India all-rounder Hardik Pandya and wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik join an ICC World XI for the high-profile Twenty20 International against the Windies at Lord’s on 31 May, being organised to raise funds for stadia in the Caribbean damaged by hurricanes last year. The squad is led by England’s limited overs captain Eoin Morgan with Shahid Afridi […]
via PANDYA, KARTHIK CONFIRMED FOR ICC WORLD XI — newfanzoneblog
29 women’s players on course to make fifth straight appearance
The 27-day ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 begins in Nagpur on 8 March with 19 men’s players set to feature in their sixth straight event, while 29 women’s cricketers will make their fifth successive appearance.
This was confirmed after all the 16 men’s squads and 10 women’s squads were submitted for the tournament, which will be played at eight venues across India with Eden Gardens in Kolkata to host the finals on 3 April.
In the men’s event, Bangladesh will field a team, which boasts five players who have played in all the previous five events. They are: Masrafe Bin Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur Rahim.
The India and West Indies sides include three players each who have participated in the previous events, which were staged in South Africa, England, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. These players are: MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh (all India), and Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle and Denesh Ramdin (all West Indies).
Nathan McCullum, Ross Taylor (both New Zealand), AB de Villiers, JP Duminy (both South Africa), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lasith Malinga (both Sri Lanka), Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) and Shane Watson (Australia) are the other players to attend their sixth straight ICC World Twenty20.
In the women’s event, which has been staged alongside the men’s event since 2009, the West Indies will enter the competition with six players having played in all tournaments to date. These are: Stafanie Taylor, Merissa Aguilleira, Deandra Dottin, Stacy-Ann King, Anisa Mohammed and Shakera Selman.
Pakistan has named five players who have the experience of four previous events. They are: Asmavia Iqbal, Bismah Maroof, Javeria Khan, Nain Abedi and Sana Mir.
England and South Africa have retained four players each from the previous four tournaments, and they are: Charlotte Edwards, Lydia Greenway, Jenny Gunn, Sarah Taylor (all England), and Mignon du Preez, Trisha Chetty, Shabnim Ismail and Dane Van Niekerk (all South Africa).
New Zealand and Sri Lanka will be fielding three players each who have been members of the sides that have played in previous events. These are: Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine, Sara McGlashan (all New Zealand), Chamari Athapaththu, Eshani Lokusooriya and Udeshika Probodani (all Sri Lanka).
Mitahli Raj, Jhulan Goswami (both India), Alex Blackwell and Ellyse Perry (both Australia) are the other players to attend their fifth successive women’s competition.
In 2018 and 2022, there will be standalone women’s ICC World Twenty20 tournaments, which will be staged in the West Indies and South Africa, respectively.
MEN’S
AFGHANISTAN – Asghar Stanikzai (capt.); Dawlat Zadran; Gulbadin Naib; Hamid Hassan; Hamza Hotak; Karim Sadiq; Mohammad Nabi; Mohammad Shahzad; Najibullah Zadran; Noor Ali Zadran; Rashid Khan; Samiullah Shenwari; Shafiqullah Shafaq; Shahpoor Zadran and Usman Ghani.
Coach – Inzamam-ul-Haq
AUSTRALIA – Steve Smith (capt.); Ashton Agar; Nathan Coulter-Nile; James Faulkner; Aaron Finch; John Hastings; Josh Hazlewood; Usman Khawaja; Mitchell Marsh; Glenn Maxwell; Peter Nevill; Andrew Tye; David Warner; Shane Watson and Adam Zampa.
Coach – Darren Lehmann
BANGLADESH – Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (capt.); Abu Hider; Al-Amin Hossain, Arafat Sunny, Mahmudullah, Mohammad Mithun; Mushfiqur Rahim; Mustafizur Rahman; Nasir Hossain, Nurul Hasan; Sabbir Rahman; Shakib Al Hasan; Soumya Sarkar; Tamim Iqbal and Taskin Ahmed.
Coach – Chandika Hathurushinghe
ENGLAND – Eoin Morgan (capt.); Moeen Ali; Sam Billings; Jos Buttler; Liam Dawson; Steven Finn; Alex Hales; Chris Jordan; Adil Rashid; Joe Root; Jason Roy; Ben Stokes; Reece Topley; James Vince and David Willey.
Coach – Trevor Bayliss
HONG KONG – Tanwir Afzal (capt.); Nadeem Ahmed; Haseeb Amjad; Jamie Atkinson; Waqas Barkat; Ryan Campbell; Chris Carter; Mark Chapman; Babar Hayat; Aizaz Khan; Nizakat Khan; Waqas Khan; Adil Mehmood; Anshuman Rath and Kinchit Shah.
Coach – Simon Cook
INDIA – Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt.); Ravichandran Ashwin; Jasprit Bumrah; Shikhar Dhawan; Ravindra Jadeja; Virat Kohli; Pawan Negi; Ashish Nehra; Hardik Pandya; Ajinkya Rahane; Suresh Raina; Mohammed Shami; Rohit Sharma; Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh.
Team Director – Ravi Shastri
IRELAND – William Porterfield (capt.); Andrew Balbirnie; George Dockrell; Andrew McBrine; Tim Murtagh; Kevin O’Brien; Niall O’Brien; Andrew Poynter; Stuart Poynter; Boyd Rankin; Max Sorensen; Paul Stirling; Stuart Thompson; Gary Wilson and Craig Young.
Coach – John Bracewell
NETHERLANDS – Peter Borren (capt.); Wesley Barresi; Logan van Beek; Mudassar Bukhari; Ben Cooper; Timm van der Gugten; Vivian Kingma; Ahsan Malik; Paul van Meekeren; Roelof van der Merwe; Stephan Myburgh; Max O’Dowd; Michael Rippon; Pieter Seelaar and Sikander Zulfiqar.
