Tag: ICC World Cup 2023

Veteran left-arm pacer Trent Boult has been included in New Zealand’s squad for the four-match away ODI series against England in September, a month prior to the ICC Men’s World Cup.

In August 2022, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) agreed to release Boult from the central contract upon his request as the left-arm pacer wanted to spend more time with his family and make himself available for franchise cricket.

“It’s great to welcome Trent back into our ODI unit as he begins his preparation towards the World Cup in India,” said head coach Gary Stead.

Despite being excluded from the central contract in August last year, Boult last played an ODI in September.

Upon his release from the central contract, the NZC asserted that they would “continue to make a priority of those players with either central or domestic contracts”.

Besides Boult, fellow pacer Lockie Ferguson has also made his way back into the squad after recovering from a back injury but all-rounder Michael Bracewell was still unavailable for the England tour.

Notably, Bracewell underwent surgery after rupturing his right Achilles while batting for the Worcestershire Rapids in the English T20 Blast.

Additionally, Mark Chapman and James Neesham will also miss the ODI series as they both await the births of their first children, while spinner Ish Sodhi will return home after the four-match T20 series which precedes the ODIs.

Injured New Zealand’s limited-over captain Kane Williamson will join the squad to continue his rehabilitation from a knee injury but will not play.

He ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee while fielding for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League.

New Zealand ODI squad: Tom Latham (c & wk), Finn Allen, Trent Boult, Devon Conway (wk), Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Will Young.

New Zealand T20I squad: Tim Southee (c), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway (wk), Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips. Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi.

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The trophy of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup to be held in India later this year, is currently on a three-day tour of Bangladesh.

The ICC World Cup Trophy reached Dhaka late Sunday night and its official photo shoot took place at Service Area 1 of the Padma Multipurpose Bridge on Monday.

The ICC World Cup trophy glows in the Padma Bridge’s light.💥🏆

#BCB | #cricket | #iccworldcup2023 pic.twitter.com/SqCPVTjqJx

— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) August 7, 2023

The trophy was exhibited today, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur for Bangladesh’s current as well as former players from both men’s and women’s national cricket teams.

Moreover, cricket officials, organizers, and media members were also present at the occasion.

The ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 trophy took center stage at the SBNCS in Mirpur as the Bangladesh Cricket team and coaching staff joined for a memorable photograph.

Photo Credit: ICC#BCB | #cricket | #iccworldcup2023 pic.twitter.com/MUg0t3SmmL

— Bangladesh Cricket (@BCBtigers) August 8, 2023

The ICC World Cup Trophy will be on exhibition for the public at Bashundhara City Shopping Mall in Dhaka from 11 AM on Wednesday (tomorrow).

The ICC Cricket World Cup trophy embarked on the tour across the globe, on June 27, 2023, marking 100 days prior to the extravaganza starting on October 5.

The trophy will tour 18 ICC member countries across five regions — Africa, the Americas, Asia, East Asia Pacific and Europe during this 100-day tour.

The trophy will then return to the host India for the final 30 days before the event to be exhibited across the country to hype up the fans for the upcoming event.

The Cricket World Cup trophy features a golden globe, characterizing a cricket ball that is held up by three silver columns, which are crafted to resemble stumps and bails, representing the pillars of the game, batting, bowling, and fielding.

The trophy is made with silver and gilt, standing 60 cm tall and weighing approximately 11 kilos. It has been designed with platonic dimensions, which ensure that its uniqueness is immediately recognizable from every angle.

The Cricket World Cup 2023 will commence on October 5, while the final is scheduled for November 19, where the top ten cricket teams will fight for the biggest trophy in cricket.

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MELBOURNE: Marnus Labuschagne was left out of Australia’s preliminary squad for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 while uncapped leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha and WA allrounder Aaron Hardie got surprise call-ups.

Cricket Australia (CA) today named an extended 18-man squad for the ICC Men’s World Cup that will later be trimmed to 15, with a five-match series in South Africa in September the first assignment.

Marnus Labuschagne is the most notable omission from the 50-over squad having played 30 of Australia’s 38 matches since his debut in January 2020, with an average of 31.37.

