Colin Munro averaged 51.58 with a strike rate of 98.79 in first-class cricket, but only played one Test match

Matt Roller12-Jun-2023Last Thursday morning, Nottinghamshire were training at Trent Bridge ahead of a T20 fixture against Derbyshire the following evening.Their two overseas players, Colin Munro and Shaheen Shah Afridi, were standing on the outfield, waiting to bat in the nets – at least, so they claimed. Really, they were watching the opening stages of the World Test Championship final on a phone. “I said to Shaheen, ‘Man, Test cricket’s still the pinnacle, eh?'” Munro recounts.It is an admission that might seem at odds with Munro’s career trajectory. He played a solitary Test, over a decade ago, and now travels the world as a T20 freelancer playing for Tigers, Vipers, Rockets and Outlaws. Nearly six years have passed since he hit a red ball in anger.But Munro’s ceiling as a Test cricketer is a great imponderable. Across a 48-match first-class career, he compiled a record that remains staggering even in an era of unprecedented aggression, averaging 51.58 while scoring at 98.79 runs per 100 balls. “I fit the Bazball mould,” Munro says, laughing.Even accounting for New Zealand’s flat pitches and small grounds, Munro’s first-class statistics are outrageous. In one season, 2014-15, he hit 899 runs for Auckland, the majority of them from No. 4. That haul included 46 sixes in nine appearances, half of which came in a single innings of 281 from 167 balls.His one Test came in South Africa in early 2013, when New Zealand were at their lowest ebb. In the first of two Tests, Brendon McCullum’s first as captain, they were rolled for 45. In the second, an injury to James Franklin meant that Munro came in as the allrounder at No. 7; he made 0 and 15 in another innings defeat.Munro was short on practice in his only Test match•Associated Press”I was really underdone,” he recalls. “I was asked to stay on after the T20s and was told I was just going to be there as cover. I neglected my batting in the nets because I was just getting ready for the one-day series afterwards, so I didn’t do a lot of red-ball preparation with the bat. I got out first ball in the first innings, got 15 in the second, and then was never even considered again.”Munro continued to score heavily for Auckland in the Plunket Shield and made occasional appearances for New Zealand A, but the door stayed shut. “I honestly thought I deserved a spot,” he says. “And not just because of my average but the weight of runs that I scored. At the time, you’re very disappointed – and a little bit bitter – that you’re not playing Test cricket, because that’s what you wanted to do.”He reconciled himself to the fact that, with McCullum counter-attacking in the middle order, there might not be room for another player in the same mould. “Maybe he didn’t want to go down the route of having two cowboys in the middle,” Munro says. “At that time, he probably thought that two ultra-aggressive players through that middle order is probably not the best way to go. Now, in this day and age, there’s probably space for two or three players that could play that role.”

“It’s like, ‘Oh, will they be able to do it against Starc and Cummins.’ Well, they do it in one-day cricket against these boys – so in Test cricket, why not?”Colin Munro on the upcoming Ashes series

But after McCullum retired in 2016, Munro found himself looking at some of the players New Zealand picked and thinking: “‘How did they get there?’ I felt like I had to ask some tough questions to the management, and they just said that my method – the way that I played first-class cricket – wouldn’t work at Test level.”In early 2018, he decided to pull the plug on his first-class career. “I knew that Test cricket was long gone. There was no point playing ten first-class games a season and putting my body at risk of injury. Everything happens for a reason – my wife tells me that – and since I’ve gone on my white-ball journey, things have worked out pretty well.”Munro has always considered McCullum his mentor, and he has clearly been influenced by him. “He’s helped me mentally, more than anything,” Munro explains. “He would tell me, ‘Don’t ever get caught up in scoring runs and thinking you’re too good, and when you’re not scoring any runs, don’t get too low.’Related

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“In the last three years, I often fall back on those conversations to try and stay grounded. Whether I score a duck or 80 off 40 balls, it doesn’t really matter. If it’s not your day, it doesn’t make you a bad person; and if it is, it doesn’t make you a better person.”At the end of the day, I’m Colin Munro, and I play cricket for a job; it’s just that my job is in the public eye, rather than sitting in an office doing emails. That’s probably the biggest thing that I’ve taken from him, as well as trusting myself to go and play my way. When I play well, there’s only a handful of people that can do what I can.”McCullum would tell Munro to “chase that moment” – much as he has with Zak Crawley since becoming England’s Test coach. “Who is super, super consistent? Probably a handful of players in the whole world,” Munro says. “If you’re not the world’s best player – which I know I’m not – you’re looking to play those impactful innings.”He’s all about giving guys clarity on what they want to do; letting them go out there and be aggressive. So many people think that’s just going out there and slogging from ball one, but there’s a method behind it – absorbing pressure when you need to, when they’re bowling well. And then, once you get a sniff, that’s when you can really pounce.”McCullum and Munro played together in the CPL, as well as for New Zealand•Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / GettyWhen McCullum was cutting his teeth as a coach, Munro played for his Trinbago Knight Riders team in the CPL. “He spoke about picking match-ups, going hard – and then even harder. So if the left-arm spinner comes on to a left-hand batter, take him down. Don’t just get 10 runs in the over; if you can get 18, it accelerates the game.”I don’t know what it is with him: you just have a normal conversation with him – whether it’s about cricket, horse racing, whatever – and he makes you walk away feeling 10 foot tall. He’s got a real way with words that means he can really, really get the best out of people.”During his time at Trent Bridge, Munro has overlapped with a handful of players who have featured during McCullum’s tenure, including Ben Duckett and Olly Stone. “They told me that they feel like they’ve got a new lease of life under him – remembering why they play the game.”It’s a lot of fun. It’s not just about doing enough to stay in the team for the next tour, the next set of contracts or whatever it is. It’s about going out there and just putting on a show for the people watching. Brendon always talks about that: ‘We entertain people, and Test cricket is entertaining.'”Munro gets down to reverse-sweep•Gareth Copley/Getty ImagesMunro arrived in Nottingham a month ago and is staying in Edwalton, a village just to the south of the city, until the end of August. His wife, son and daughter will arrive next week and will be with him until the end of the Hundred, for which he will return to defending champions Trent Rockets.”As a player that travels the world to play cricket, it’s nice to be able to unpack your bags for a little bit of time instead of living out of the suitcase, or from hotel to hotel,” he says. “It’ll be a great experience for my kids, to travel around England a bit.”He intends to take them to an Ashes Test if his schedule allows: “I don’t think there’s much better than watching Test cricket in England. Back home you get 4 or 5,000 people; here, you get full crowds.”And what about the question everyone is asking of McCullum and his team? “It’s going to be a crazy good Ashes,” Munro predicts. “It’s like, ‘Oh, will they be able to do it against Starc and Cummins.’ Well, they do it in one-day cricket against these boys – so in Test cricket, why not?”