Coach – Anton Roux
NEW ZEALAND – Kane Williamson (capt.), Corey Anderson, Trent Boult, Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill, Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan, Nathan McCullum, Colin Munro, Henry Nicholls, Luke Ronchi, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee and Ross Taylor.
Coach – Mike Hesson
OMAN – Sultan Ahmed (capt.); Aamir Kaleem; Aaqib Sulehri; Adnan Ilyas; Ajay Lalcheta; Amir Ali; Bilal Khan; Jatinder Singh; Mehran Khan; Munis Ansari; Rajeshkumar Ranpura; Sufyan Mehmood;; Vaibhav Wategaonkar; Zeeshan Maqsood and Zeeshan Siddiqui.
Coach – Duleep Mendis
PAKISTAN – Shahid Afridi (capt.); Anwar Ali; Imad Wasim; Khalid Latif; Khurram Manzoor; Mohammad Amir; Mohammad Hafeez; Mohammad Irfan; Mohammad Nawaz; Mohammad Sami; Sarfaraz Ahmed; Sharjeel Khan; Shoaib Malik; Umar Akmal and Wahab Riaz.
Coach – Waqar Younis
SCOTLAND – Preston Mommsen (capt.); Richie Berrington; Kyle Coetzer; Matt Cross; Josh Davey; Ali Evans; Con de Lange; Michael Leask; Matt Machan; Calum MacLeod; Gavin Main; George Munsey; Safyaan Sharif; Rob Taylor and Mark Watt.
Coach – Grant Bradburn
SOUTH AFRICA – Faf du Plessis (capt.); Kyle Abbott; Hashim Amla; Farhaan Behardien; Quniton de Kock; AB de Villiers; JP Duminy; David Miller; Chris Morris; Aaron Phangiso; Kagiso Rabada; Rilee Rossouw; Dale Steyn; Imran Tahir and David Wiese.
Coach – Russell Domingo
SRI LANKA – Lasith Malinga (capt.); Dushmantha Chameera; Dinesh Chandimal; Niroshan Dickwella; Tillakaratne Dilshan; Rangana Herath; Shehan Jayasuriya; Chamara Kapugedera; Nuwan Kulasekara; Angelo Mathews; Thisara Perera; Sachithra Senanayake; Dasun Shanaka; Milinda Siriwardana and Jeffrey Vandersay.
Coach – Graham Ford
WEST INDIES – Darren Sammy (capt.); Samuel Badree; Sulieman Benn; Carlos Brathwaite; Dwayne Bravo; Johnson Charles; Andre Fletcher; Chris Gayle; Jason Holder; Ashley Nurse; Denesh Ramdin; Andre Russell; Marlon Samuels; Lendl Simmons and Jerome Taylor.
Coach – Phil Simmons
ZIMBABWE – Hamilton Masakadza (capt.); Tendai Chatara; Elton Chigumbura; Tendai Chisoro; Graeme Cremer; Luke Jongwe; Neville Madziva; Wellington Masakadza; PJ Moor; Richmond Mutumbami; Tinashe Panyangara; Sikandar Raza; Vusimuzi Sibanda; Malcolm Waller and Sean Williams.
Coach – Dav Whatmore
WOMEN’S
AUSTRALIA – Meg Lanning (capt.); Kristen Beams; Alex Blackwell; Lauren Cheatle; Sarah Coyte; Rene Farrell; Holly Ferling; Grace Harris; Alyssa Healy; Jess Jonassen; Beth Mooney; Erin Osborne; Ellyse Perry; Megan Schutt and Elyse Villani.
Coach – Matthew Mott
BANGLADESH – Jahanara Alam (capt.); Ayasha Rahman; Fahima Khatun; Fargana Hoque; Khadiza Tul Kubra; Lata Mondal; Nahida Akhter; Nigar Sultana; Panna Ghosh; Ritu Moni; Rumana Ahmed; Salma Khatun; Sanjida Islam; Shaila Sharmin and Sharmin Akhter.
Coach – J C Gamage
ENGLAND – Charlotte Edwards (capt.); Tamsin Beaumont; Katherine Brunt; Georgia Elwiss; Natasha Farrant; Lydia Greenway; Rebecca Grundy; Jenny Gunn; Danielle Hazell; Amy Jones; Heather Knight; Natalie Sciver; Anya Shrubsole; Sarah Taylor and Danielle Wyatt.
Coach – Mark Robinson
INDIA – Mithali Raj (capt.); Ekta Bisht; Rajeshwari Gayakwad; Jhulan Goswami; Thirush Kamini; Harmanpreet Kaur; Veda Krishnamurthy; Smriti Mandhana; Niranjana Nagarajan; Shikha Pandey; Anuja Patil; Deepti Sharma; Vellaswamy Vanitha; Sushma Verma and Poonam Yadav.
Coach – Purnima Rau
IRELAND – Isobel Joyce (capt.); Catherine Dalton; Laura Delany; Kim Garth; Jennifer Gray; Cecelia Joyce; Shauna Kavanagh; Amy Kenealy; Robyn Lewis; Gaby Lewis; Kate McKenna; Ciara Metcalfe; Lucy O’Reilly; Clare Shillington and Mary Waldron.
Coach – Aaron Hamilton
NEW ZEALAND\ – Suzie Bates (capt.); Erin Bermingham; Sophie Devine; Leigh Kasperek; Felicity Leydon-Davis; Katey Martin; Sara McGlashan; Thamsyn Newton; Morna Nielsen; Katie Perkins; Anna Peterson; Rachel Priest; Hannah Rowe; Amy Satterthwaite and Lea Tahuhu.
Coach – Haidee Tiffen
PAKISTAN – Sana Mir (capt.); Aliya Riaz; Anam Amin; Asmavia Iqbal; Nahida Khan; Bismah Maroof; Iram Javed; Javeria Wadood; Muneeba Ali Siddiqui; Nida Dar; Sadia Yousuf; Sania Khan; Sidra Ameen; Sidra Nawaz and Nain Abidi.
