.

Watch out for…

Stephan Myburgh vs Rob Taylor

The aggressive southpaw has been responsible for the Dutch flying starts. Will yesterday’s hero Rob Taylor be able to nip him early?

Calum Macleod vs Michael Rippon

The Scottish opener would be crucial for the Scots to score a huge total. Will the Dutch chinaman fox him?

Team news

Scotland (probable) 1 Calum Macleod, 2 Richie Berrington, 3 Matt Machan, 4 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 5 Michael Leask, 6 Rob Taylor, 7 David Murphy (wk), 8 Majid Haq, 9 Gordon Goudie, 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Iain Wardlaw.

2nd Match- DENMARK v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 22, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

Denmark finally showed up in the tournament by nearly scoring an upset against Afghanistan, and would be brimming with confidence. Meanwhile PNG’s campaign is threatening to get derailed after a bright start. With both Kenya and Scotland looking like they might be back in business, PNG desperately need to gain both points and NRR by thumping the weaker sides of Denmark and Bermuda.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

15 March 2012 – Papua New Guinea 148 (20 overs) Denmark 134/8 (20 overs) – Papua New Guinea won by 14 runs.

Aftab Ahmed took 6/22 to reduce PNG, who were sitting prettily at 116/3 in 15 overs to just 148. At the end, it proved to be enough, as except Pedersen, no batsman stepped up.

Watch out for…

Aftab Ahmed vs John Reva

The Danish all-rounder would be hoping to continue his batting from where he left off against Afghanistan. Will he be able to smash PNG’s death overs specialist out of the park?

Tony Ura vs Michael Pedersen

After a scorching start, Ura seems to have fizzled out in the last two matches. Will he step up to help PNG execute a huge win? Will the Danish skipper stop him with his effective medium pace?

Team news

Denmark (probable): 1 Carsten Pedersen, 2 Yasir Iqbal, 3 Freddie Klokker (wk), 4 Michael Pedersen (capt), 5 Aftab Ahmed, 6 Kamran Mahmood, 7 Rizwan Mahmood , 8 Jakob Rubin, 9 Bashir Shah, 10 Hamid Shah, 11 Basit Raja.

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Kent, 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Chris Amini(capt), 10 Willie Gavera, 11 John Reva

3rd Match- AFGHANISTAN v NEPAL

Match Facts

Nov 22, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

If you ask the fans of both the nations, this would be the most waited match of the tournament. With Nepal growing by leaps and bounds over the past year and coming very close in the ACC Emerging Nations Tournament, they would believe that they finally have a chance to put one over their Asian rivals.

Afghanistan would like to continue their winning run in order to upstage the Dutch and qualify directly to Bangladesh. Regardless of the result, if weather conditions permit a full match, this should be a high intensity match, with fans of both sides expected to turn up in large numbers to offer vocal support.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

3 April 2013- Nepal135/6 (20 overs) Afghanistan 137/3 (17.5 overs) – Afghanistan won by 7 wickets

Gulbodin Naib’s all-round contribution (43 off 42 balls and 2/20) helped set up a comfortable win for Afghanistan, despite Paras Khadka’s 50.

16 March 2012 – Afghanistan 157/6 (20 overs) Nepal 123/6 (20 overs) – Afghanistan won by 34 runs

Aggressive innings by Sadiq and Shahzad powered Afghanistan to a total, which proved to be beyond Nepal.

Watch out for…

Najibullah Zadran vs Basanta Regmi

The Afghan youngster made his first major contribution on the international stage, as he rescued the Afghans from a precarious position against the Danes. Meanwhile, Regmi showed his class by snaring a 3/12 against the Dutch. Will he top Zadran from repeating his exploits?

Sharad Vesawkar vs Dawlat Zadran
Vesawkar has made important contributions to his side with his clean hitting in the death overs, while Dawlat has struggled to make much of an impact. Will Dawlat finally turn up to halt Sharad’s charge?