The 17-year-old UAE international is set to make her England debut after a stellar summer

S Sudarshanan30-Aug-20232:08

Mahika Gaur talks about her idols, MS Dhoni and Mitchell Starc

Left-arm seamer Mahika Gaur was only 12 when she made her international debut for UAE. Four years on, she is set to become a double-international after being called up for England’s white-ball series at home against Sri Lanka.If you were to create a left-arm seamer in a lab, the ideal ingredients would be a tall frame, lean build, and an ability to move the ball, all of which Gaur, who is over six feet tall, has. In terms of pace, she is not yet Mitchell Starc, one of her idols, but in a short span, she has been able to use her height and discipline to trouble some of the top batters in the game.In Gaur’s first match at this year’s FairBreak Invitational Tournament in Hong Kong, she got a length delivery to lift off the surface and jag back into the hard-hitting Deandra Dottin, who swayed away but could only glove it to the keeper. In her second match in the Women’s Hundred, Gaur kept Oval Invincibles openers Suzie Bates and Lauren Winfield-Hill on a tight leash with her swing while mixing her lengths. She bowled 15 of her 20 balls inside the 25-ball powerplay for only seven runs and got the wicket of Winfield-Hill.Born in Reading in the south of England, Gaur was inspired to take up cricket after watching an IPL match in Jaipur in 2011: Shane Warne had starred in a Rajasthan Royals win over Delhi Daredevils and the atmosphere at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium captivated Gaur so much that she wanted to play as soon as she got back to England.”I was practising bowling in the garden. I think my dad was just surprised that I could roll my arm fully without chucking the ball,” Gaur said on the sidelines of the Fairbreak Invitational in April this year. “He was a left-arm bowler in college but never got to do his cricket thing. But when he saw that I have potential, he’s always been on board.”Three years later, when the family moved to Dubai, Gaur enrolled in the ICC Academy, where she met Chaya Mughal, who later became UAE Women’s captain. “The first time I went into ICC [Academy], she was training indoors and the coach over there, Adnan [Sabri] sir said that I can bowl to her.”I was bowling loopy full tosses and she was defending them. She was the first person I bowled to there and I was star-struck. My dad told me she’s from the UAE national team – that was pretty cool.”In 19 T20Is for UAE, Gaur took nine wickets and conceded 5.15 runs an over•Alex Davidson/ECB/Getty ImagesMughal also remembers her first sightings of a young Gaur, whom she went on to captain in 16 T20Is for UAE. “A young girl, taking a long run-up, high-arm action, left arm – I was surprised to see a full package,” she said. “The first thought that came to my mind was, ‘Wow, she is going to be a fantastic player for the UAE side!'”She was continuously hitting the hard length and wanted the ball to come into me. I was amazed to see such a talent and she was putting in a lot of effort in every ball. She wanted to do something new in every ball she bowled. The spark she had took me aback.”Twelve-year-old Gaur didn’t quite grasp the significance of her international debut, in 2019, and wondered why her parents and older sister were “making such a big deal of it”. She only realised how momentous her debut was when Theertha Satish and Khushi Sharma, two of her best friends in the UAE set-up, got their T20I caps in 2021 at ages 17 and 19 respectively.But the major turning point in her life came in 2020. After a training session with UAE was cancelled, Gaur found herself bowling in a masterclass session with Manchester Originals at the Dubai Expo. Lancashire men’s captain Keaton Jennings and former wicketkeeper Warren Hegg, the cricket operations executive at Lancashire and Originals, were impressed by what they saw.”[Hegg] was just talking to me and found out I have a British passport,” Gaur said. “So I could play in England as a domestic player. They got in touch with my parents and I moved to Manchester in December 2021.”The following June, Gaur took 11 wickets for UAE in the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifiers – the most among fast bowlers and second overall, and her economy rate of 1.36 was the best for any bowler with at least four overs in the tournament. Originals picked her in their squad as a reserve and she made her Hundred debut this August.By then there was already enough indication that England were also interested in the tall seamer. In June this year Gaur was selected to play T20s for England A against Australia A in a shadow tour alongside the Women’s Ashes. She also took 11 white-ball wickets for her domestic side, Thunder, in 13 innings during this period.Gaur says she learnt a lot from her more experienced team-mates, including Nicola Carey, Bismah Maroof and Ayabonga Khaka, during the FairBreak Invitational Tournament earlier this year•Yu Chun Christopher Wong/Getty ImagesWhat has stood out in most of these appearances is her calm and her ability to keep batters in check with the new ball. In May at Old Trafford in a 50-over domestic game for Thunder against Sparks, she prevented a set Davina Perrin and Grace Potts from scoring eight in the final over; the match was tied.Gaur’s calm perhaps comes from wanting to emulate the other “Mahi”, MS Dhoni.”One of the players I looked up to was Dhoni,” she said. “He is the CSK captain, so I am a big CSK fan. We would watch all his finishes. My first ever cricket jersey was a picture of Dhoni and on the back it said ‘Mahi 7’ because he’s Mahi and I am Mahi as well.”I think it’s why I started liking cricket, because he was making the team win from impossible situations. When I was younger, I would also dream of finishing matches like he did.”Her other idol, Starc, sent her a video message on her 16th birthday that “made my day”.”I was just in shock. That was really kind of him, and hopefully in the future, I’ll get to meet and talk to him about bowling.”For now, Gaur is enjoying learning from her more experienced team-mates across the world. At FairBreak, she shared a dressing room with Australia’s Nicola Carey, Pakistan’s Bismah Maroof and South Africa’s Ayabonga Khaka.”I prefer to know about how [the experienced players] approach something,” she said. “We were in trouble chasing a tall total against Tornadoes when Nicola Carey went out to bat. From the dugout we just watched how she took responsibility and made us win comfortably when it looked like we were not going to win.”Similarly, in one of the games, Bismah played a great innings but we lost. I asked her about what she was thinking on that surface that was tough to bat on.”Ayabonga Khaka was telling me about when she goes to her yorkers and when is the right time to bowl a slower ball. When I got hit, she would tell me what I could have done [differently]. Just small stuff like that, not overcomplicating it. They just keep it super simple.”Gaur narrowly missed out being part of the inaugural Women’s Premier League in March in India. Gujarat Giants put in a late bid for her at the auction but they had already exhausted their overseas quota. Had she been picked, she might have played as the fifth overseas player in the XI, since she was from an Associate side. Still, she was happy a team had bid for her.Outside the game, Gaur is continuing with her education – she’s studying biology, maths and psychology – but says juggling school and cricket has been difficult. “As much as I want to study, I don’t want to just always be studying when we’re in a new country [for cricket]. It’s good to go out. I am not too upset that I haven’t been studying that much. It is good in a way because I’m always busy, [either] studying or playing cricket.”Bigger challenges await her as an England international. There will be more competition for a spot in the XI, but also more game time compared to her UAE days, which means more opportunity for the opposition to dissect her skills. However, FairBreak and the Hundred have shown she has the appetite to put up a fight.