Labuschagne had a strong start to his ODI career in 2020, scoring 40 or more in six of his first eight innings. But since then his performance at the 50-over level significantly deteriorated.

But it is not yet over for the fifth-ranked Test batter as selection chair George Bailey can still make his way back, having the opportunity to feature for Australia A to “focus on some white-ball cricket”.

“It is form-based. We know Marnus at his best is good enough to hold down a spot in the one-day team, we just haven’t seen enough of it consistently in the role that we’d like him to do,” Bailey told reporters.

“Leading into the World Cup there’s some opportunities for some others to get a bit more game time in there.

“We’ve been really clear with Marnus; he’s going to be part of some Australia A games at the same time so he can focus on some white-ball cricket.”

Besides Marnus Labuschagne’s exclusion, the inclusion of uncapped leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha and Aaron Hardie were the other surprise calls made by the Australian selection committee.

Australia will bolster their preparations for this year’s ICC Men’s World Cup with a five-match ODI series against and players like Sangha and Hardie are highly likely to get an opportunity to justify their selection.

Sangha, who has been a part of Australia’s contingents in their recent T20I tours, is yet to earn a debut cap. But on spin-friendly conditions in India, he can be turned out a value addition to Australia’s spin attack, featuring Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa.

Hardie will certainly face competition for all-rounder spots on Australia’s team in India from players like Mitch Marsh, Marcus Stoinis, and Glenn Maxwell.

George Bailey before terming the squad well-balanced, expressed confidence that Australia can add up to their World Cup title tally, having previously won in 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2015.

“This side has been extremely impressive for several years in limited-overs cricket,” Bailey said.

“There is an enormous amount of skill and experience in the group, which you need in a World Cup.”

Australia preliminary ODI squad for ICC Men’s World Cup: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa.

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The much-anticipated clash between Pakistan and India in the upcoming ICC Men’s World Cup, scheduled for October 15, is likely to be preponed due to the date coinciding with the beginning of the Navratri festival, The Indian Express reported on Wednesday.

“We have been told by the security agencies that a high-profile game like India vs Pakistan, for which thousands of travelling fans are expected to reach Ahmedabad, should be avoided since they will be stretched because of Navratri,” a top official from India’s cricket board, who did not wish to be identified, told The Indian Express.

“We are mulling the options that we have and a decision will be taken soon,” the official said.

The report further suggested that the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) Secretary Jay Shah also called a meeting on July 27 (tomorrow) with all the authorities involved in hosting the World Cup matches to analyze the possible change.

“I feel it will be in the best interest of all concerned that we meet again to exchange notes and take stock of any issue which needs discussion and decision,” the report quoted the letter sent by Shah as saying.

“It is learnt that the board might apprise the members of the security concerns around Ahmedabad and finalise a new date for the match,” The Indian Express noted.

A total of 10 teams will participate in the ICC Men’s World Cup – featuring 45 matches – and compete for the prestigious silverware across 10 venues from October 5 to November 19.

Like the previous edition, the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 will also be played in a round-robin format – each team playing nine matches with the rest of the opponents.

The top four teams by the end of the group stage will qualify for the semi-finals, scheduled to be held in Mumbai on November 15 and in Kolkata on November 16.

Whereas, the final of the tournament will take place on November 19 at the grand Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Notably, all three knockout matches of the ICC Men’s World Cup will have a reserve day.

READ: Shoaib Akhtar irked over Babar Azam’s absence from World Cup promo

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar expressed his disappointment over the absence of Babar Azam from the recently-unveiled promo for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday, released a promo video for the mega event featuring superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

The promo, released on all ICC social media platforms, became cricket fans’ attention within minutes but it did not go well with Pakistan fans.

The two-minute-long video promo was alleged to under-represent Pakistan and also did not feature the top ODI batter, Babar Azam.

Besides being the top-ranked batter in the 50-over format, Babar Azam is the current ICC Men’s ODI Player of the Year and Sir Garfield Sobers ICC Player of the Year.

He is also currently the only batter to feature in top-three of all-format ICC rankings.

Consequently, former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar, known for his blunt opinions, did not mince his word while criticising the promo for under-representing Pakistan and the absence of Babar Azam.