Coach – Mohtashim Rasheed
SOUTH AFRICA – Mignon du Preez (capt.); Trisha Chetty; Moseline Daniels; Dinesha Devnarain; Yolani Fourie; Shabnim Ismail; Marizanne Kapp; Ayabonga Khaka; Odine Kirsten; Masabata Klaas; Lizelle Lee; Matshipi Marcia; Sune Luus; Chloe Tryon and Dane Van Niekerk.
Coach – Hilton Moreeng
SRI LANKA – Shashikala Siriwardene (capt.); Chamari Atapattu; Sugandika Kumari; Nipuni Hansika; Ama Kanchana; Hansima Karunaratne; Eshani Kaushalya; Harshitha Madavi; Dilani Manodara; Yasoda Mendis; Udeshika Prabodhani; Oshadi Ranasinghe; Inoka Ranaweera; Nilakshi de Silva and Prasadini Weerakkody.
Coach – Lanka de Silva
WEST INDIES – Stafanie Taylor (capt.); Merissa Aguilleira; Shemaine Campbelle; Shamilia Connell; Britney Cooper; Deandra Dottin; Afy Fletcher; Stacy-Ann King; Kyshona Knight; Kycia Knight; Hayley Matthews; Anisa Mohammed; Shaquana Quintyne; Shakera Selman and Tremayne Smartt.
Coach – Vasbert Drakes
The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced the match timings and warm-up schedule of the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which be staged at eight venues in India from 8 March to 3 April.
The men’s afternoon matches will take place from 15h00-18h10, while the evening matches will be played from 19h30-22h40. The semi-finals and the final will be held from 19h00-22h10.
The women’s afternoon matches will be played from 15h30-18h15, while the evening matches will take place from 19h30-22h15. The semi-finals and the finals, which will be played before the men’s matches, will be played between 14h30-17h15.
Meanwhile, the ICC has also announced the schedule of the warm-up matches.
Teams taking part in the first round will play their warm-up matches in Dharamsala and Mohali from 3-6 March, while sides featuring in the second round will play warm-up matches in Kolkata and Mumbai from 10-15 March.
The women’s warm-up matches will take place in Bengaluru and Chennai from 10-14 March.
Warm-up match schedule (men’s)
3 Mar – Zimbabwe v local side, HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala (15h00); Ireland v Hong Kong*, HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala (19h30)
4 Mar – Netherlands v local side, Sector-16, Mohali (15h00); Scotland v Oman*, IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali (19h30)
5 Mar – Ireland v Zimbabwe, HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala (15h00); Bangladesh v Hong Kong*, HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala (19h30)
6 Mar – Scotland v Netherlands, Sector-16, Mohali (15h00); Oman v Afghanistan*, IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali (19h30)
10 Mar – New Zealand v Sri Lanka, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai (19h30); India v West Indies, Eden Gardens, Kolkata (19h30)
12 Mar – New Zealand v England, BKC, Mumbai (15h00); Pakistan v local side, JU, Kolkata (15h00); India v South Africa, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai (19h30)
13 Mar – Australia v West Indies, Eden Gardens, Kolkata (19h30)
14 Mar – England v local side, BKC, Mumbai (15h00); Pakistan v Sri Lanka, Eden Gardens, Kolkata (15h00)
15 Mar – South Africa v local side, BKC, Mumbai (15h00)
*If Afghanistan, Hong Kong or Oman reach the second round of the Asia Cup, then their warm-up matches will be rescheduled accordingly.
Warm-up match schedule (women’s)
10 Mar – India v Ireland, M. Chinnaswamy, Bengaluru (15h00); Sri Lanka v Bangladesh, M. Chinnaswamy, Bengaluru (19h30); New Zealand v Pakistan, MA Chidambaram, Chennai (19h30)
12 Mar – Bangladesh v Ireland, M. Chinnaswamy, Bengaluru (15h00); Sri Lanka v India, M. Chinnaswamy, Bengaluru (19h30); New Zealand v England, Guru Nanak, Chennai (15h00); Pakistan v South Africa, MA Chidambaram, Chennai (19h30)
14 Mar – West Indies v Australia, Guru Nanak, Chennai (15h00); South Africa v England, MA Chidambaram, Chennai (19h30)
David Richardson says Nissan Trophy Tour will provide fans the opportunity to get close to the trophy before the winning captain lifts it in Kolkata on 3 April
The ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 trophy will embark on a global journey from Mumbai on Sunday, 13 December, before returning to New Delhi on Monday, 1 February.
As part of the Nissan Trophy Tour, the trophy will visit 12 countries taking part in the tournament which will be staged in India from 11 March to 3 April 2016.
During its journey, the trophy will be on display at domestic and international matches, as well as at various public places, which will enable the fans to capture a very special moment with the most prestigious silverware in the shortest format of the world game. Details of the trophy’s public appearances will be announced by the host boards closer to the time.
ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: “The Nissan ICC World Twenty20 2016 Trophy Tour has been designed to not only promote the tournament but also to engage with our fans and provide them the first opportunity to get close to the trophy, which will be lifted by the winning captain on 3 April in Kolkata. We would like to thank Nissan for their sponsorship of the Trophy Tour and we are sure it will be a big success as it travels across the world ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 in India next year.”
Roel de Vries, Nissan Corporate Vice President and global head of marketing and brand strategy, added: “We partnered with the ICC to bring cricket fans closer to the game. Fans feel exhilaration and passion when watching a cricket match. Those are the same emotions we want people to experience when driving a Nissan. We hope the Nissan Trophy Tour will build excitement around the world ahead of the ICC World Twenty20.”