Team news

Afghanistan (probable): 1 Noor Ali Zadran, 2 Mohammad Shahzad (wk), 3 Gulbodin Naib, 4 Karim Sadiq 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Najibullah Zadran, 7 Samiullah Shenwari, 8 Hamza Hotak, 9 Hamid Hassan, 10 Dawlat Zadran, 11 Shapoor Zadran.

Previews of Day 7, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 21, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- IRELAND v ITALY

Match Facts

Nov 21, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

After looking rusty in their first 3 matches, the Irish raised their game up a notch as they plundered runs against the US and crushed them with a huge margin. With virtually all the bowlers contributing with the ball, the Irish bowlers seem to have got the hang of the best way of bowling in the flat track of Sheikh Zayed Stadium.

Next up is the match against the mercurial Italy, who have been having an up-and-down tournament. After gaining a thrilling win against the USA, they threw away the advantage by choking against Uganda. They bounced back in their last game with a well-deserved victory over the Namibians. With Canada looking to have recovered their form, Italy would be hoping to cling on to the advantage this time to secure a place in the play-offs. For confidence, they just need to look at the match played last year, where they nearly upset the eventual champions.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

15 March 2012- Italy 100/7 (20 overs) Ireland 104/8 (19.4 overs) – Ireland won by 2 wickets.

Rankin and Striling bowled superbly to stifle Italy to a paltry total of 100. However, the Italians gave the Irish quite a scare, as the Irish lost wickets in a hep to go from a comfortable 60/2 to 67/5 in the spce of 3 overs. Gary Wilson then steered the Irish home with a crucial 31.

Watch out for…

Paul Stirling vs Gayashan Munasinghe

With Porterfield in imperious form, Stirling was left a quiet spectator. Despite several good starts, Stirling has not managed to go on ahead to score big ones. Will today be his day? How will the Italain fast bowler, who has been excellent throughout the tournament, operate against him?

Damian Crowley vs Trent Johnston
Both the Italian captain and the Irish stalwart have been having a relatively quiet tournament. With this being the last tournament for Johnston, he must be desperate to make a telling contribution with the ball. How will the Italian play against him?

Team news

Ireland (probable): 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Niall O’Brien, 4 Gary Wilson (wk), 5 Kevin O’Brien, 6 Alex Cusack ,7 John Mooney, 8 Max Sorensen, 9 Trent Johnston, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 George Dockrell.

Italy (probable) 1 Dinidu Marage, 2 Andy Northcote (wk), 3 Gareth Berg, 4 Damian Crowley(capt), 5 Peter Petricola, 6 Alessandro Bonora, 7 Michael Raso, 8 Carl Sandri, 9 Vince Penazza, 10 Gayashan Munasinghe, 11 Dilan Fernando

2nd Match- UGANDA v UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Match Facts

Nov 21, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 2, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With the drubbing received at the Irish fresh in mind, it would be interesting to see the US response. With former players criticizing the team selection of fielding a team with 9 bowlers and 2 wicket-keepers, will Robin Singh try to change tactics against the hapless Ugandans?

Apart from a scrappy victory against Italy, Uganda have looked every bit as awful as the wooden spoons Denmark. With the batsmen repeatedly failing to provide competitive totals, the bowlers have been having a hard time trying to defend them. However, Uganda might smell a chance against a US side likely to be in low spirits.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

13 March 2012- United States of America 123/8 (20 overs) Uganda 124/6 (19.2 overs) – Uganda won by 6 wickets.
The Ugandan top order failed yet again after another tidy performance by the bowlers. However the captain Karashani and Nsubuga finally dragged them over the finish line .

Watch out for…

Davis Karashani vs Muhammad Ghous

The Ugandan captain has been left picking up the shattered pieces of the batting performance after horrible performances by the top order to push his side to a respectable score. The US off-spinner too has been having a torrid time in the UAE, with the Irish taking a particular lining to him. Will he come back with a good bowling performance? Will Karashani stand in his way?

