USA players Ali Khan and Monark Patel pose at the Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
photograph: AFP
With a record 20 teams gathering in the United States and West Indies ahead of the Twenty20 World Cup, which starts this weekend, there will be ample opportunities for some of the cricket world's lesser teams to make a name for themselves in the month-long spectacle.
Divided into four groups, the sport's usual contenders will be joined by 12 other teams eager to make a presence known, led by Canada and co-hosts USA, both of whom will be making their tournament debuts in the opening round in Dallas.
New Zealand's first match is against Afghanistan on June 8.
Uganda will also be making its debut but for veteran spinner Frank Nsubuga, 43, it will be the culmination of a personal journey that began in 1997, a year before the country joined the International Cricket Council.
“I've been playing for the national team for 27 years and I'm really happy that this dream has come true,” he told Reuters.
“We want to leave a legacy… we want to leave something behind for the world to see.”
The T20 showpiece has expanded from 12 to 16 participating teams since its inception in 2007 and the unpredictable nature of the format has seen many strong teams suffer defeats.
South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies lost to the Netherlands, Namibia and Scotland respectively in 2022. These three teams could make more of a splash this time around, despite operating on a fraction of the budget the ICC allocates to Test nations.
Ireland face a tough challenge in Group A which also includes India and Pakistan, despite beating eventual winners England in the group stages of the last World Cup.
Afghanistan, with captain Rashid Khan and his predecessor Mohammed Nabi back from the Indian Premier League, are a constant white-ball threat and have the potential to finish in the top two in Group C ahead of two-time champions West Indies.
Bangladesh are no longer an easy team to beat, but the T20 World Cup has not been a favourable environment for them, and their record of just 24 per cent win percentage suggests they will struggle to progress beyond South Africa and Sri Lanka in Group D.
Oman will need to surprise either Australia or England in Group B if they are to have any hope of progressing to the Super Eight.
Nepal are touring without spinner Sandeep Lamichhane, who was recently acquitted on appeal of rape charges but has been unable to obtain a visa to enter the United States, while Papua New Guinea go into their second tournament with low expectations but nothing to lose.
“In T20, every ball changes the outcome so you never know what's going to happen,” Uganda's Nsubuga said.
Bowling coach Kyle Mills talks to the bowlers.
photograph: Photo Sports
date
- The ninth edition of the 20-over showpiece event will be held from June 1 to 29.
- The tournament kicks off with a match between host nation USA and Canada
team
- The tournament will feature 20 teams divided into four groups.
- Group A – India, Pakistan, Canada, Ireland, USA (host nation)
- Group B – England, Australia, Namibia, Scotland, Oman.
- Group C – New Zealand, West Indies (hosts), Afghanistan, Papua New Guinea, Uganda
- Group D – South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Nepal.
- Teams in each group will play each other once in a round robin format, with a win worth 2 points and a draw or no score worth 1 point each.
- The top two teams from each group will advance to the Super 8, where they will be split into two groups of four teams each and play in a round-robin format.
- The top two teams from each Super 8 group will advance to the semi-finals.
venue
- The matches will be played in nine stadiums – six in the West Indies and three in the United States.
- Stadiums in the West Indies: Sir Vivian Richards Stadium (Antigua and Barbuda), Kensington Oval (Barbados), Providence Stadium (Guyana), Darren Sammy Cricket Ground (St. Lucia), Arnos Vale Stadium (St. Vincent and the Grenadines), Brian Lara Cricket Academy (Trinidad and Tobago).
- US stadiums: Central Broward Park (Florida), Nassau County International Cricket Stadium (New York), Grand Prairie Stadium (Texas).
- The final will be held at the 28,000-seat Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Past winners
- 2007: India beats Pakistan by 5 runs
- 2009 Pakistan beats Sri Lanka by 8 wickets
- 2010: England beat Australia by 7 wickets
- 2012 West Indies beat Sri Lanka by 36 runs
- 2014 Sri Lanka beat India by 6 wickets
- 2016 West Indies beat England by 4 wickets
- Australia beats New Zealand by 8 wickets in 2021
- 2022 England beats Pakistan by 5 wickets
–Reuters