Scotland will be the trophy’s first port of call, before it travels to Ireland, England and the Netherlands as part of its European leg. Scotland and Ireland staged a successful ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 in July and, along with the Netherlands, qualified for the event proper. England, under the captaincy of Paul Collingwood, won the tournament in Barbados in 2010.
The trophy’s African safari will be from 2-7 January, during which it will make appearances in Harare (2 & 3 January) and Cape Town (5-7 January).
Pakistan will be the trophy’s first stop-over in the subcontinent (11 & 12 January), before it moves on to Bangladesh (14 &15 January) and then Sri Lanka (17 & 18 January). Pakistan won the ICC World Twenty20 at Lord’s in 2009, while Sri Lanka will defend the title it won in Dhaka last year.
On the Trans-Tasman tour, the trophy will arrive in Wellington on 21 January and will then head to Australia on 26 January where it will be displayed in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney until 31 January. After a hugely successful ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, Australia will host the seventh edition of the ICC World Twenty20 in 2020.
From Sydney, the trophy will return to New Delhi on 1 February and will then start its domestic tour by making appearances at each of the venues that will host the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 matches.
Nissan Trophy Tour schedule:
13-14 December – Scotland
16-17 December – Ireland
20-21 December – England
22-23 December – Netherlands
2-3 January – Zimbabwe
5-7 January – South Africa
11-12 January – Pakistan
14-15 January – Bangladesh
17-18 January – Sri Lanka
21-24 January – New Zealand
26-31 January – Australia
1 February – arrival in New Delhi
The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Friday announced the groups and schedule of the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which will be staged across eight venues in India from 8 March to 3 April.
A total of 58 tournament matches, including 35 men’s matches and 23 women’s matches, will be played in the 27-day tournament in Bengaluru, Chennai, Dharamsala, Kolkata, Mohali, Mumbai, Nagpur and New Delhi. New Delhi and Mumbai will host the semi-finals on 30 and 31 March, respectively, while Eden Gardens in Kolkata will be the venue of the 3 April finals. The women’s semi-finals and final will be followed by the men’s knock-out matches. There is a reserve day for the finals.
The men’s event will carry a total prize money of $5.6million, which is an 86 per cent increase from the 2014 tournament, while the total prize money for the women’s event is $400,000, which is a 122 per cent increase from the Bangladesh event.
There have been five different winners of the men’s event while the England women’s team won the inaugural tournament at home in 2009 before Australia won three straight titles in the West Indies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in 2010, 2012 and 2014, respectively.
According to the men’s event format, eight sides in two groups of four, will feature in the first round matches with the group winners joining eight sides in the Super 10 stage (two groups of five teams). The top two sides from both the Super 10 Groups will then qualify for the semi-finals. In the women’s event, the 10 sides will be divided into two groups and the top two sides from each group will progress to the semi-finals.
The first round matches in the men’s event will take place in Dharamsala and Nagpur from 8-13 March and will feature Bangladesh, Netherlands, Ireland, debutant Oman (all in Group A), Zimbabwe, Scotland, Hong Kong and Afghanistan (all in Group B). In a double-header on the opening day on 8 March, Zimbabwe will face Hong Kong in the afternoon match, to be followed by the evening match between Scotland and Afghanistan. Both the matches will be played in Nagpur.
The group winners will join Australia, England, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies and host India in the Super 10 stage, which will be played alongside the women’s event from 15-28 March.
Men’s defending champion Sri Lanka has been placed in Super 10 Group 1 along with South Africa, West Indies, England and the Group B winner. It will open its title defence against the Group B winner in Kolkata on 17 March, and play West Indies in Bengaluru on 20 March, England in New Delhi on 26 March and South Africa in New Delhi on 28 March.
Host India, which won the inaugural tournament in South Africa in 2007, is in Super 10 Group 2 along with 2009 winner Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand and the Group A winner. India will launch its campaign in Nagpur against New Zealand on 15 March, while it will go head to head with Pakistan in Dharamsala on 19 March. Its other matches will be against the Group A winner in Bengaluru on 23 March and Australia in Mohali on 27 March.
2009 champion Pakistan will take on the Group A winner in Kolkata on 16 March, before locking horns with traditional rival India in Dharamsala on 19 March. Its remaining two matches will be in Mohali against New Zealand and Australia on 22 and 25 March, respectively.
England, which won the 2010 tournament in the West Indies, takes on 2012 winner the West Indies in Mumbai on 16 March, followed by matches against South Africa (18 March in Mumbai), the Group B winner (23 March in New Delhi) and Sri Lanka (26 March in New Delhi).
After taking on England in its tournament opener, the West Indies will square off against Sri Lanka (20 March in Bengaluru), South Africa (25 March in Nagpur) and the Group B winner (27 March in Nagpur).
Meanwhile, in the women’s tournament, 2009 champion England is in Group B along with the West Indies, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and will start off against Bangladesh in Bengaluru on 17 March. Its other matches will be against India (22 March in Dharamsala), West Indies (24 March in Dharamsala) and Pakistan (27 March in Chennai).
Australia women, who will be bidding to win the title for the fourth straight time, is in Group A along with South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Ireland. Their opening match will be against South Africa (18 March in Nagpur), followed by matches against New Zealand (21 March in Nagpur), Sri Lanka (24 March in New Delhi) and Ireland (24 March in New Delhi).
ICC Chairman Mr Shashank Manohar, who attended the launch ceremony in Mumbai, said: “India is a country where cricket is a religion and not many places can match the passion for the game like India. I am fully confident that the Board of Control for Cricket in India will deliver an outstanding world cricket event, just like the ICC Cricket World Cups in 1987, 1996 and 2011.
“The ICC and BCCI are fully committed and will work together to make this a memorable event. I invite fans from across the world to witness fast-paced cricketing action on the field and enjoy the hospitality and culture of India, off it.”
ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: “The ICC World Twenty20 is an event which puts the world’s best cricketers in the shortest format of the game against each other in a nation versus nation contest.
“The Twenty20 format provides the perfect vehicle by which the ICC can further globalise the game, providing international exposure and opportunity to our top Associate and Affiliate members. The ICC World Twenty20 event structure is designed to provide highly competitive matches throughout, with eight evenly-matched sides fighting it out in the first round and the best two then getting in the mix with the top eight ranked teams in the Super 10 stage where the intensity and competition will be of the very highest level.”
BCCI Secretary Mr Anurag Thakur said: “We, as hosts, are fully prepared to organise one of the most entertaining spectacles in world cricket. We draw experience from hosting three ICC Cricket World Cups and are ready to make the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 one of the most memorable events.
“Our preparations are in full swing, and BCCI and ICC is working together to make it a lifetime experience for the players and the fans. India is a vibrant country – young, full of colour, energy and exuberance – and is very much like the concept of Twenty20 cricket itself. We would encourage everyone involved with the game to experience the best of India.”
The ICC World Twenty20 trophy was also present at the ceremony before it leaves Mumbai for Scotland on Sunday, 13 December, as part of the Nissan Trophy Tour. The trophy will return to New Delhi on 1 February after visiting 11 countries.
Men’s
First round (group winners to progress to second round)
Group A – Bangladesh, Netherlands, Ireland and Oman
Group B – Zimbabwe, Scotland, Hong Kong and Afghanistan
Second round groups
Super 10 Group 1 – Sri Lanka, South Africa, West Indies, England and winner group B (Q1B)
Super 10 Group 2 – India, Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand and winner group A (Q1A)
Women’s
Group A – Australia (A1), South Africa (A2), New Zealand (A3), Sri Lanka (A4) and Ireland (A5)
Group B – England (B1), West Indies (B2), India (B3), Pakistan (B4) and Bangladesh (B5)
Tournament schedule (‘M’ denotes men’s match; ‘W’ denotes women’s match; PM means afternoon match and Eve. means night match. Match timings to be confirmed in due course)
Tue, 8 Mar – Zimbabwe v Hong Kong (PM), Nagpur; Scotland v Afghanistan (Eve.), Nagpur
Wed, 9 Mar – Bangladesh v Netherlands (PM), Dharamsala; Ireland v Oman (Eve.), Dharamsala
Thu, 10 Mar – Scotland v Zimbabwe (PM), Nagpur; Hong Kong v Afghanistan (Eve.)
Fri, 11 Mar – Netherlands v Oman (PM), Dharamsala; Bangladesh v Ireland (Eve.), Dharamsala
Sat, 12 Mar – Zimbabwe v Afghanistan (PM), Nagpur; Scotland v Hong Kong (Eve.), Nagpur
Sun, 13 Mar – Netherlands v Ireland (PM), Dharamsala; Bangladesh v Oman (Eve.), Dharamsala
Tue, 15 Mar – India v Bangladesh 
(PM), Bengaluru; New Zealand v Sri Lanka (Eve.), New Delhi; New Zealand v India (M) (Eve), Nagpur
Wed, 16 Mar – West Indies v England (M) (PM), Mumbai; Pakistan v Q1A (M) (Eve.), Kolkata; West Indies v Pakistan (Eve.), Chennai
Thu, 17 Mar – England v Bangladesh (PM), Bengaluru; Sri Lanka v Q1B (M) (Eve.), Kolkata
Fri, 18 Mar – New Zealand v Ireland (PM), Mohali; Australia v New Zealand (M) (PM), Dharamsala; South Africa v England (M) (Eve.), Mumbai; Australia v South Africa (Eve.), Nagpur
Sat, 19 Mar – India v Pakistan (PM), New Delhi; India v Pakistan (M) (Eve.), Dharamsala
Sun, 20 Mar – South Africa v Q1B (M) (PM), Mumbai; West Indies v Bangladesh (PM), Chennai; Sri Lanka v Ireland (Eve.), Mohali; Sri Lanka v West Indies (M) (Eve.), Bengaluru
Mon, 21 Mar – Australia v New Zealand (PM), Nagpur; Australia v Q1A (M) (Eve.), Bengaluru
Tue, 22 Mar – England v India (PM), Dharamsala; New Zealand v Pakistan (M) (Eve.), Mohali
Wed, 23 Mar – England v Q1B (M) (PM), New Delhi; India v Q1A (M), (Eve.), Bengaluru; South Africa v Ireland (Eve.), Chennai
Thu, 24 Mar – England v West Indies (Eve.), Dharamsala; Australia v Sri Lanka (PM), New Delhi; Pakistan v Bangladesh (Eve.), New Delhi
Fri, 25 Mar – Pakistan v Australia (M) (PM), Mohali; South Africa v West Indies (M), (Eve.), Nagpur
Sat, 26 Mar – Australia v Ireland (PM), New Delhi; Q1A v New Zealand (M) (PM), Kolkata; England v Sri Lanka (M) (Eve.), New Delhi; South Africa v New Zealand (Eve.), Bengaluru
Sun, 27 Mar – West Indies v India (PM), Mohali; India v Australia (M) (Eve.), Mohali; England v Pakistan (Eve.), Chennai; Q1B v West Indies (M) (PM), Nagpur;
Mon, 28 Mar – South Africa v Sri Lanka (PM), Bengaluru; South Africa v Sri Lanka (M) (Eve.), New Delhi
Tue, 29 Mar – Rest/travel day
Wed, 30 Mar – Women’s semi-final (2nd group A v 1st group B) (PM), New Delhi; men’s semi-final (Super 10 Group 1 2nd v Super 10 Group 2 1st) (Eve.), New Delhi
Thu, 31 Mar – Women’s semi-final (1st group A v 2nd group B) (PM), Mumbai; men’s semi-final (Super 10 Group 1 2nd v Super 10 Group 2 1st) (Eve.), Mumbai
Fri, 1 Apr – Rest/travel day
Sat, 2 Apr – Rest/travel day
Sun, 3 April – Women’s final (PM), Kolkata; men’s final (Eve.), Kolkata
*Warm-up schedule to be confirmed in due course
ICC announces ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier digital statistics with record numbers for an ICC qualifying event and global interest expanding to millions around the world
Giles Clarke: “The continued growth of the ICC’s digital properties is part of an ongoing effort to expand the reach of the sport around the world”
The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced strong growth in digital consumption following the successful ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 held in July across Ireland and Scotland.