Timroy Allen vs Frank Nsubuga

The big-hitting US all-rounder has been inconsistent, and would be hoping to gain his touch back today. Will he try to hit the economical Nsubuga out of the park?

Team news

GROUP B

1st Match- SCOTLAND v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 21, ICC Academy, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

A key contest for both the sides, if they wish to make the play-offs. Scotland, frankly speaking, have been abysmal this tournament, with only a victory against Nepal. With a hammering against Kenya, their Net Run Rate has taken a dive as well. Their final hope of making the play-offs would be to win all the remaining matches and hope that the other matches go in their favor.

Similarly, after a bright start, PNG have faltered against Afghanistan and Nepal. With Kenya back to looking dangerous again, they would hope to restart their winning run in order to get a place in the play-offs. With the top order batting shining for them in the first two matches, they would be hoping that the rest of the batsmen and the bowler step up as well to achieve what would be a memorable victory.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Scotland and PNG have not yet played against each other in T20s.

Watch out for…

Kyle Coetzer vs Charles Amini

The Scottish captain would be desperate to lead his team to the World T20 and would surely be putting his best effort with the bat. Will the young PNG leggie spin him out?

Asad Vala vs Iain Wardlaw

The PNG opener has only shown brief glimpses of his ability so far. With the Scottish seamer struggling to produce an effect on the flat decks of the UAE, will Vala finally shine?

Team news

Scotland (probable) 1 Calum Macleod, 2 Richie Berrington, 3 Matt Machan, 4 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 5 Matthew Cross, 6 Rob Taylor, 7 David Murphy (wk), 8 Majid Haq, 9 Gordon Goudie, 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Iain Wardlaw.

2nd Match- AFGHANISTAN v DENMARK

Match Facts

Nov 21, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

By humiliating the Bermudans, the Afghans have proven that they mean business and are back to being close to their best. With the explosive batting and the bowlers clicking, facing Afg should be a daunting prospect for the Danes, who might have as well not turned up for the tournament. However, with the mercurial nature of Afghans well known, will Denmark take a leaf out of the Ugandans’ book and try to spar it out?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

15 March 2012 – Afghanistan 172/5 (20 overs) Denmark 83/9 (20 overs) – Afghanistan won by 89 runs.
Karim Sadiq smashes a 60-ball 91 to power Afg to a total well beyond the Danes. He also completed the final rites by taking 4/12 as well.

Watch out for…

Mohammad Shahzad vs Aftab Ahmed

The Afghan wicket-keeper has been in blistering form. Will the Danish seamer be able to hold him up?

Freddie Klokker vs Shapoor Zadran
Such has been the reliance of the Danes on Klokker that one might as well stop following the match if he gets dismissed early. Unfortunately, that is what has happened so far in this tournament. Will the promising keeper-batsman get inspired from his opposite number and finally make a telling contribution? And what better way to do that than by targeting the lanky Afghan speedster?

Team news

Denmark (probable): 1 Freddie Klokker (wk), 2 Yasir Iqbal, 3 Michael Pedersen (capt), 4 Aftab Ahmed, 5 Kamran Mahmood, 6 Rizwan Mahmood ,7 Pawan Kumar, 8 Jakob Rubin, 9 Bashir Shah, 10 Hamid Shah, 11 Basit Raja.

3rd Match- BERMUDA v KENYA

Match Facts

Nov 21, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With Kenyan bowling beginning to finally click together, they are looking a formidable side, as the old guns and the youngsters continue to shine with the bat. Will the Bermudans fins some inspiration to get another upset?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Bermuda and Kenya have not yet played against each other in T20s.

Watch out for…

David Hemp vs Steve Tikolo

The battle of the veterans. With Tikolo becoming more than a useful bowler, as his 4-for shows, how will Hemp try to nullify him?