Ahead of his milestone 100th ODI, Bairstow acknowledged the “ups and downs” in his journey

Matt Roller09-Oct-2023Jonny Bairstow will win his 100th ODI cap for England when they play Bangladesh in Dharamsala on Tuesday. It is an achievement he said will make him “immensely proud” and a milestone in a journey he acknowledged has not always been easy: “There’s been a few ups and downs, hasn’t there?”It has been a career of two halves in this format. Bairstow found things difficult during his first six years as an ODI cricketer, spending three years out of the side after his first seven appearances and then forcing his way into the squad more regularly, generally as batting cover for the first-choice side.But since his promotion to open the batting in 2017, firstly when Jason Roy lost form in the Champions Trophy and then when Alex Hales was suspended due to his involvement in the infamous Bristol street fight, Bairstow has become one of the world’s best. His strike rate of 107.34 as an ODI opener is unmatched in the format’s history.Related

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In that light, it might come as a surprise that Bairstow has not reached this milestone already. Six members of this England squad have more caps than him in the format, and his debut came back in 2011 when he hit 41 not out off 21 balls to rescue a rain-reduced run chase against India in Cardiff: “I think we’ve just found a player,” Alastair Cook, who was England’s one-day captain at the time, said.Bairstow had been called into the squad the previous day, along with another uncapped 21-year-old batter in Jos Buttler. “It’s a fantastic achievement for Jonny,” Jos Buttler reflected on Monday. “He’s been a huge part of the one-day team for a really long period of time.”The longevity he’s shown to play 100 caps is fantastic. He’s been one of the best openers in world cricket, in 50-over cricket, for a long time. He’s been a great servant for us and he’s got plenty more ahead of him as well. We’re delighted to have him in the team; he’s a fantastic player and his record shows that.”In 2015, Bairstow was widely considered unfortunate not to feature in England’s first squad of their new era in white-ball cricket, as Eoin Morgan and the team’s management looked to blood the group of players who would feature for them in the 2019 World Cup.

“There was a period where he was out of the team and any time he got his opportunity, he scored runs and banged the door down to make sure he’s one of the first names on the team sheet”Jos Buttler on Jonny Bairstow

But he was called into the squad the day before the final ODI and hit 83 not out off 60 balls, the first of several innings over the following two years in which he stated his credentials for more regular inclusion. It presented a dilemma for Morgan, who was determined to introduce the consistency of selection that England had often lacked and enable his regulars to thrive.Morgan is in Dharamsala this week, covering the tournament as a pundit. “Jonny, for a long time, was the example as to how you want a strong cricketing team to play – certainly in my early days as captain,” he said on Monday.”You want people banging down the door, and also asking continuous questions of the players within that XI, simply because it should be a tough place to get into and it makes selection a lot harder. Jonny did that for about a year and a half and would come in sporadically and perform brilliantly.”Buttler added, “As he’s always done, any time he’s been challenged, he comes back very strong. There was a period where he was out of the team and any time he got his opportunity, he scored runs and banged the door down to make sure he’s one of the first names on the team sheet.”Jonny Bairstow impressed on his very first outing in ODIs, in 2011 as a 21-year-old•Associated PressBairstow’s partnership with Roy is undoubtedly England’s greatest in 50-over cricket, and statistically stacks up with the best of all time. While they have played in an era that has favoured attacking opening batters, with flat pitches and two new balls, their legacy was confirmed four years ago when they helped England win their first men’s World Cup in the format.”Him at the top of the order with Jason Roy have just been phenomenal. They complemented each other unbelievably well, scoring in different areas – although being very imposing cricketers,” Morgan said. “To play in the manner that he has for 100 games, completely selflessly, and just get better and better is unbelievable.”There has been a shift heading into this World Cup, with fitness and form contributing to Roy’s omission from England’s final squad and Dawid Malan’s promotion to open the batting. England’s heavy defeat to New Zealand in Ahmedabad was only the third time they have opened together, and Bairstow acknowledged there has been a slight shift in approach.”Naturally, that change does have an impact,” he said. “I’ve played with Dawid for a number of years. There’s a change in the way he plays compared to Jason. That’s not to say it’s a bad thing at all, but naturally, it will take a little bit of time to bed in and to get used to different tempos and styles.”Bairstow has been short of runs since returning to ODI cricket at the end of England’s home summer, with 52 in his last four innings. But there were signs against New Zealand that he is returning to form – not least when he flicked the second ball of the tournament over square leg for six, off Trent Boult.England will hope that Bairstow’s landmark coincides with things clicking for him in Dharamsala on Tuesday. It is a game that they cannot afford to lose after their drubbing on the opening night.

They had wanted to practice on such pitches back home in the lead-up to the World Cup, but their complaints went unheard

Andrew Fidel Fernando15-Oct-20232:42

Maharoof: ‘Hope Mendis the captain remains the same batter’

Between June 4 and September 12 this year (both days inclusive) Sri Lanka played 14 ODIs, and bowled the opposition out in each one. The previous world record for bowling oppositions out in consecutive matches was 10, by the Australia side of the late aughts.If you are unaware of the caveats that attach themselves to this extraordinary wicket-taking run, here they are: Eight of these matches came in the World Cup Qualifier, and hence against a significantly worse quality of opposition than in the World Cup proper. Of the remaining six matches, five came at home. The one that didn’t come at home was against Afghanistan in Lahore, when they needed to chase 292 in a little over 37 overs, and almost succeeded.But for all those caveats, 14 matches is a monster stretch for any attack. Right through that sequence – at the end of which even India were dismissed – Sri Lanka’s bowling had a dynamism to it. There were left and right-arm quicks getting new-ball swing (Dilshan Madushanka, Lahiru Kumara, and Kasun Rajitha), a legbreak bowler with a killer googly in Wanindu Hasaranga (who didn’t play in the Asia Cup, but topped the wicket charts in the Qualifier), a round-arm speed merchant (Matheesha Pathirana), and Maheesh Theekshana’s finger-flicked mystery. If we were being generous, there was even a pale shadow here of the variety that comprised Sri Lanka’s greatest white ball attack, circa 2007 to 2014 (Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Ajantha Mendis, a young Angelo Mathews – Muttiah Muralitharan is incomparable, of course).Related