There was unparalleled coverage for the event on ICC digital and social media channels, with overall traffic numbers making it the second largest ICC digital event in recent years, surpassing both the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014 and the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013. The dedicated event website attracted 3.75 million unique users, more than double that figure for the ICC World Twenty20 2014 in Bangladesh. These visitors created nearly 20 million page views, which is more than treble the figure of the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014.
The digital coverage was particularly well received in many of the competing nations with fans from Afghanistan, Kenya, Nepal, Netherlands and USA combining to make up over 20 per cent of all website traffic.
For the first time at an ICC qualifying event, 20 matches were broadcast globally and short form match clips were hugely popular right across the world on ICC’s digital channels. The video content reached fans in over 200 countries, with over 13 million video views and over 12 million minutes of online video content consumed.
Another first was the launch of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 App, which aimed to build on the success of the record-breaking ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 App. The ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 App was available for free on both Android and iOS, it had over 2.2 million users from more than 200 countries. The App was very well picked up in the participating countries, and it topped the charts as the Number 1 downloaded sports App in 6 countries whilst reaching the Top 10 list in the same category in 22 other countries.
On ICC social media channels, there was also huge interest in the tournament as fans were given their opportunity to get involved with the global broadcast and interact with the players and commentators in Ireland and Scotland. The reach of ICC’s posts on Facebook topped over 129 million people in July, whilst there was 35 million impressions of ICC tweets during the tournament.
Fans also got their chance to vote for both the Play of the Day video and the Play of the Tournament video, which attracted over two million votes. One video alone attracted over 750,000 views. The eventual winner of the inaugural Play of the Tournament at the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 was Nepal’s Siddhant Lohani for his remarkable helicopter shot.
The Chairman of the ICC’s Financial and Commercial Affairs Committee, Mr Giles Clarke, said: “The ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015 digital statistics show the ever-growing interest in Associate cricket across the globe. The acceleration in growth is such that the numbers of fans engaged from the Associate sides competing in the event this July matched the number of fans engaged from Full Member nations at the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh, 2014. I was hugely impressed with the quality of the cricket from all the competing nations I saw in Ireland and Scotland, and cricket fans worldwide have made their voices heard with the sheer scale of numbers that interacted with the tournament online.
“The continued growth of the ICC’s digital properties is part of an ongoing effort to expand the reach of the sport around the world and the ICC intend to be at the forefront of innovation as we enter a new ICC Digital Strategy from 2016 onwards. The ICC will continue to try and grow the game into new markets by using the ICC’s substantial digital presence at both of the important upcoming ICC events, the ICC Under 19 Cricket World Cup 2016, and the ICC World Twenty20 2016.”
As preparations intensify ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, which is set to be staged in Ireland and Scotland from 9 to 26 July, the International Cricket Council (ICC) can confirm all 14 competing squads have now been submitted and confirmed.
The top six sides from the 18-day tournament, during which 51 matches will be played, will join the 10 Full Members for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which will be held from 11 March to 3 April 2016.
According to the format of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, the sides that top the two groups will automatically qualify for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, while the sides that finish second and third in each of the two groups will play cross-over matches with the two winners joining the table-toppers for the India tournament.
*Denotes replacement
AFGHANISTAN: Asghar Stanikzai (captain), Javed Ahmadi, Aftab Alam, Mirwais Ashraf, Sharafudin Ashraf, Hamid Hassan, Nawroz Mangal, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Mohammad Shahzad, Samiullah Shinwari, Dawlat Zadran, Najib Zadran, Shahpur Zadran
CANADA: Rizwan Cheema (captain), Saad Bin Zafar, Khurram Chohan, Navneet Dhaliwal, Satsimranjit Dhindsa, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Amarbir Hansra, Shaheed Keshvani, Nitish Kumar, Hiral Patel*, Cecil Pervez, Junaid Siddiqui, Hamza Tariq, Srimantha Wijeyeratne
HONG KONG: Tanwir Afzal (captain), Irfan Ahmed, Nadeem Ahmed, Haseeb Amjad, Jamie Atkinson, Waqas Barkat, Mark Chapman, Aizaz Khan, Anas Khan, Nizakat Khan, Giacomo Lamplough*, Ehsan Nawaz, Babar Hayat, Anshuman Rath, Kinchit Shah,
IRELAND: William Porterfield (captain), Andrew Balbirnie, Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Tyrone Kane, Andrew McBrine, Graeme McCarter, John Mooney, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Stuart Poynter, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson, Craig Young