Maurice Ouma vs Derrick Brangman
The Kenyan wicket-keeper has been maddeningly inconsistent as ever. How will the Bermudan spinner get him?

Team news

Kenya (probable): 1 Alex Obanda, 2 Steve Tikolo, 3 Collins Obuya (capt), 4 Maurice Ouma (wk), 5 Rakep Patel, 6 Thomas Odoyo, 7 Ragheb Aga, 8 Nehemiah Odhiambo, 9 Hiren Varaiya, 10 Shem Ngoche, 11 Elijah Otieno.

Previews of Day 6, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 19, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- IRELAND v UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Match Facts

Nov 20, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

After two days of leave, the Irish will be hitting the road again, possibly strengthened by the return of Ed Joyce. In a tournament full of upsets, Ireland have managed to hold on to narrow victories over Canada and the UAE. They would be hoping to get their mojo back with a convincing victory.

Meanwhile, the Americans would be hoping that they kick on from their solitary win against Canada and put behind the disappointing losses against Italy and the UAE. And what better way to regain confidence than to upset the Associate powerhouse?

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

16 March 2012- Ireland 160/6 (20 overs) United States of America 96 (18 overs) – Ireland won by 64 runs.
Boyd Rankin blew the Americans away with a spell of 4/9 off 4 overs, to give Ireland a massive victory.

10 February 2010- – Ireland 202/4 (20 overs) United States of America 124/6 (20 overs) -Ireland won by 27 runs.

Niall O’Brien’s splendid 84 off 50 balls pushed the Irish to a massive total, while Connell’s 4/14 restricted the US line-up.

Watch out for…

William Porterfield vs Adam Sanford

While his Warwickshire form has been pretty poor, the Irish captain has produced the goods for his national team this year. He has had a quite tournament so far, and would be hoping to once again score many runs. Will the former West Indies Test bowler be able to nip him early on?

Steven Taylor vs Max Sorensen

The young Taylor has been in good nick for the USA, producing good starts. Getting him out early would obviously be key for the Irish. Will Sorensen, who got two wickets in his first two balls against Canada, get Taylor early too?

Team news

Ireland (probable): 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Ed Joyce, 4 Niall O’Brien, 5 Gary Wilson (wk), 6 Kevin O’Brien, 7 Alex Cusack , 8 Max Sorensen, 9 Trent Johnston, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 George Dockrell.

2nd Match- HONG KONG v NAMIBIA

Match Facts

Nov 20, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 2, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

Hong Kong finally lost a match today, with a batting collapse against the UAE. They would be hoping to start their winning streak again against an unsure Namibia. Namibia, who look a shadow of their former selves, nevertheless have been grinding out wins against the USA and Italy. They would be hoping to reassert themselves with a victory tomorrow.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Hong Kong and Namibia have not yet played against each other in T20s.

Watch out for…

Jamie Atkinson vs JJ Smit

The Hong Kong captain has been a key batsman for the team, as he showed his prowess today. Meanwhile, the young Namibian pacer too played an important role today. Who will win the contest between them?

Craig Williams vs Munir Dar
The free-flowing Craig Williams has not been at his fluent in this tournament so far. His duel against the Hong Kong veteran will be key in this match.

Team news

GROUP B

1st Match- AFGHANISTAN v BERMUDA

Match Facts

Nov 20, ICC Academy, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With victories against Scotland and Papua New Guinea, Afghanistan might believe that they have started on a juggernaut of wins to reach the top of the group. However, they would do well to treat Bermuda with respect and not underestimate them.

Apart from the shock victory against Scotland, Bermuda have been mostly insipid. A challenge against Afghanistan might fire the veterans up for another scrap, though.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

5 July 2013- Afghanistan 177/5 (20 overs) Bermuda 162/5 (18.3 overs) – Afghanistan won by 15 runs

Mohammad Shahzad’s 38-ball 64 and Aftab Alam’s 3/23 helped Afghanistan secure a win, despite Janeiro Tucker and Kamau Leverock’s brief cameos.