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In the first two matches of this World Cup, however, Sri Lanka have conceded 773. Pathirana and Rajitha have both gone at more than nine an over, Dunith Wellalage and Madushanka at more than seven, and even Theekshana – in his one match – almost at a run-a-ball. How to explain this?Sri Lanka’s bowling is depleted severely by injury, of course – Hasaranga, in particular, has not made this squad. But he had not played in the Asia Cup either, and Sri Lanka had reached the final, largely bowling themselves there. Left-arm spinning allrounder Wellalage made his first mark on the international game with the ball, and Pathirana had a decent tournament.But that the attack impressed only on slower, turning decks than are often found in India has not been missed within the Sri Lanka camp. Long before this tournament, there had been complaints that the pitches seen in Colombo in particular were not flat enough – a complaint voiced most prominently by Hasaranga himself at the Lanka Premier League, as captain of the franchise side that would eventually win the tournament, and as a player preparing himself tenaciously for the World Cup.Dilshan Madushanka has been the leading wicket-taker for Sri Lanka thus far this World Cup•ICC via Getty ImagesWhile Sri Lankan decks are not low-scoring exactly, they are rarely the kind on which teams tend to chase down totals of over 300. There is often something to envenom the bowlers. If it is not swing with the new ball, there is zip off the surface under lights, or rapid turn as the match wears on, and failing all that the ball stops a fraction of a second in the surface.Perhaps, the difference between bowling teams out 14 times in a row, and conceding 428 for 5, then 345 for 4, is down to the pitches Sri Lanka’s attack plays on. This is at least the current line of thinking. Kusal Mendis said this before his first match as captain, following the injury to Dasun Shanaka.”If we talk about the first two matches, when you come to India you know you’re going to get good batting wickets,” he said. “We should know how to adjust to that. I have a lot of trust that the bowlers are looking to give their best, and even better attacks have been hot for 300 or 350.”As a captain what I’m hoping is that in practice they know what their roles are, and that I can adjust to that as well. We can’t make big changes suddenly. But I have to try and work with the way they’ve been bowling and try to improve on that.”There is a sense that Sri Lanka’s attack hunts collectively on a pitch that offers the bowlers something, but on the kinds of decks that require damage control and containment, they have not developed the skills or experience.Lucknow is something of an unknown. It used to be one of India’s lowest-scoring venues, which would have suited Sri Lanka beautifully. But following this year’s IPL, when it was again low-scoring, the square has been relaid.In the one ODI that has been played on the new square, South Africa made 311 for 7, taking the legspin of Adam Zampa apart in particular, before South Africa’s seamers dismantled the Australia top order, though the likes of Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi also had success.The theory is, that the longer this World Cup goes on, the older some squares will get, and the better for spinners in particular. It is not quite as simple as suggesting Sri Lanka are better off on turning tracks, because some of their quicks enjoy the humidity that allows them to move the ball laterally, too. But in the first two matches, neither has been on offer. And the attack has been taken apart.

The team lived down to expectations and now face the usual cycle of politicking and recriminations

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Nov-20232:35

Maharoof: Sri Lanka’s batting has been a massive letdown

At no point in their final league match, against New Zealand in Bengaluru, did Sri Lanka seem like they could win it. At no point across this World Cup campaign have they seemed like serious contenders.It used to be true of Sri Lanka that they would frequently be under-rated ahead of major tournaments. In the years in which Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara formed the core of one of smartest attacks in white-ball cricket, theirs was the team that carved joyous arcs through the competition – Kumar Sangakkara its run-scoring engine room, TM Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene the batters who provided the high notes, Angelo Mathews a force in the lower-middle order.Related

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So much has passed in Sri Lanka cricket since then that those days feel like they were several lifetimes ago. In any case, this team arrived in India with expectations already low; the shellacking they had received at India’s hands in the Asia Cup final having sent what hopes there had been into a nosedive. And yet, they have still found ways to underwhelm, losing to teams they have never lost to in World Cups before, crashing to seven defeats in nine games.Unlike say for England, the reasons for whose unraveling takes a little investigation, Sri Lanka’s woes are more obvious. In no particular order:

• The top order has been fragile, with only two batters averaging more than 35.
• They have struggled to get middle-overs wickets, averaging 51.65 between the 11th and 40th overs, while conceding 6.19 runs per over; Maheesh Theekshana’s lack of penetration playing a serious part.
• They have been thin on death-overs firepower (a long-standing problem made more acute by the absence of Wanindu Hasaranga).
• They have dropped more catches than almost any other team this tournament, their completed catch percentage down at 70.21% – the worst for any team.
• They have had a rough time of injuries (but then when does a Sri Lanka team not?)

As the men’s team slid to another deflating defeat, the news cycle at home was aflame with every kind of opinion, voiced chiefly by politicians. There were suggestions of pro-India conspiracies, opinions about how this team was being led, players that should be scoring more runs or taking wickets, selectors accused of favouritism.While a parliamentary session abounded with loud and emphatic evidence that Sri Lankan politicians know very little about cricket, there was also a reminder that this does not stop them from intruding on the sport. On Monday the sports minister sacked the entire cricket board and installed an interim committee led by Arjuna Ranatunga, yes, but which also contained two sons of politicians, with no known cricket or administrative experience. One day later, this committee was struck down by the courts, and the old board reinstated.For these kinds of people, Sri Lanka’s on-field losses serve only as opportunities to gain political capital. The same crowd has been jockeying for position for decades, board members forever in the laps of politicians, politicians making hugely publicised “interventions” when they feel the national mood will tolerate it.New ideas? A taking stock of global standards and a sober restructuring of domestic cricket to bridge skills gaps? A long-term strategy to spread the game more meaningfully in a country in which you basically have to live in Colombo to play senior cricket? These are topics frequently ignored in favour of self-serving speeches and comments.A tenth-wicket stand of 43 was Sri Lanka’s best of the innings against New Zealand•Associated PressSome have long said that we are witnessing the slow death of a once-great cricketing nation. The men’s team has not, after all, made a single ICC tournament semi-final since 2014, up to which point they had been a dynamic and steadfast presence in the knockouts.But to begin printing eulogies is also glib, because Sri Lankan cricket is not without signs of periodic regeneration. In this tournament, Dilshan Madushanka has broken out, as has Sadeera Samarawickrama and, to some extent, Pathum Nissanka. Between these three, plus the likes of Kusal Mendis, Hasaranga, Theekshana and Dunith Wellalage, Sri Lanka have the core of a team that could play one more ODI World Cup cycle, maybe two.More broadly, the women’s team has had its best year ever in 2023. An aging Chamari Athapaththu still carries them, but team-mates have begun to support her more readily.But we are in an era in which Sri Lanka fans have begun to subsist on the meagrest positives. A magic ball there, a spectacular innings here, a furious chase two months later. A couple of young players coming through, even though the team is failing. It’s not just the men’s team that is failing to match the excellence it once embodied; everyone’s standards have fallen.What it is that Sri Lankan cricket needs has been detailed on these pages on many occasions, the first and most important of which is a complete restructuring of domestic cricket, and far greater investment into the domestic game.What Sri Lanka is getting instead is a parliament that has lost the faith of its public (as polls have said outright and last year’s mass protests strongly suggested) quarreling over the running of SLC, which is an institution that inspires even less faith. Who will emerge in charge of SLC over the next few weeks remains to be seen. Right now, it is all a whirl.But the country’s cricket has been through enough cycles of this now, and it is difficult to be hopeful about meaningful change. The men’s team has just wrapped up its worst World Cup campaign of Sri Lanka’s professional era. But then they were never expected to make the semis anyway.

