Jun 24 2009
Twenty20 Squads Gearing for Glory
On the heels of the IPL comes another Twenty20 extravaganza and the latest pride from the stables of the ICC. The race horse galloped its way to success and into people’s hearts in the first edition when it was held in South Africa in 2007. Now the second edition of the ICC World Twenty20 championships in England is once again set to bring the best of the cricket world together in a fierce contest for ultimate prize and glory.
India – Pressure to perform
Come June, all eyes will undoubtedly rest on the Indian cricket team and with good reason. Rising from the ranks of the unknown, the young Indian team led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni stunned more established teams on their road to being crowned champions. Brimming with self-confidence, the fighting fit unit roared loudly with their strongest asset as the tournament progressed. Now they enter the arena not as novices but as defending champions, a more pressure packed role than when they went to South Africa with next to no expectations without the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble.
While the team has grown from strength to strength, according to the Indian coach, Gary Kirsten, fatigue, and not lack of self belief, pressure as champions or conditions in England, will be India’s test in England. India have been on the road since their tour to New Zealand and it could work against them in a competition that will again see a compact schedule and stiff competition starting within a week of the conclusion of the IPL 2.
Ironically India’s biggest advantage going into the ICC World Twenty20 will be the fact that all the team members of their squad of fifteen have featured in the IPL2 season in South Africa, including the two spinners, Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra who could play a big part on the slower pitches. Apart from Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir who appear to be struggling for form and consistency, this could be the tournament for the likes of Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma who has rediscovered his touch with the Deccan Chargers. Yusuf Pathan continues to remain the most enigmatic player to watch out for in this format of the game. With the inclusion of fast medium bowler R.P. Singh, the bowling will have more teeth given that R.P. has been in spectacular form for the Hyderabad Deccan Chargers in the IPL 2 and will relish the conditions in England as will Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma and Irfan Pathan. Talent is not in short demand; fitness could be. India will be expected to defend their title.
Australia – Focus in Quest
No team would discount Australia’s chances in the ICC World Twenty20 unless at their own risk. However, the one thing Australia have appeared to have been averse to is adopt an outright horses for courses strategy for something of the status of a World Cup. But that does not mean Australia do not have the goods to reach the pinnacle of the tournament. Having held the limited edition World Cup for three consecutive times, Australia are big match winners and they will be keen to make amends in this edition of the Twenty20 World Cup, having lost to India in the semi finals in South Africa.
With captaincy firmly reposed in Ricky Ponting, Australia boast of a strong batting line up as well as a decently incisive bowling. The punch perhaps may be missing though. Australia’s problem could once again be one of focus rather than any apparent weakness in team composition. David Warner is the only true Twenty20 specialist in the team while most of the Australians have had a fair run in the shortest format in the game, thanks to their overwhelming demand in the IPL. Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson are coming back from mini breaks and refreshed and raring to go. While question marks still prevail over Lee’s fitness, Australia will have a harder time focusing on the ICC World Twenty20 knowing the Ashes follow soon after. It is unlikely Australia will be looking at self preservation but they may appear a little rusty and even preoccupied.
Count on Warner, Shane Watson, David Hussey and Michael Clarke to spark up the atmosphere with their performances. There may be something special from Andrew Symonds looking to revive his flagging career with the Australian team. The Australians will remain reluctant favourites.
South Africa – Converting Potential Power
On paper, South Africa have all the ingredients that go into making champions. They are a well rounded unit comprising pros and young dynamism which could just be the breath of fresh air South Africa need to lighten the pressure that appears to engulf them in key moments.
AB de Villiers has been in resplendent form, Herschelle Gibbs has shown resurgence, Jacques Kallis has been integral for the Bangalore team as has been Mark Boucher and Jean Paul Duminy has been spending valuable time with the Mumbai Indians to establish himself more imposingly in the shorter format. With fast medium bowler Yusuf Abdulla’s successful stint with the Kings XI Punjab and batting all rounder Roelof van der Merwe sharpening his skills with the Royal Challengers Bangalore, the team appears to be in a position to peak at the right time with all their players primed for the game. With Albie Morkel replacing the big hitting of Justin Kemp, the stage may be set for a strong South African showdown.
South Africa have had a mixed time in the Twenty20 game recently, having played against Australia and their dismal showing at home in the inaugural edition puts additional duress on the team to live up to the expectations. Johan Botha’s off spinners have been a crucial factor in the shorter version of the game and it will be interesting to see if Botha can extract the same stingy perfection when conceding runs and snaring crucial wickets without the doosra. Dale Steyn has also not turned out for the Royal Challengers Bangalore for which the reason being cited is injury. Graeme Smith did not set the IPL 2 season alight and South Africa have tended to depend on the skipper for providing the impetus on match winning occasions. A lot will depend on the team bringing all their components into one potent strategy. Given their balance, South Africa should not settle for anything less than their presence in the final.