Watch out for…

Mohammad Nabi vs Jacobi Robinson

The Afghan all-rounder has been key to his side, with his booming sixes ruining the economy rate of many bowlers. How will he operate against the most succesful Bermudan fast bowler?

Janeiro Tucker vs Samiullah Shenwari

The Bermudan skipper loves hitting spinners out of the park. How would he play against the Afghan leg-spinner, who has been successful so far?

Team news

Afghanistan (probable): 1 Noor Ali Zadran, 2 Nawroz Mangal, 3 Mohammad Shahzad (wk), 4 Gulbodin Naib, 5 Mohammad Nabi (capt), 6 Karim Sadiq, 7 Samiullah Shenwari, 8 Mirwais Ashraf, 9 Hamid Hassan, 10 Dawlat Zadran, 11 Shapoor Zadran.

Bermuda (probable): 1 Dion Stovell, 2 Tre Manders, 3 David Hemp, 4 Janeiro Tucker (capt), 5 Lionel Cann, 6 Allan Douglas, 7 Kwarme Tucker(wk), 8 Malachi Jones, 9 Derrick Brangman,10 Kamau Leverock, 11 Jacobi Robinson.

2nd Match- NEPAL v NETHERLANDS

Match Facts

Nov 20, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

With a tick marked against Papua New Guinea in Nepal’s wins column, Nepal mow start the tougher part of their campaign as they play the Netherlands and Afghanistan next. Today’s win would especially have raised confidence in the batting. With Khakurel, Bhandari, and Vesawkar all contributing to wins in different matches, Nepal’s batting finally looks like they are no longer dependent solely on Khadka.

Meanwhile, the Dutch look in imperious form, as they swatted Denmark away. With both the top-order and bowling showing signs of good form and Swart returning back, the Dutch would be aiming to win to keep themselves at the top of the table.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

19 March 2012- Nepal 85/7 (20 overs) Netherlands 86/4 (13.5 overs) – Netherlands won by 6 wickets.

Swart and Bukhari restricted Nepal to just 85, and a combined batting performance provided a comfortable victory.

Watch out for…

Binod Bhandari vs Ahsan Malik

The Nepali middle-order batsman stepped up today to provide a sterling performance to guide Nepal home. Similarly, Ahsan Malik was in fine form against the Danes, taking a 4-wicket haul. How will Bhandari operate against Malik’s yorkers?

Peter Borren vs Paras Khadka
The battle of the captains. Both have been key to their sides, with Borren being a useful bowler and blistering batting performances, and Khadka starring with the bat and the ball. Will Borren try to blast Khadka out of the park too? How will Khadka try to stifle his opposite number?

Team news

Nepal (probable) 1 Subhash Khakurel (wk), 2 Pradeep Airee, 3 Gyanendra Malla, 4 Paras Khadka (capt), 5 Binod Bhandari, 6 Sharad Vesawkar, 7 Sagar Pun, 8 Basant Regmi, 9 Shakti Gauchan, 10 Jitendra Mukhiya, 11 Amrit Bhattarai.

Netherlands (probable) 1 Michael Swart, 2 Stephan Myburgh, 3 Wesley Barresi (wk), 4 Eric Szwarczynski, 5 Daan van Bunge, 6 Ben Cooper, 7 Peter Borren (capt), 8 Tim Gruijters, 9 Mudassar Bukhari, 10 Pieter Seelaar, 11 Ahsan Malik

Previews of Day 5, ICC World T20 Qualifier 2013

November 19, 2013Uncategorizededwardssammy

GROUP A

1st Match- ITALY v NAMIBIA

Match Facts

Nov 19, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With two victories, Italy would have believed that they would get a comfortable victory. However, the Ugandan tail wriggled long enough to lead them to an improbable victory. Now, Italy are up against Namibia, who looked ineffective against Ireland and UAE, but managed to swat off USA easily. For Namibia, a victory would go a long way to help them claim a top spot in the group to avoid difficult play-offs. Italy too would be hoping to deny Namibia the victory.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)
20 March 2012- Namibia 194/2 (20 overs) Italy 167/8 (20 overs) – Namibia won by 27 runs.
van Schoor, Snyman and Williams bludgeoned the Italian attack to score a huge total. Despite the best efforts of Bonora, the Italians failed to chase the target.