“Whoever thought that World Cup promo will be complete without Pakistan & Babar Azam’s significant presence, has actually presented himself as a joke. Come on guys, time to grow up a bit,” wrote Shoaib Akhtar.

Whoever thought that World Cup promo will be complete without Pakistan & Babar Azam's significant presence, has actually presented himself as a joke.
Come on guys, time to grow up a bit.

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) July 22, 2023

 

To hype the ICC Men’s World Cup, the cricketing governing body produced a promotional video for their forthcoming extravaganza and called one of India’s most famous stars Khan to be the face of their advertising.

The 2-minute long video, centred on the tournament’s ethos and tagline — ‘All it takes is one day’, is narrated by Shah Rukh Khan.

“The difference between making history and being history: one day. Jerseys will be worn, and chests will swell with pride, on that one day. Passion will triumph logic, and memories will be etched, on that one day. Fears will be conquered, and odds will be braved, on that one day. From the highs of joy, to the lows of anguish, it will all be embraced, on that one day,” narrates Khan.

“Rivalries will be redefined on the pitch, and respect reimagined in the stands. The power of belief will emerge from the hearts of a billion. Songs will be sung, dances will be danced, and eyes will widen in wonder, on that one day. And when that day comes, and when that day finally comes, glory will be immortalized,” continued Khan.

“This is the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, for everything ever dreamt for, pushed for, lived for, it takes one day,” concludes the movie star in the video.

The video features montages of iconic moments from the previous editions of the World Cup.

It also stars guest appearances from 2019 World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan, Dinesh Karthik, Jonty Rhodes, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shubman Gill and Jemimah Rodrigues dancing with cricket fans.

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday, spiced up the hype for the upcoming Men’s Cricket World Cup by releasing a promo video for the mega event featuring superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

To hype the ICC Men’s World Cup, the cricketing governing body produced a promotional video for their forthcoming extravaganza and called one of India’s most famous stars Khan to be the face of their advertising.

The remarkable 2-minute long video, centred on the tournament’s ethos and tagline — ‘All it takes is one day’, is narrated by Shah Rukh Khan.

“The difference between making history and being history: one day. Jerseys will be worn, and chests will swell with pride, on that one day. Passion will triumph logic, and memories will be etched, on that one day. Fears will be conquered, and odds will be braved, on that one day. From the highs of joy, to the lows of anguish, it will all be embraced, on that one day,” narrates Khan.

“Rivalries will be redefined on the pitch, and respect reimagined in the stands. The power of belief will emerge from the hearts of a billion. Songs will be sung, dances will be danced, and eyes will widen in wonder, on that one day. And when that day comes, and when that day finally comes, glory will be immortalized,” continued Khan.

“This is the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, for everything ever dreamt for, pushed for, lived for, it takes one day,” concludes the movie star in the video.

The video features montages of iconic moments from the previous editions of the World Cup. It also stars guest appearances from 2019 World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan, Dinesh Karthik, Jonty Rhodes, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shubman Gill and Jemimah Rodrigues dancing with cricket fans.

A total of 10 teams will participate in the ICC Men’s World Cup – featuring 45 matches – and compete for the prestigious silverware across 10 venues from October 5 to November 19.

Like the previous edition, the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 will also be played in a round-robin format – each team playing nine matches with the rest of the opponents.

The top four teams by the end of the group stage will qualify for the semi-finals, scheduled to be held in Mumbai on November 15 and in Kolkata on November 16.

Whereas, the final of the tournament will take place on November 19 at the grand Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Notably, all three knockout matches of the ICC Men’s World Cup will have a reserve day.

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KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain and star all-rounder Shahid Afridi expressed his confidence in the current national team’s ability to beat any team in the upcoming ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 in India.

Shahid Afridi, while speaking to the media after the MoU signing ceremony of Sindh Premier League (SPL)’s franchise Benazirabad Lals, praised the Babar Azam-led side’s current form and claimed that they can beat any team.

“Pakistan team is in good form. They are strong in every department and they have the ability to beat any team,” said Afridi.

Meanwhile, Pakistan players have a rigorous task of dealing with a packed before heading into the World Cup.