New Zealand – strong on strategy
Going simply by their line up, New Zealand should provide the sparks for the ICC World Twenty20 for a second edition in a row. With strong, enigmatic personalities like Jesse Ryder and batting specialists in Ross Taylor, Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum, New Zealand have the ability to bat teams out of the match. Their strong performance in the first edition when they made it to the semi finals of the ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa only to lose the semi finals to Pakistan justifies their talents. That they could afford to leave out Grant Elliot in favour of Neil Broom in the squad is further evidence of it.
With Ian Butler and Kyle Mills, they have a decent bowling attack. But without the incisiveness in recent times, New Zealand have tended to depend on skipper Daniel Vettori to put the brakes on the opposition and create inroads. With Jacob Oram yet to rediscover his form of past reputation, the chinks in their team could test them in the Super Eights. They though remain the dark horses who could walk away with the trophy.
England – Controversy corners composition
England are a team that have developed the rather dowdy reputation for not turning up for peak events such as the 2007 World Cup and the inaugural ICC World Twenty20, at least not in spirit and on an equal footing as other teams in terms of competitiveness. The ICC World Twenty20 then at home will give them a fair advantage about knowledge of pitches and conditions with Twenty20 having emerged predominantly in England.
England have regressed in that they have appointed Paul Collingwood as captain of the Twenty20 team, when in fact almost a year ago, he had relinquished the captaincy of the one day team. While England have a good mix of bowlers in James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Ryan Sidebottom and spinning options in Graeme Swann amongst a string of part timers as well, their batting will rely even more heavily on in-form Ravi Bopara and Owais Shah while Robert Key, who returns to the England team, and Dmitri Mascarenhas are expected to lend weight to the all round skills in the teams.
England’s progress though could be severely hampered as star allrounder Andrew Flintoff is going to miss the campaign and participation of Kevin Pietersen is still doubtful. While Flintoff’s string of injuries saw him depart early from the IPL 2 in South Africa, Pietersen has an Achilles tendon problem. Super Eights may not be a problem with Netherlands in their group, but with England depending heavily on Flintoff’s charisma and Pietersen’s aggression, England’s share of laurels in the ICC World Twenty20 will depend on the strength of their bite.
Sri Lanka – In Need of a Refreshing Revival
Sri Lanka found themselves all at sea in the inaugural edition of the ICC World Twenty20 surprisingly given that they revolutionized the one day game with their big bang hitting in the first fifteen overs. Yet again at the start of another edition, they will be in a semi transitional phase. Kumar Sangakkara will officially take over the Sri Lankan captaincy. The Sri Lankan batting that includes the skipper will still be formidable on paper with Sanath Jayasuriya amongst the ranks as also former captain Mahela Jayawardene and Tillekeratne Dilshan. Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis represent dangerous spin options. But the fast bowling department will be tested in the absence of the miserly Chaminda Vaas. A lot will depend on how Lasith Malinga, Jehan Mubarak, Thilan Thushara and Ferveez Maharoof use the conditions in England to Sri Lanka’s advantage.
With an abysmal performance in the first edition when they failed to impress in the Super Eights, Sri Lanka’s route can only go upwards, building on their limited experience in the format. They must first target the Super Eights, drawn in a group that includes the formidable Australians and the mercurial West Indies. Sri Lanka will still be the under dogs, with little by way of exposure in their own domestic Twenty20 set up.
Pakistan - Settling Past Demons
Pakistan did not come into the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 with too many people weighing expectations on them. Yet they beat their detractors, topped the Super Eights table in their group and went onto to nearly beat India, missing the chance to hold the trophy by five runs. The turmoil may be of a different kind for Pakistan this time round, with terrorism being a key factor in their lack of sufficient cricket itinerary rather than when they were still in shock over the death of their coach Bob Woolmer the last time round. But Pakistan have been known to play under pressure and will be accustomed to be considered the underdogs of the tournaments, despite finishing strongly in the 2007 edition.
Younis Khan is contemplating retiring from Twenty20 at the end of tournament in England. It could then spell both ways in that he may want to relinquish captaincy on a high note here or show an indifference that could spell doom. Pakistan will rest heavily on senior pros such as Misbah-ul Haq and Shahid Afridi while Kamran Akmal will be expected to lead the young charges in the team with his explosive hitting.
While their bowling has the experience of Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul and Shoaib Mallik, their main spinning option, Saeed Ajmal, could pose a problem given that he has been hauled up for suspect action for bowling the doosra. Shoaib Akhtar will be missing from their bowling arsenal. He is out due to infection. Pakistan did manage to win the one off Twenty20 match against Australia. But whether they can sustain the consistency over the length of the tournament will be the true test. Pakistan cannot be discounted because they remain dangerous floaters.