JERSEY: Peter Gough (captain), Corey Bisson, Dom Blampied, Corne Bodenstein, Paul Connolly, Ed Farley, Anthony Kay, Jonty Jenner, Ben Kynman, Tommy Minty, Rhys Palmer, Chuggy Perchard, Callum Rabet, Ben Stevens, Nat Watkins
KENYA: Rakep Patel (captain), Emmanuel Bundi, Narendra Kalyan, Irfan Karim, Karan Kaul, Lucas Ndandason, James Ngoche, Shem Ngoche, Collins Obuya, Eugene Ochieng, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Nelson Odhiambo, Elijah Otieno, Morris Ouma, Gurdeep Singh
NAMIBIA: Nicholas Scholtz (captain), Stephen Baard, Sarel Burger, Christopher Coombe, Jason Davidson, Michau du Perez*, Gerhard Erasmus, Louis Klazinga, JP Kotze, Bernard Scholtz, JJ Smit, Christiaan Snyman, Gerrie Snyman, Raymond van Schoor, Craig Williams
NEPAL: Paras Khadka (captain), Pradeep Airee, Binod Bhandari, Shakti Gauchan, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Subash Khakurel, Siddhant Lohani, Gyanendra Malla, Anil Mandal, Jitendra Mukhiya, Rajesh Pulami, Sagar Pun, Basant Regmi, Sharad Vesawkar
NETHERLANDS: Peter Borren (captain), Rahil Ahmed, Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Ben Cooper, Ahsan Malik, Stephan Myburgh, Max O’Dowd, Michael Rippon, Timm van der Gugten, Roelof van der Merwe*, Paul van Meekeren, Thijs van Schelven, Pieter Seelaar, Michael Swart
OMAN: Sultan Ahmed (captain), Yousuf Abdulrahim, Zeeshan Ahmad, Amir Ali, Khawar Ali, Munis Ansari, Aamir Kaleem, Mehran Khan, Ajay Lalcheta, Sufyan Mahmood, Zeeshan Maqsood, Muhammad Nadeem, Rajeshkumar Ranpura, Jatinder Singh, Vaibhav Wategaonkar
PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Jack Vare (captain), Charles Amini, Sese Bau, John Boge Reva, Mahuru Dai, Willie Gavera, Loa Nou, Kila Pala, Pipi Raho, Lega Siaka, Chad Soper, Tony Ura, Vani Vagi, Assadollah Vala, Norman Vanua
SCOTLAND: Preston Mommsen (captain), Richie Berrington, Kyle Coetzer, Matthew Cross, Josh Davey, Con de Lange, Alasdair Evans, Michael Leask, Calum MacLeod, Gavin Main, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Rob Taylor, Craig Wallace, Mark Watt
UAE: Mohamed Tauqir (captain), Fayyaz Ahmed, Amjad Ali, Saqib Ali, Umair Ali, Shaiman Anwar, Faizan Asif, Nasir Aziz, Manjula Guruge, Amjad Javed, Muhammad Naveed, Swapnil Patil, Ahmed Raza, Muhammad Shahzad, Abdul Shakoor
USA: Muhammad Ghous (captain), Alex Amsterdam, Fahad Babar, Adil Bhatti, Akeem Dodson, Karan Ganesh, Naseer Jamali, Japen Patel, Mrunal Patel, Timil Patel, Hammad Shahid, Jasdeep Singh, Nicholas Stanford, Timothy Surujbally*, Shiva Vashishat
ICC CWC 2015 trio Afghanistan, Scotland and UAE among leading lights
Scotland will be bidding to make home advantage count when it lines out against UAE in a mouthwatering opener for the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in The Grange on Thursday, 9 July.
Preston Mommsen’s men will approach the qualification tournament for ICC World Twenty20 India 2016 in high spirits having defeated fellow co-host Ireland 2-0 in a friendly series last week and are buoyed by the inclusion of the experienced Kyle Coetzer. Much will depend on the prolific skills of all-rounder Josh Davey, while Craig Wallace has also been included in the squad along with hard-hitting George Munsey as the Scots bid to win the title for the first time.
The UAE, for its part, will be led once more by Mohammad Tauqir but will undoubtedly miss the experience of Khurram Khan who has ended his 14-year career. However this will provide ample opportunity for some of the young guns to shine, and Tauqir can also call on familiar heads such as Amjad Javed and Shaiman Anwar for the tournament while the seam attack is likely to be headed by Mohammad Naveed and left arm paceman Manjula Guruge.
The second game of the opening day’s double-header promises to a mouth-watering encounter when Afghanistan, who impressed during ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, face the Netherlands who will be gunning to qualify for next year’s competition in India. Afghanistan also has a new leader in Asghar Stanikzai who takes over from Mohammad Nabi. Afghanistan, who won the 2010 competition, will be aiming to build on the experience gained in Australia and New Zealand earlier this year and are amongst the leading contenders to claim back the title.
For the Netherlands, this competition presents an opportunity to secure a passage to India and a lot will depend on reliable skipper Peter Borren who has 45 appearances under his belt in this format. Wesley Barresi and Ben Cooper will provide a lot of experience, while medium pacer Mudassar Bukhari, on 33 wickets, is one scalp shy of becoming the leading wicket-taker in the tournament’s history. The Dutch have never won the qualifier outright but shared the 2008 crown with Ireland and will therefore be keen to go one step further this month.
Canada will face Kenya the following day (Friday, 10 July) and the north Americans, who have participated in all five competitions, will bank on the experience of all-rounder Rizwan Cheema who leads the side following its victory in the ICC Americas Division 1 T20 title. Canada includes, once more, veteran seamer Khurram Chohan and batting all-rounder Saad Bin Zafar as well as exciting youngster Nitish Kumar and will be bidding to reach the World T20 next year for the first time.
For Kenya, the challenge will be to adapt to the shortest format of the game having convincingly swept past UAE in the four-day Intercontinental Cup recently. Wicket-keeper Irfan Karim and skipper Rakep Patel offer strength in its middle order and if the batsmen click, bolstered by left-arm spinning all-rounder Shem Ngoche, it could make for some long sessions for opposing bowlers. Shem’s brother James, a right arm off spinner, has also been in good form of late in the longer format and boasts an effective economy rate. Kenya’s record in qualification matches to date stands at 11 wins in 24 games.