The national team are currently in Sri Lanka for a two-match series and will return home for the initial fixtures of the Asia Cup at home before travelling back to the Island for the continental event.

Consequently, Shahid Afridi thinks it will be crucial for the players to retain their fitness for the World Cup.

“They have to play continuous cricket for which they’ll have to maintain their fitness. There will be a lot of cricket with Test series, Asia Cup and World Cup,” said Afridi.

Shahid Afridi further called for the need of preparing two teams in a bid to get back up if the national team loses the services of any first-choice player due to injury.

“If the main bowlers are not in the team, who will be their backup? Therefore, I’ve been saying for a long period of time that we should focus on building two teams,” Afridi said.

“Our bench strength should be strong. Pakistan team should run even without Babar and Shaheen,” he reiterated.

It is pertinent to mention that Shahid Afridi will participate in the inaugural edition of the Sindh Premier League, scheduled to commence on September 19.

The star all-rounder will lead Benazirabad Lals while another veteran Shoaib Malik will lead Hyderabad Bahadurs.

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Pakistan captain Babar Azam commented on the Pakistan-India clash and asserted that his team’s focus in the World Cup will not remain on a single team.

Pakistan’s Test squad is currently engaged in the pre-series training camp at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi from 4-7 July. Following the conclusion of the camp, the team will depart for Sri Lanka on 8 July.

The two-match Test series in Sri Lanka marks Pakistan’s first assignment in the third cycle of the ICC World Test Championship. The first match is scheduled to take place on 16 July at Galle International Cricket Stadium while the second Test will be held at Singhalese Sports Club in Colombo from 24 to 28 July.

Pakistan, ranked sixth in the ICC Men’s Test Team Rankings, previously toured Sri Lanka in July 2022 with the two-Test series drawn 1-1. They played their last Test series against New Zealand at home from 26 December 2022 to 6 January 2023 with both matches drawn.

Meanwhile, Babar Azam in the pre-departure press conference, played down the hype of the Pakistan-India World Cup clash, stating that his team’s focus in the mega event was not glued to a single team.

“Our focus in the World Cup later this year is not just team India but all of the sides participating in the tournament. We will be able to reach the finals only if we defeat the other teams. Our plan is to be equally competitive with every opponent,” said Babar.

“As a professional, our stance is to play cricket regardless of the venues and be ready to overcome all the challenges that come with different conditions. The goal is to represent Pakistan and help the team succeed by adapting to the different environments.

“Pakistan’s batters have dominated spin bowlers in the past so it will not be correct to suggest that our players fear playing against spin in conducive conditions. A batter is expected to do something different whenever he faces tough time against a bowler.

“Pakistan team will benefit from the input of Mickey Arthur [Director – Pakistan Men’s Cricket Team] as he was Sri Lanka’s head coach for a couple of years. He will have knowledge of the conditions in Sri Lanka and his experience with the side will further help us prepare for the upcoming series.”

Speaking on the likely lineup for the Test series against Sri Lanka, Babar Azam revealed that he will be preferring Sarfaraz Ahmed as his first-choice wicketkeeper batter before asserting that it is not necessary for the vice-captain to feature in the Playing XI, while referring to Mohammad Rizwan.

“It’s too early to say but I’ll try to prefer to have Sarfraz as my first choice. It’s not necessary for the vice-captain to play, it doesn’t affect anything. We will go with the best XI according to the conditions at play,” Babar Azam concluded.

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BULAWAYO: Bas de Leede followed up his five-wicket haul with a brisk century and propelled Netherlands to qualify for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 with a four-wicket victory over Scotland.

Set to chase 278, the Netherlands had a challenging task to book their spot in the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 as they had to amass the total in 44 overs to leapfrog Scotland in the CWC Qualifier Super Six standings.

The Dutch, however, pulled off an astonishing entry into the World Cup by completing the run chase in 42.5 overs courtesy of a brisk century by de Leede.

The all-rounder smashed seven boundaries and five sixes on his way to top score for the Netherlands with a 92-ball 123.

Netherlands had a cautious start to the run chase and they were 72/2 in the 15th over when de Leede walked into bat.