Watch out for…

Andy Northcote vs Bernard Scholtz

The Italian has kept quiet so far this tournament. Will he explode against the Namibians, particularly the highly promising left-arm spinner Scholtz?

Christi Viljoen vs Gareth Berg

With Louis van der Westhuizen failing, Viljoen has been doing his best to provide his side a solid start. How will the Italian pacer try to stop him?

Team news

Italy (probable) :1 Gareth Berg, 2 Andy Northcote (wk), 3 Dinidu Marage, 4 Damian Crowley(capt), 5 Peter Petricola, 6 Alessandro Bonora, 7 Michael Raso, 8 Carl Sandri, 9 Vince Penazza, 10 Gayashan Munasinghe, 11 Dilan Fernando

Namibia (probable): 1 Louis van der Westhuizen, 2 Christi Viljoen, 3 Raymond van Schoor (wk), 4 Craig Williams, 5 Sarel Burger (capt), 6 Jaen Kotze, 7 Gerhard Erasmus, 8 Nicolaas Scholtz, 9 Bernard Scholtz, 10 Louis Klazinga, 11 JJ Smit.

2nd Match- UNITED ARAB EMIRATES v HONG KONG

Match Facts

Nov 19, Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

After three comfortable victories, Hong Kong find themselves sitting at the top of the table. However this challenge against the UAE will be very different for the free-flowing Hong Kong batsmen, as the UAE spinners like to choke the batsmen and getting them out when the batsmen get frustrated. A victory against the hosts would give them a commanding position to go into the playoffs at a top position. Meanwhile, UAE would love to notch up a victory to keep themselves in the running for the top spot.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

3 April 2013- United Arab Emirates 166/7 (20 overs) Hong Kong 134/8 (20 overs) – United Arab Emirates won by 32 runs
Amjad Javed’s blistering 25 ball-51 lifted UAE to a competitive total, as they scored 30 runs in their last 2 overs, after Tanwir Afzal had made early breakthroughs. In response, the UAE spinners played their natural game of building pressure to force mistakes from the batsmen, thus restricting Hong Kong to 134.

6 December 2011- United Arab Emirates 144/4 (20 overs) Hong Kong 145/6 (18 overs) – Hong Kong won by 4 wickets.

Despite Amjad Ali’s fine 79, Irfan Ahmed’s quick 70 off 42 balls helped Hong Kong win.

Saqib Ali vs Tanwir Afzal

The UAE stalwart has largely been quiet. Will he fire today? How will the pacy Afzal treat him?

Irfan Ahmed vs Shadeep Silva
The last time these two met, Silva won the battle with Ahmed throwing his wicket away. Will Silva again fool the centurion?

Team news

United Arab Emirates (probable): 1 Mohammad Azam 2 Shaiman Anwar, 3 Swapnil Patil (wk), 4 Saqib Ali, 5 Khurram Khan (capt), 6 Rohan Mustafa, 7 Amjad Javed, 8 Ahmed Raza, 9 Nasir Aziz, 10 Shadeep Silva, 11 Manjula Guruge

Hong Kong (probable): 1 Irfan Ahmed, 2 Waqas Barkat, 3 Jamie Atkinson (capt & wk), 4 Mark Chapman, 5 Nizakat Khan, 6 Babar Hayat, 7 Munir Dar, 8 Aizaz Khan, 9 Nadeem Ahmed, 10 Tanwir Afzal, 11 Haseeb Amjad.