Oman, meanwhile, will be looking to claim some scalps in this tournament but faces a daunting task in such a strong group. Led by Sultan Ahmed, the Asians will look to left arm spinner Ajay Lalcheta and Munis Ansari to steer the bowling attack, while Jatinder Singh is a positive batsman at the top of the order. Oman opens its account against Kenya in Myreside, Edinburgh on Saturday, 11 July.
The top six sides from the 18-day tournament, during which 51 matches will be played, will join the 10 Full Members for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which will be held from 11 March to 3 April 2016.
The two groups are:
Group A Group B
A1 – Ireland B1 – Afghanistan
A2 – Nepal B2 – UAE
A3 – Hong Kong B3 – Netherlands
A4 – PNG B4 – Scotland
A5 – Namibia B5 – Canada
A6 – USA B6 – Kenya
A7 – Jersey B7 – Oman
Competition tight as co-host Ireland aims for hat-trick; Newcomers Jersey looking to make big impression
Ireland will be hoping to complete a memorable hat-trick of victories as it bids to emerge from Pool ‘A’ of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier 2015, which will be staged in Ireland and Scotland from 9 to 26 July.
This is only the second time that the tournament has been held outside of the UAE, which it did in 2010, 2012 and 2013. On the only other occasion that the qualifying tournament was held outside the UAE, Ireland were the solitary hosts back in 2008 and William Porterfield’s men will kick off its campaign in Stormont when it faces a Namibia side who will be chasing its inaugural qualification for the ICC World Twenty20 next year in India. Ireland, back-to-back winners in the competition in 2012 and 2013, are boosted by the inclusion of several front line internationals including the likes of county cricketers Andrew Balbirnie, George Dockrell, Niall O’Brien, the in-form Paul Stirling and Surrey wicket-keeper Gary Wilson. All-rounder Tyrone Kane will be looking to maintain his recent excellent run of form at club and provincial level for Leinster Lightning and left arm spinner Dockrell, who has claimed 31 victims to date in T20I’s, will be eyeing up Scotland spinner Majid Haq’s record of 34 scalps in the tournament as Ireland bid to make home advantage count in experienced coach John Bracewell’s first competitive tournament in charge. Ireland will be strong favourites to emerge from this Pool as winners, but will need to be mindful of some of the emerging talent on display elsewhere if they bid to make it three in a row.
For Namibia, much will depend on the form of influential captain Nicholas Scholtz, who has played in 41 T20I’s to date. The African nation will be chasing its first qualification for the World T20 and the Eagles will be flying high following its recent ICC Intercontinental Cup victory over Hong Kong who it will face in the final pool game in Clontarf, Dublin on 19 July. Much will also depend on the form of veteran attacking batsman Gerrie Snyman, while watch out for 19-year-old left arm paceman JJ Smit who has a strong all-round game and who has impressed in T20 cricket to date. Namibia will be making its third appearance in the qualifying tournament and is one of six teams in this year’s competition who has not played in the main competition, with the others being Canada, Jersey, Namibia, Oman and USA.
When Nepal lines up against USA in Stormont on Friday week, it will do so with one of its strongest ever panels, led by skipper Paras Khadka who boasts a healthy average of 36.11 in 24 T20I’s to date. The 27-year-old all-rounder is named in an experienced 15-man panel alongside Subash Khakurel, left-arm spinning all-rounder Shakti Gauchan, Sagar Pun and Sharad Vesawkar. To date Nepal has won 11 of its 19 matches across all competitions and will be looking for a bright start after a challenging period which has seen it train in Dharamasala will the country recovers from the devastating recent earthquake.
Its round one opponents, the USA, will be aiming to get off to a bright start in the competition which it has featured in on two occasions previously. The USA’s plans have been hampered by wicketkeeper/batsman Steven Taylor’s unavailability, however they will look to former Under-19 captain Shiva Vashishat and fellow newcomer Alex Amsterdam to make an impact after qualifying as runners up behind Canada in the ICC Americas Division 1 qualification tournament in May. Led by captain Muhammad Ghous, whose off-spinning exploits have yielded 12 wickets in his 15 matches to date, much will depend on the form of left-arm swing bowler Naseer Jamali.
Fresh from its impressive Intercontinental Cup debut against the Netherlands last month, Papua New Guinea will be aiming to convert its form from the longer format to T20 cricket. Assad Vala is a destructive batsman on his day, while newcomer Loa Nou has been in sparkling form with the ball and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain his blistering start to his international career. Wicketkeeper/batsman Jack Vare will lead the team having played in 18 T20I’s for his country.
Hong Kong will be looking for inspiration from its recently installed captain and opening bowler Tanwir Afzal, while Irfan Ahmed has been in sizzling form in the warm-ups, clocking back-to-back half centuries as the Asian side gear up for its third appearance in the competition. Hong Kong has won 10 of its 19 appearances across all competitions and will look to its strong batting line-up to lay the groundwork over the coming weeks before its opener against Jersey in Bready on 11 July.
Tournament debutants Jersey will be aiming to continue its progression and make an impression when it lines up against Hong Kong. Bolstered by the attacking talents of exciting youngster Jonty Jenner, Peter Gough will lead a fresh looking side in their near neighbours Ireland and Scotland having recently won ICC Europe Division 1 T20 title. Left arm spinner Nat Watkins, who has claimed 10 wickets in his last five T20I matches, has played underage representative levels for Oxfordshire.
The top six sides from the 18-day tournament, during which 51 matches will be played, will join the 10 Full Members for the ICC World Twenty20 India 2016, which will be held from 11 March to 3 April 2016.
The two groups are:
Group A Group B
A1 – Ireland B1 – Afghanistan
A2 – Nepal B2 – UAE
A3 – Hong Kong B3 – Netherlands
A4 – PNG B4 – Scotland
A5 – Namibia B5 – Canada
A6 – USA B6 – Kenya
A7 – Jersey B7 – Oman
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