An XI packed with experience, youth, a long batting line-up and world-class allrounders

Mohammad Isam02-Mar-20241 Tamim Iqbal (capt)Tamim rose to the top of this season’s runs chart with his consistent showing for Barishal. Having made three fifties in the tournament – 71 against Durdanto Dhaka, 66 against Comilla and 52 not out against Chattogram Challengers – he struck a quick 39 in the final to lead Barishal to their maiden title. This was the fourth time he finished with 400-plus runs in a BPL season.2 Tanzid HasanTanzid scored only one fifty in his first nine games in the tournament. There was also a two-ball duck in that stretch. It seemed like the opener, who is regarded highly by everyone important in Bangladesh cricket, wasn’t living up to his billing. Then came the game against Dhaka in which Tanzid made 70 off 51 balls. In the next game, he struck his maiden T20 hundred: 116 off 65. It was instrumental in taking Chattogram to the knockouts.3 Towhid HridoyHridoy finished the campaign as the second-highest run-getter, but more importantly, he looked like the most improved batter in the season. Hridoy set the tournament alight when he blasted an unbeaten 108 off 57 balls against Dhaka. Two games later, he scored an unbeaten 91 off 47 against Khulna Tigers and then 64 in the first qualifier against Rangpur Riders. He was the third-highest scorer in the 2023 edition as well. The only improvement he would want next season is to become the BPL champion; he has now lost three finals in a row.Babar Azam made important runs for Rangpur Riders•Raton Gomes/BCB4 Babar AzamBabar was available for only six games for Rangpur but they won five of those. Babar made only 2 in the only one they didn’t win. He started the season with an unbeaten 56. Two games later, he scored 62 against Dhaka, and finished the tournament with a pair of 47s. He didn’t hit a lot of sixes, but made important runs at a fair clip.5 James NeeshamOnce Babar left, Neesham filled that hole in Rangpur’s batting line-up perfectly. Just like Babar, he also scored a fifty in his first game. He hammered two more unbeaten fifties, including the 97 against Comilla in the first qualifier. With a strike rate of 167.24, Neesham was the tournament’s most destructive batter.6 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk)Mushfiqur was the best wicketkeeper-batter of BPL 2024, his experience outshining Litton Das and Nurul Hasan as he helped Barishal to their maiden title. A feisty cricketer, Mushfiqur guided his side through a tricky period in the second qualifier, apart from scoring three fifties overall. His keeping was top class too. He pouched everything that came his way and made important saves in the playoffs.James Neesham scored his runs at a strike rate of 167.24•Rangpur Riders7 Kyle MayersA late entrant to the BPL, Mayers made an instant impact for Barishal. He started with 48 and 3 for 12 against Sylhet Strikers, and then registered 46 and 2 for 31 against Rangpur in the next match. He made a half-century against Chattogram and a brilliant 46 in the final against Comilla to be named the Player of the Match. Mayers’ strokemaking, particularly the checked drives, enthralled the audience. He also bowled beautifully with the new ball, often finding swing when others couldn’t.8 Shakib Al HasanAlthough Shakib’s campaign ended in a whimper in the second qualifier against Barishal where he made just one run and bowled only nine deliveries, he was on fire in the rest of the tournament prior to that. Despite an eye condition affecting his batting in the first few matches, he smacked 255 runs at a strike rate of 158.38. With the ball, he took 17 wickets.9 Mohammad SaifuddinThere were lots of doubt about his fitness, but Saifuddin had a superb campaign. He took 15 wickets in nine appearances, often bowling splendidly with the new ball and providing early breakthroughs. He did not pick up a lot of wickets at the death but ensured Barishal didn’t have to think about anyone else when he was around. In the final, despite bowling three wides and a no-ball in the 20th over, he conceded only seven against Andre Russell and Jaker Ali.Shoriful Islam picked up lots of wickets but Durdanto Dhaka won just one of their 12 games•Durdanto Dhaka10 Bilal KhanOman’s left-arm quick Bilal was effective with his angles and variations and finished his first BPL campaign as the joint-fourth-highest wicket-taker. He was instrumental in Chattogram’s good start and later a superb finish against Khulna. In that game, Bilal had figures of 2 for 13 from his four overs. He took 3 for 24 against Sylhet, his best figures in the tournament.11 Shoriful IslamShoriful, comfortably the highest wicket-taker in the tournament, was one of the few bright spots for Dhaka, who had an abysmal campaign, losing 11 of their 12 matches. Shoriful started the tournament with 3 for 27 against Comilla, and his best was 4 for 24 against Sylhet. He went wicketless in just two games.

He has 18 wickets at the World Cup already, is juggling cricket, hockey and higher education, and everything suggests he is a star in the making

Firdose Moonda05-Feb-2024Kwena Maphaka was 15 years old when he played his first Under-19 international, just six when he played for his school’s Under-9 team, and three when he first picked up a cricket ball and realised he might know what to do with it.”I’ve been told I started playing because my brother needed someone to play backyard cricket with,” he told ESPNcricinfo from Johannesburg, as South Africa prepare to play India in the U-19 World Cup semi-final in Benoni on Tuesday. “The first memory that I have is from about four years old, and it was of typical garden cricket with an older brother. He would get me out early and then I’d bowl at him the whole day and he’d hit me out of the garden. Well, I wouldn’t call it bowling. I was just throwing the ball at him.”Whatever it was, it worked.Related

• Not yet 19, Maphaka has a chance to 'be the man for the team'

• South Africa call up Under-19 World Cup star Maphaka for West Indies T20Is

• Mumbai replace injured Madushanka with South Africa teenager Maphaka

• Under-19 World Cup 2024: Musheer, Weibgen, Maphaka in ESPNcricinfo's Team of the Tournament

• Under-19 World Cup: Six things about India as they chase their sixth title

A little more than a decade after being made to chase leather by his brother, Maphaka is hunting down records instead. Already, he has more wickets than any South African at U-19 World Cups – 25 over two editions – and the joint-most by a South African in a single edition of the tournament: 18. He is five away from the most wickets by any bowler at an U-19 World Cup – Bangladesh’s Enamul Haque had 22 in 2004 – and the way he has been going so far suggests that he could get there. Maphaka’s haul from five matches includes three five-fors, the most by any player at U-19 World Cups, but the wickets aren’t the only clues that he is a future star.Maphaka is quick – “the guys in the team say around 140” – and gets late inswing, and has a hostile bouncer and an accurate yorker. Most importantly, he also has the learnings and experience after playing in 17 youth ODIs across three years – the most by a South African in that time period – including two World Cups.In the 2022 World Cup, Maphaka (15 at the time) played three of South Africa’s six matches and took seven wickets at an average of 18.28 with an economy rate of 5.56. This year, he has led the attack in all five of South Africa’s games. His 18 wickets have come at an average of 9.55 and his economy rate is 3.95, which speaks to the biggest improvement he believes he has made between tournaments: “I’ve got quicker but the main thing I’ve worked on is to have control with pace. If you are just fast, you are going to get hit everywhere, but if you’ve got control, there’s something special.”