The right-handed batter spearheaded Netherlands’ pursuit and stitched brief partnerships with Wesley Barresi (11), Teja Nidamanuru (10) and skipper Scott Edwards 25 before finally received subtle support at the other end in the form of Saqib Zulfiqar.

The duo then stitched a match-defining partnership for the sixth wicket and added 113 runs in 69 deliveries to put their side in complete command.

Bas de Leede got run out in the 43rd over when his side needed only two more runs.

Zulfiqar, on the other hand, carried his bat all the way through and remained unbeaten with a 32-ball 33 which featured three boundaries and a six.

Put into bat first, Scotland raised a decent total of 276/9 in the allotted 50 overs.

Top-order batter Brandon McMullen was the star for Scotland with the bat as he scored an anchoring century.

He scored 106 off 110 balls, laced up with 11 boundaries and three sixes.

Skipper Richie Berrington also played a cautious 64-run knock from 84 deliveries.

Tomas Mackintosh’s brisk 38-run cameo at the backend lifted Scotland to a commendable total, which in the end, turned out insufficient for their bowlers to defend.

Bas de Leede was the hero for the Netherlands with the ball also as he returned with 5/52 in his 10 overs.

Ryan Klein bagged two wickets while Logan van Beek made one scalp.

BULAWAYO: Tournament favourites Zimbabwe have been knocked out of the World Cup qualification race after the hosts succumbed to a shocking defeat against Scotland in the Cricket World Cup (CWC) Qualifier Super Six clash.

Set to chase a modest 235-run, the home side could only raise 203 before being bundled out in the 42nd over despite Ryan Burl’s fighting 83-run knock.

The hosts had a dismal start to the pursuit as they lost four wickets in the eighth with just 37 runs on the scoreboard with in-form batter Sean Williams (12) and skipper Craig Ervine (0) also falling victim to the early debacle caused by a ruthless Chris Sole’s opening spell.

With Zimbabwe reeling at 37/4, in-form Sikandar Raza and Ryan Burl attempted to anchor the run chase and put on a valiant 54-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

The pair appeared to have settled down and had put Scotland bowlers in dire need of a breakthrough which they eventually found in the 18th over when Raza miscued one off Chris Greaves and handed an easy catch to Tomas Mackintosh at long-off.

Raza could score 34 off 40 deliveries, laced with two boundaries and a six.

Wessley Madhevere joined Ryan Burl in the middle after Raza’s dismissal and put on another crucial partnership for their side in a daunting run chase.

The pair of Madhevere and Burl added a brisk 73 runs during their sixth-wicket partnership and had pulled Zimbabwe out of danger but Scotland once again managed to find a breakthrough at the perfect time when Brandon McMullen removed the former in the 31st over.

Madhevere scored a quick 40 off 39 deliveries with the help of three boundaries and a six.

Click to watch CWC Qualifier Live on ARY ZAP

Zimbabwe then lost two more wickets in quick successions as Wellington Masakadza and Richard Ngarava perished in successive overs to leave Zimbabwe in heaps of trouble at 182/8.

Ryan Burl, who was hanging on for Zimbabwe with a gritty knock finally perished in the 39th over as he failed to time his slog sweep of Michael Leask and put Scotland in complete command.

He remained the top scorer for Zimbabwe with an 84-ball 83 which featured eight boundaries and a six, receiving massive applause from the dejected home crowd as he walked off.

Right-arm pacer Safyaan Sharif wrapped up an astonishing victory for Scotland in the 42nd over when he castled Tendai Chatara, who could score a mere two.

Scotland could score 234/8 in the allotted 50 overs after they were put into bat first.

All-rounder Michael Leask led the batting charge for Scotland with a quickfire 48-run knock on 34 deliveries which featured three boundaries and two sixes.

Before Leask’s blitz, Scotland’s top four – Christopher McBride (28), Matthew Cross (38), Brandon McMullen (34) and George Munsey (31) – made significant contributions up the order to lay a solid foundation for a defendable total.

Bowling all-rounder Mark Watt also lent a helping hand with a 21-run cameo at the backend and bolstered his side’s total alongside Leask.

Sean Williams led the bowling attack for Zimbabwe with 3/41, followed by Tendai Chatara who returned with 2/46.

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