3rd Match- CANADA v UGANDA

Match Facts

Nov 19, Sheikh Zayed Stadium Nursery 1, Abu Dhabi
Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

After two narrow losses, the Canadians were blown away by the whirlwind century of Hong Kong opener Irfan Ahmed, making their task of making the play-offs more and more difficult as they search for points. Meanwhile, Uganda finally seem to have waken up from their slumber, as they fought their way out of a tough scrap with Italy to secure a win, and would be hoping to kick on. This will be an intriguing contest to fight it out for a spot in the play-off, as a loss would virtually end the losing team’s chances.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

Canada and Uganda have not yet played any T20s against each other.

Watch out for…

Hiral Patel vs Frank Nsubuga

The contest between the young Canadian opener and the experienced Ugandan would be interesting.

Arthur Kyobe vs Henry Osinde

Similarly the contest between the aggressive Ugandan batsman and the Uganda-born pacer would be intriguing.

Team news

Canada (probable): 1 Hiral Patel, 2 Ruvindu Gunasekara, 3 Ashish Bagai (capt & wk), 4 Jimmy Hansra, 5 Raza-ur-Rehman, 6 Rizwan Cheema, 7 Usman Limbada, 8 Junaid Siddiqui, 9 Harvir Baidwan, 10 Jeremy Gordon, 11 Henry Osinde.

Uganda (probable): 1 Roger Mukasa, 2 Arthur Kyobe, 3 Hamu Bagenda, 4 Hamza Saleh, 5 Richard Okia, 6 Phillemon Mukobe (wk), 7 Patrick Ochan, 8 Davis Karashani (capt), 9 Frank Nsubuga, 10 Brian Masaba, 11 Charles Waiswa

GROUP B

1st Match- DENMARK v NETHERLANDS

Match Facts

Nov 19, ICC Academy Ground No 2, Dubai
Start time 1000 hours (0600 GMT)

The Big Picture

With two hammerings delivered to Afghanistan and Bermuda, Netherlands must be feeling optimistic about playing the wooden spoons of the tournament. But, they would be well advised to not take the Danes as lightly as they did Papua New Guinea. It could result in yet another upset for them.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

16 March 2012- Denmark 117/9 (20 overs) Netherlands 122/3 (16.1 overs) – Netherlands won by 7 wickets.
While Borren helped restrict the Danes with 3/14 off his 3 overs, Myburgh and Barresi helped the Dutch complete an easy victory.

Watch out for…

Michael Pedersen vs Ahsan Malik

The Danish skipper has been responsible for dragging Denmark to a respectable score in the tournament. Meanwhile, Ahsan Malik has been a revelation with his death bowling for the Dutch. How will Pedersen operate against him?

Peter Borren vs Kamran Mahmood

The Dutch captain has been in fine form, giving his side an impetus in the death overs with his big-hitting. How will he treat one of the few effective Danish seamers?

Team news

Denmark (probable): 1 Freddie Klokker (wk), 2 Carsten Pedersen, 3 Michael Pedersen (capt), 4 Aftab Ahmed, 5 Kamran Mahmood, 6 Rizwan Mahmood ,7 Pawan Kumar, 8 Jakob Rubin, 9 Bashir Shah, 10 Hamid Shah, 11 Basit Raja.

Netherlands (probable): 1 Wesley Barresi (wk), 2 Stephan Myburgh, 3 Eric Szwarczynski, 4 Daan van Bunge, 5 Ben Cooper , 6 Peter Borren (capt), 7 Tim Gruijters, 8 Mudassar Bukhari, 9 Michael Ripon, 10 Pieter Seelaar, 11 Paul von Meekeren

2nd Match- KENYA v SCOTLAND

Match Facts

Nov 19, ICC Academy, Dubai

Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

After two disappointing outings with the ball, the Kenyan bowlers have struck back with a commanding performance against Denmark. They would be hoping to continue that form against Scotland, who too have started to show signs of good form. With both teams on 2 points from 3 matches, the losing team would have a steep task of making the playoffs, and hence much rides on this match.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

5 July 2013- Kenya 100/8 (20 overs) Scotland 106/3 (18.3 overs) – Scotland won by 7 wickets
The best bowling performance of Calvin Burnett restricted the Kenyans to 100, while Macleod paced the chase well for an easy Scottish victory.