“I’ve always wanted to make as high a team as I can in every sport I play. If everything goes well with cricket, this will probably be my last year of hockey so I just want to make it as memorable as possible”Kwena Maphaka

In West Indies at the last World Cup, Maphaka benefitted from being coached by veteran domestic (and now national men’s Test) coach Shukri Conrad and experienced professional Rory Kleinveldt. They told him to “continue working on my stock ball and try to get a little more variation into my game and also to work on my batting quite a bit”.He took that advice back with him St Stithians, an elite Johannesburg institution where he is currently in his final year of high school and where he competes in multiple disciplines. Maphaka has dabbled in gymnastics and athletics and done a 100-metre sprint “in 11 seconds flat” and still plays tennis and hockey, the latter at provincial level. “A big aspiration of mine is to make the Southern Gauteng Under-18 A team this year,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to make as high a team as I can in every sport I play. If everything goes well with cricket, this will probably be my last year of hockey so I just want to make it as memorable as possible.”You may also have heard of St Stithians because it is the alma mater of one of the country’s finest cricketers of all-time: Kagiso Rabada, who has become a “mentor” to Maphaka and “sent me a good-luck message before the World Cup”. Maphaka will know it only took Rabada eight months to make his senior international debut after he won the U-19 World Cup with South Africa in March 2014.”I just try to take it one day at a time,” Maphaka said. “My main focus is the Under-19 World Cup. I try to focus on things that are happening now rather than focus on things that may or may not happen later.”Kagiso Rabada made his international debut not long after being a star in South Africa’s 2014 U-19 World Cup win•ICCBut things have already happened. Maphaka has an SA20 deal with Paarl Royals – though he could not play this season because of the World Cup – and has played for the South Africa A side and has started to play some domestic cricket at the Lions. He hopes that next year, with schooling over, he will be contracted, but has also left space for further study. “I am really into sports management and psychology. I would either go into sports management and clinical psychology and sports psychology,” he said. “But cricket is a sport of discipline and patience and that’s something that I really like about it. My dream would be to represent South Africa in all three formats.”That’s for the future. For now, Maphaka is laser-focused on the World Cup. After bowling South Africa to victories over West Indies and Sri Lanka – the former in a game where West Indies were 190 for 5 chasing 286 and he had to dismiss the tail – he is looking to the India game and the good vibes his team has created. “I always like a challenge. Going up against the best is the best way to prove yourself. It’s a great way to test yourself and India are definitely one of the best teams,” he said. “And we expect the Benoni crowd is probably going to be the biggest. It’s going to be special to see how much people care about this team.”Among them will be Maphaka’s parents, who have been to every game so far, and his older brother Tetelo, a left-arm spinner who is also on the fringes of provincial selection. And this time, Maphaka won’t have to bowl all day to him.

Chaos reigns on and off the field as tournament’s newest head coach faces steep learning curve

Matt Roller26-Jul-2024Andrew Flintoff was poker-faced in the dugout at Headingley as his Northern Superchargers side fell to a heavy defeat in their opening match of the Hundred. The 47-run margin flattered them: they lost 7 for 30 in 29 balls in their chase, and Trent Rockets were so dominant that they did not even see the need to drag Flintoff back onto the outfield by taking a strategic timeout.It took a 57-run eighth-wicket partnership between Ben Dwarshuis and Matthew Potts to give the scorecard a facade of respectability and avoid the ignominy of the heaviest defeat in the Hundred’s brief history. By the time Dwarshuis slapped the final ball to mid-off, much of the 12,857-strong crowd had filtered out of the stands and back towards Leeds city centre.This was an unexpectedly low-key first match as head coach for Flintoff, covered in person by only one national newspaper and bumped off Sky Sports’ Main Event channel, midway through the first innings, by Wigan Warriors against Warrington Wolves. He continued to keep a low profile and is yet to speak publicly since his appointment nine months ago – although he did sign every autograph requested by the hundreds of children who hung around for him.Related

• That was the Hundred that was, as tough season finds an adequate climax

• Flintoff on Hundred fast track but return raises awkward questions

• Flintoff 'even more excited than the players' ahead of coaching debut

• David Willey sets tone as Welsh Fire roar past Manchester Originals

• Jonny Bairstow admits long winter 'took its toll' but hasn't given up on England

“He just wants to bring a bit of fun and joy,” Matt Short, Superchargers’ stand-in captain, said. “There was a bit of chaos in the last couple of days, but he said, ‘we’re here now: just go out there, enjoy yourself, back yourself and play with that positivity – and be fearless.’ It’s definitely a thing we want to stick to in this tournament: being fearless and taking the game on.”The “chaos” came in the form of an availability crisis which meant the Superchargers were always up against it. Jason Roy (shoulder) and Reece Topley (finger) were injured, Mitchell Santner was at Major League Cricket, Harry Brook and Ben Stokes were with England at Edgbaston. So too, less expectedly, was Dillon Pennington, who was retained in the Test squad as cover (in case of a concussion) after West Indies won the toss in the third Test and bowled first.Pennington’s absence meant a last-minute scramble for a short-term replacement, with Michael Jones being called up on the morning of the game while training with Durham. As Jones headed down the A1(M) to Leeds, Potts found himself stuck in traffic on the M1 on his way up from Birmingham.Nicholas Pooran’s arrival was even more chaotic. Barely 24 hours after his side, MI New York, were knocked out of Major League Cricket, he arrived at the Superchargers’ hotel after spending the night on a transatlantic flight. Pooran told Short, their stand-in captain, over breakfast that his luggage and kitbag were still in transit, prompting yet more chaos.He found some bats thanks to Manchester Originals’ Phil Salt, who uses the same sponsor and has the same specifications, which were then chauffeured across the Pennines in an Uber. His subsequent innings – 10 off 15 balls, caught at mid-off trying to hit Chris Green over his head for six – cannot have been what Flintoff had in mind in March, when he made Pooran his first draft pick on a £125,000 contract.The teams are into their fourth seasons but for some, the connection to the region they represent feels increasingly tenuous, in spite of the ECB’s stated aim to ramp up the “tribalism” of the tournament. The Superchargers fielded a single Yorkshire player, Adil Rashid, while Adam Lyth — who has scored more T20 runs at Headingley than anyone else — was booed as he walked past the Western Terrace in his Rockets gear.Tom Banton, a Superchargers player until this season, gave Rockets a flying start•PA Photos/Getty ImagesThe Hundred has been sold as ‘best vs best’ but the first four men’s games this year have been a mess, all deeply one-sided. The overlap with MLC – and a Test match – have meant a series of last-minute replacements, often on one-match deals: good luck explaining to a young Rockets fan enthused by Green’s performance on debut that he will not be there next week.It is hardly Flintoff’s fault that so many players were otherwise engaged, not least after their wooden-spoon 2023 season which necessitated a rebuild. Even still, it must have been galling to watch Tom Banton, one of the players the Superchargers released, top-scoring for the Rockets and looking back to his flamboyant best during his 38-ball 66.This was a tough night for Short as captain too, as he struggled for bowling options after Jordan Clark’s first five balls went for 21. He resorted to bringing himself on, but by that stage the Rockets had two right-handers set in Banton and Sam Hain: his set of fast, flat offbreaks cost 19. With the bat, their collapse to spin was galling: 41 for 0 off 24 balls turned into 71 for 7 off 63.Short suggested that Flintoff is unlikely to overreact to a poor start. “It’s certainly not crisis meetings at this stage,” he said. “He wants to bring a fun environment… if guys are having fun and feel like they’re enjoying themselves, that’s when we play our best cricket. It’s his first gig as a head coach, and he’s keen to help the boys where he can and have a bit of fun.”But it only took a glance at Flintoff’s opposite number to reinforce the fact that this is a huge step-up for a man with minimal coaching experience. As Flintoff strode out at the strategic timeout in the first innings, Andy Flower – perhaps the most sought-after coach on the franchise circuit – headed out to the middle to speak to the Rockets’ batters.Flower was Flintoff’s coach during his final England appearance back in 2009, and is among a stellar list of names involved in the men’s Hundred: Stephen Fleming, Tom Moody and Mike Hussey among them. Everyone has to start somewhere, but this defeat was a reminder of the scale of the task facing Flintoff over the next four weeks.