West Indies – in search of redemption
Chris Gayle has inadvertently turned the spotlight on his team. His recent remarks regarding his view of the Twenty20 game versus Test cricket met with acrimony from past and present cricketers. In light of that, the West Indies will be expected to put up a more spirited performance in the version that they appear to have a greater inclination for, given their extensive exposure to the format via the Stanford Twenty20 tournament back home.
West Indies do not lack in star power with Gayle himself leading with the first international Twenty20 century in the inaugural match of the ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007. However, their inability to stop the South Africans and then losing to Bangladesh saw them make a rather humiliating early exit.
Dwayne Bravo was not preferred for the Tests in England over injury concerns. But he has been warming himself for the competition playing for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. With the regular back ups in the batting department in Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan and wicket taking bowlers in Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards with a younger rearguard in Lendl Simmons, Xavier Marshall and Lionel Baker who have all played Twenty20, the West Indies are capable of reaching the end stages of the tournament.
West Indies suffer from their own self-destructive streak and their consistency will be called into question in a difficult group that also includes Australia and Sri Lanka. Changing their past record will require discipline in all departments of the game and the challenge is high. The question is: do the West Indies want to raise their own bar? The competition is with the fiend within than it is with other teams in the fray.
Bangladesh - Want to Do an Encore
Bangladesh, like India, have the pressure put on them because of their past achievements. In the 2007 edition, Bangladesh beat the West Indies and landed themselves in the Super Eights stage. Now placed in the same group as India and Ireland, Bangladesh are keen to reach the ambitious semi final stage and have expressed confidence in daring to want to beat India first.
Bangladesh’s talent is not in question. With Mohammad Ashraful leading the side that comprises allrounder Shakib ul Hasan, the much touted Mashrafe Mortaza, young Shamsur Rahman and prolific batsman like Tamim Iqbal, Bangladesh have the potential to cause more than an upset or two. But their results have been very topsy-turvy in international cricket and their exposure being severely restricted, it could affect their confidence going into this competition. The Super Eights should not be a problem this time, unless Ireland play out of their skin.
Ireland – Rebuilding without reinforcements
Ireland will be looking to build further on their reputation that has emerged from the 2007 ICC World Cup in the Caribbean when they impressed the cricket fraternity. Beating Bangladesh will ensure them a berth in the Super Eights and they will be feeling confident of being able to achieve smaller milestones. Suffice it to say, they would not want to simply make up the numbers even though this will be their first appearance in the ICC World Twenty20 format.
Ireland will be relying on old hands beginning with their captain William Porterfield, Trent Johnson, Andre Botha and Jeremy Bray. The more impressive young names will round up the challenge in the O’Brien brothers, Boyd Rankin and Kyle McCallan. Ireland have been a notch higher than the rest in the field amongst the ICC Associate Members. But they would have been seething at the fact that one of their star performers, Eoin Morgan, has been named in the England squad for the ICC World Twenty20 even as he featured for Ireland in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in South Africa.
Netherlands – not Nano with Nannes
Sharing the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier final with Ireland would have greatly boosted Netherlands’ spirits in a competition of this prestige. Jeroen Smits leads a team with few familiar names from previous World Cup formats such as Ryan ten Doeschate, Bas Zuiderent and Daan van Bunge who would be more ignominiously remembered for the six sixes that Herschelle Gibbs hit off him in the 2007 World Cup. But the Netherlands team have boasted of a decent team and with Dirk Nannes finding himself in the ICC World Twenty20 not in the Australian or England team but in the Dutch team by way of parentage, it can only raise the profile of the team with the addition of a man who has kept Glen McGrath out from the playing eleven throughout the entire season of the IPL 2 for the Delhi Daredevils.
What makes Netherlands’ position tough in terms of impacting the tournament is the fact that they share the group that also includes England and Pakistan. Only a major upset would see them play beyond the league stage which is limited to two matches.
Scotland – awaiting a Bagpiper moment
Scotland find themselves in the ICC World Twenty20 championships in England, making them only the first ICC Associate Member to feature twice in this prestigious format. They owe their presence due to Zimbabwe withdrawing from the tournament as well as the fact that Scotland beat Kenya during the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier for the third place, eventually paving the way to showcase their talent once more.
Gavin Hamilton will lead a proud side that also includes experienced pros in Ryan Watson, Craig Wright and John Blain alongside a host of hopeful youth waiting to make their mark on the international scene amongst men of rank and standing.
Scotland had a hard time in the first edition, drawn in the same group as Pakistan and India, losing to the former and losing out on the opportunity to play the latter due to rain. England will not be an easy outing either for the promising Scottish team that will once again face stronger opponents in South Africa and New Zealand in the league stage itself. The intensity will have to be spot on from ball one if they are to make ripples in the tournament this time.
Twenty20 cricket to some may still be about the luck of the draw. But while the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 was about the novelty of a prestigious new format, teams are not likely to take the contest in England any more lightly than they did the first time round. There is pride and national identity at stake and no lottery-like perspective will restrain teams from going all out in the quest for glory.