4 July 2013- Scotland 113/6 (20 overs) Kenya 78 (18.5 overs) – Scotland won by 35 runs.
Tanmay Mishra’s 3/25 stifled the Scots 113, but the Scottish bowlers gave a good performance to bundle out the Kenyans for 78, with Goudie being the star with a 3/22.

Watch out for…

Steve Tikolo vs Neil Carter

The battle of the stalwarts. The Kenyan legend has shown that he is still in good form. How will the former Warwickshire paceman conter him?

Calum Macleod vs Ragheb Aga

The Scottish opener has been responsible for the calm chases so far, and has struck two half-centuries in his three matches. Getting him out early will be crucial for Kenya. Will Aga stop him?

Team news

Kenya (probable): 1 Alex Obanda, 2 Steve Tikolo, 3 Collins Obuys (capt), 4 Maurice Ouma (wk), 5 Rakep Patel, 6 Thomas Odoyo, 7 Ragheb Aga, 8 Nehemiah Odhiambo, 9 Hiren Varaiya, 10 Shem Ngoche, 11 Elijah Otieno.

Scotland (probable): 1 Calum Macleod, 2 Richie Berrington, 3 Matt Machan, 4 Kyle Coetzer (capt), 5 Rob Taylor, 6 David Murphy (wk), 7 Majid Haq, 8 Neil Carter, 9 Gordon Goudie , 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Iain Wardlaw.

3rd Match- NEPAL v PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Match Facts

Nov 15, Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah

Start time 1400 hours (1000 GMT)

The Big Picture

The battle of the surprise packages. In a group with three teams with ODI status, Nepal and PNG are at the top, which is a testament to their youth programmes finally paying dividends. This should be an exciting battle between two teams filled with youngsters, with both the teams hoping to win to consolidate their position at the top of the table. The match will depend on how PNG batsmen handle spin and how Nepali batsmen handle pace.

Previous encounters

(completed matches, most recent first)

23 March 2012- Papua New Guinea 129/5 (20 overs) Nepal 133/4 (19.5 overs) – Nepal won by 6 wickets

Paras Khadka and Shakti Gauchan starred with the bat and ball respectively for this relatively easy victory for Nepal.

15 March 2012- Papua New Guinea 137/8 (20 overs) Nepal 102/8 (20 overs) – Papua New Guinea won by 35 runs.

In this low-scoring match, Chris Amini’s all-round effort helped PNG secure a win.

Watch out for…

Paras Khadka vs Norman Vanua

The Nepal captain is a key element for Nepal to post high totals. How will Vanua, who claimed the top order wickets against the Dutch, try to counter him?

Tony Ura vs Basanta Regmi

Tony Ura has been in blistering form got PNG and his partnerships with Vala and Pala have been key to PNG’s batting success. How will the wily old Nepali customer try to snare him?

Team news

Nepal (probable) 1 Subhash Khakurel (wk), 2 Pradeep Airee, 3 Gyanendra Malla, 4 Paras Khadka (capt), 5 Binod Bhandari, 6 Sharad Vesawkar, 7 Sagar Pun, 8 Basant Regmi, 9 Shakti Gauchan, 10 Rahul Vishwakarma, 11 Jitndra Mukhiya.

Papua new Guinea (probable) 1 Asad Vala, 2 Tony Ura, 3 Kila Pala, 4 Geraint Jones, 5 Chris Amini, 6 Charles Amini, 7 Mahuru Dai, 8 Jack Vare (wk), 9 Willie Gavera, 10 Andrew Hicks, 11 Norman Vanua

8.7^±0.1mm