Batter has uncanny ability to read situation and respond with requisite power and placement

Sidharth Monga20-Jun-20241:18

Manjrekar: SKY showed his value on a tricky pitch

India may have won comfortably in the end, but the first half of the first innings didn’t look so comfortable. Despite Rishabh Pant’s breezy cameo, the first seven overs brought India just 54 runs. Then Suryakumar Yadav happened.These weren’t conditions for touch players to be able to go at T20 pace. Because the pitch was slow, it became easier to set fields: without pace on the ball batters can’t access the whole field. Two kinds of batters succeeded: those who have the ability to put the ball into unconventional areas and those who had the power to clear the shorter straight boundaries.Surya can do both. Surya did both. Often both are connected. Before Suryakumar, too, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli tried the sweep, but they kept playing it to the deep fielders even though there could only be two men back. Suryakumar’s wide array of sweeps meant he deliberately missed the fielders with his version. Anyway, bowlers are wary of his sweep, plus when he manages to get success, he can draw a ball too full, which is the natural response to a sweep.Most noticeably Suryakumar did that to the pace bowler Azmatullah Omarzai. He swept a ball from wide outside off, turned the rest of the over into overpitched deliveries, and then went down the ground. Surya scored only 14 behind the wicket in this innings, which is an unusually low percentage for him. The slowness of the pitch required him to his use his muscle more, and so he did.Suryakumar Yadav went attacking all around the ground•ICC/Getty ImagesThe same probably happened with Rashid Khan, whom Suryakumar said he doesn’t pick out of the hand. And yet he knows which shots are on, and plays them regardless. He came into this match having scored 86 runs off 58 Rashid deliveries without getting out to him. He only improved the record with 16 off six in this game. Rashid, too, was guilty of going too full, which didn’t quite succeed in hampering the sweep.Suryakumar read the conditions superbly, telling Hardik Pandya they needed to do the bulk of their scoring before the ball went old. That this innings came on the back of his 49-ball fifty against the USA, which was again precisely the innings that the situation required, makes it remarkable. The intent here also meant Rashid bowled himself out as early as the 14th over. Pandya took most of that final over, but Rashid did come close to getting a fourth wicket.Related

Suryakumar: 'Rashid is the best in the world, you have to be a step ahead of him'

In the pantheon of the typical Suryakumar masterclasses, this one might not end up being much more than a footnote. That in itself is a tribute to the T20 genius he is, a perfect marriage of skill and intent. What looked like a struggle for Rohit and Kohli suddenly began to look like good batting conditions. Not only did the run-rate jump from 7.71 before his arrival to 9.6 while he was at the wicket, he also scored 53 of the 96 runs that came while he was at the wicket despite playing fewer than half the balls. Except for Pant, who can hit balls finer than most batters, thus scoring behind the wicket, nobody came even close to Suryakumar’s strike-rate in tough conditions.Watching Suryakumar bat in this fashion right after Rohit and Kohli, you wonder if it is just a question of intent. That pair’s intent has improved but they just don’t have the vast scoring options that Suryakumar has. As with other Indian batters, left-arm spin does remain an unfavourable match-up for Suryakumar, a variety of bowler Afghanistan didn’t have. And that is a small weakness that you are allowed to have when you are so good.

Get to know the 2024 World Cup teams: Canada, Namibia, Netherlands, Oman and Scotland

26-May-2024

Canada

by Hemant Brar
Canada booked their ticket to the 2024 T20 World Cup by topping the Americas Region Qualifier, a tournament that had Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Panama as the other teams.In a winner-takes-all game, they beat hosts Bermuda by 39 runs and qualified for the World Cup on the basis of a superior net run rate. That was in October 2023, though, and their recent form has not been great. Last month, they visited the USA for a five-match T20I series and were beaten 4-0.This will be Canada’s first appearance at a T20 World Cup. Spin-bowling allrounder Saad Bin Zafar will lead the 15-member squad, which has only three players under the age of 30.Canada are in Group A and will face USA in the tournament opener in Dallas on June 1. India, Pakistan and Ireland are the other teams in their group.Key players
Saad Bin Zafar a left-arm spinner and a left-hand batter, has been playing for Canada since 2008. One of the big games of his career was the final of the 2018 Global T20 Canada, where he took 2 for 26 and scored an unbeaten 79 off 48 balls to be the Player of the Match. Following that, he was called up by St Kitts & Nevis Patriots as a replacement player for the CPL 2018 playoffs. In 2021, he registered figures of 4-4-0-2 against Panama in a T20I.Aaron Johnson, originally from Jamaica, is a powerful opening batter who loves playing no-look shots. The 33-year-old made his T20I debut for Canada in 2022. In 16 games so far, he has two hundreds, five half-centuries, an average of 50.92 and a strike rate of 166.58.Kaleem Sana, a left-arm seamer, can swing the new ball and bowl yorkers at the death. He started his cricket in Pakistan, and even dismissed Babar Azam in his last first-class match, in 2014. In that do-or-die game against Bermuda, he was the Player of the Match for his figures of 3 for 4.Canada in major tournaments
While this is the first time Canada are playing in a T20 World Cup, they have participated in the ODI version four times, in 1979, 2003, 2007 and 2011. Across 18 games there, they registered two wins: against Bangladesh in 2003 and against Kenya in 2011.Form guide*
LLLLWSquad
Saad Bin Zafar (capt), Aaron Johnson, Dilon Heyliger, Dilpreet Bajwa, Jeremy Gordon, Junaid Siddiqui, Kaleem Sana, Navneet Dhaliwal, Nicholas Kirton, Nikhil Dutta, Pargat Singh, Ravinderpal Singh, Rayyan Pathan, Rishiv Joshi, Shreyas Movva (wk).Namibia won three of their eight matches at the 2021 T20 World Cup, even progressing to the Super 12s•ICC via Getty

Namibia

by Firdose Moonda
A former German colony and South African protectorate, Namibia has a small but storied history in the game. There is evidence of cricket being played in the desert nation Namibia from the early 1900s, and with greater regularity from the First World War. Organised fixtures have taken place since the 1930s and Namibia’s involvement with the South African County Cricket Association from the 1960s ensured there was a fairly strong level of competition and development. Namibia became a member of the ICC in 1992, achieved ODI status in 2018 and have been rising on the T20 circuit in the last four years. After appearing at both the 2021 and 2022 T20 World Cups, Namibia secured their spots for 2024 by winning the Africa regional Qualifier in November last year, where they were unbeaten over six matches. They were the dominant team of that tournament and registered a seven-wicket win over the only Full Member participant – Zimbabwe – and a six-wicket victory over fellow qualifiers Uganda.Key players

Captain Gerhard Erasmus is Namibia’s highest T20I run-scorer, the only batter from the country with more than 1000 runs to his name, and showed his commitment to the national cause when he played the 2021 tournament with a broken finger that necessitated an adjustment to his grip. He finished as Namibia’s second-highest run-scorer and his unbeaten 53 helped them beat Ireland and advance to the Super 12s.While left-arm spinner Bernard Scholtz is Namibia’s most successful T20I bowler, they boast a quartet of left-arm seamers for this event – the most among participating teams. Ruben Trumpelmann will lead their attack, supported by Tangeni Lungameni and allrounders Jan Frylinck and JJ Smit provide two other options which gives Namibia one of the most varied and balanced attacks at the tournament.Namibia in major tournaments

Namibia made their World Cup bow at the 2003 tournament – the last 50-over event to be hosted in Africa – and lost all their six matches. They have an opportunity to improve on that record at the next ODI World Cup, which they are co-hosting, but have to qualify for it first. They have a more recent and positive history at the T20 World Cup and made history when they advanced out of the first round to the Super 12s in the 2021 tournament, where they also beat a Full Member – Ireland – for the first time. They were unable to repeat the feat at the 2022 tournament, despite victory over Sri Lanka, and exited after the first round.Form guide*
WWLLWSquad
Gerhard Erasmus (capt), Zane Green, Michael Van Lingen, Dylan Leicher, Ruben Trumpelmann, Jack Brassell, Ben Shikongo, Tangeni Lungameni, Nikolaas Davin, JJ Smit, Jan Frylinck, JP Kotze, David Wiese, Bernard Scholtz, Malan Kruger, Peter-Daniel BlignautHaving now beaten South Africa in two consecutive World Cups, Netherlands will hope to do it again this year•ICC via Getty Images

Netherlands

by Firdose Moonda
The standout Associates of the last two years, Netherlands were the only non Full-Members (other than the co-host USA) to automatically qualify for this event after they finished in the top eight at the 2022 tournament. Since then, they were also the only Associate to play at the 2023 ODI World Cup, ahead of West Indies, Zimbabwe and Ireland, and proved themselves worthy of the biggest stage.They have been South Africa’s banana skins twice, after beating them at the T20 World Cup in 2022 to send them out of the tournament, and then again at the ODI World Cup in 2023, albeit with less dramatic consequences. That they are grouped with them again will only whet the appetites of supporters of the underdog, not least because the Dutch are coached by a South African – Ryan Cook – and have three South African players in their squad. Veteran allrounder Roelof van der Merwe and batter Colin Ackermann are not among them though, as the pair opted out of the tournament to fulfil county commitments. In a nutshell, that’s the story of Dutch cricket as it battles to find the sweet spot between competing with as full-strength a side as they can put together and ensuring their players can make a long-term living from the game.Key players
With shoulder-length locks and a side hustle as a DJ, Max O’Dowd is the rockstar of the Dutch team in stereotype and reality. He is their leading T20I run-scorer and closing in on 2000 runs in the format but will want to improve on a strike rate that sits just above 120 to compete with global greats.The mantra of 22 twos in a 50-over game was introduced by captain Scott Edwards, who is one of the quickest runners between the wickets and heavily reliant on his sweep shot. He is a busy cricketer and ambitious leader, who will be key to their hopes of competing in the Caribbean.Netherlands in major tournaments
Netherlands have played in five T20 World Cups since 2009 when they upset England at Lord’s. Only once, in the 2021 tournament, have they failed to win a match. They’ve also participated in five ODI World Cups – 1996, 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2023 – but have only won four out of 29 ODI World Cup matches.Form guide*
LLLWWSquad
Aryan Dutt, Bas de Leede, Kyle Klein, Logan van Beek, Max O’Dowd, Michael Levitt, Paul van Meekeren, Scott Edwards (capt/wk), Saqib Zulfiqar, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Teja Nidamanuru, Tim Pringle, Vikramjit Singh, Vivian Kingma, Wesley BarresiAqib Ilyas, who has captained Oman in seven T20Is, will lead the side in the 2024 T20 World Cup•ICC/Getty Images

Oman

by Himanshu Agrawal
The 2024 T20 World Cup will be Oman’s third appearance in the tournament, and they qualified for it by winning all five games in the 2023 Asia Qualifer, including beating hosts Nepal in a Super Over in the final. In April this year, they reached the final of the ACC Premier Cup under the leadership of 36-year-old Zeeshan Maqsood, but the selectors preferred top-order batter Aqib Ilyas as captain for the World Cup.Oman played their first official T20I in 2015 and won their second game in the format when they beat Hong Kong later that year, going on to win the series 2-1.Key players
Zeeshan Maqsood is Oman’s highest run-getter and the only one with a T20I century. He also bowls left-arm spin. Maqsood has played in two T20 World Cups.Batter Aqib Ilyas also bowls offspin and legspin, and was the leading wicket-taker in the ACC Premier Cup.Seamer Bilal Khan, 37, is Oman’s top wicket-taker in T20Is, with 106 wickets at an economy of 6.68. Known for his yorkers, he took five wickets in three matches in the 2021 World Cup and conceded only 4.45 runs an over.Oman in major tournaments
Oman played in the first round of the 2016 and the 2021 T20 World Cups, and co-hosted the latter with the UAE. In 2016 they beat Ireland and in 2021 they hammered Papua New Guinea by ten wickets, but both times they couldn’t make it to the Super 12s.Form guide*
LLWWLSquad
Aqib Ilyas (capt), Zeeshan Maqsood, Kashyap Prajapati, Pratik Athavale, Ayaan Khan, Khalid Kail, Shoaib Khan, Mohammad Nadeem, Naseem Khushi, Mehran Khan, Bilal Khan, Rafiullah, Kaleemullah, Fayyaz Butt, Shakeel AhmadSome of the Caribbean pitches are likely to suit Brad Wheal’s style of bowling•ICC/Getty Images

Scotland

by Vithushan Ehantharajah
Scotland were flawless in the Europe Region Qualifier for the 2024 T20 World Cup winning six from six to finish top of the table. A squad with a number of familiar faces who have plenty of experience in Caribbean conditions carries a fresh, ambitious feel. The presence of fast bowler Brad Wheal (Hampshire) and keeper-batter Michael Jones (Durham) adds some extra heft to the squad. But that is offset by the loss of experienced seamer Josh Davey, who was unavailable for selection.Key players
Brad Wheal has the kind of skiddiness off the surface that should suit surfaces in the Caribbean.George Munsey has contributed to some of Scotland’s most high-profile wins in the current era, including an unbeaten 66 in the victory over West Indies in the 2022 World Cup. No Scot has more T20I runs since Munsey’s debut in June 2015.Batting allrounder Brandon McMullen has played six of his nine T20I innings at No. 3 and strikes at 147.82 from the position. He also bowls right-arm nibblers, taking 5 for 34 against Ireland in 2023’s ODI World Cup Qualifier.Scotland in major tournaments
This will be Scotland’s ninth appearance at a major ICC event and their fourth in a row on the global T20 stage. Their first win at a tournament outright came in their defeat of Hong Kong in 2016. In 2021 they progressed to the main round but they failed to repeat it in 2022.Form guide*
LWLWLSquad
Richie Berrington (capt), Matthew Cross, Brad Currie, Chris Greaves, Oli Carter, Jack Jarvis, Michael Jones, Michael Leask, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole, Charlie Tear, Mark Watt, Brad Wheal*In their last five games against teams featuring in the 2024 World CupAlso read the team previews of Nepal, PNG, Uganda and USA