Tag: T20 World Cup 2024

DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday revealed the on-field umpires for the high-octane clash between India and Pakistan during the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Richard Illingworth and Rodney Tucker are slated to fulfil their duties as on-field umpires during the highly anticipated Group A match. Pakistan and India will square off on June 9 in New York.

Illingworth is also named as the on-field umpire for the opening game of the event between co-hosts United States of America (USA) and Canada.

Bangladesh’s Shahid Saikat will join him on the field, becoming the first umpire from the country to officiate at the Men’s T20 World Cup.

Richie Richardson will serve as the match referee, while Sam Nogajski will be the TV umpire and Langton Rusere will serve as the fourth umpire for the tournament opener.

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The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 is slated to run from June 1 to 29 and will be co-hosted by the USA and West Indies. The tournament kicks off with co-host USA taking on Canada in the curtain raiser at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas.

The ninth edition of the mega event features a record 20 teams, divided into four groups. The top two teams from each of the groups will qualify for the Super Eight phase, where the sides will be split into two groups of four.

The top two teams in each group will then make their way to the semi-finals.

The Match Officials for the T20 World Cup 2024

Umpires: Chris Brown, Kumar Dharmasena, Chris Gaffaney, Michael Gough, Adrian Holdstock, Richard Illingworth, Allahudien Paleker, Richard Kettleborough, Jayaraman Madanagopal, Nitin Menon, Sam Nogajski, Ahsan Raza, Rashid Riaz, Paul Reiffel, Langton Rusere, Shahid Saikat, Rodney Tucker, Alex Wharf, Joel Wilson and Asif Yaqoob.

Match referees: David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Ranjan Madugalle, Andrew Pycroft, Richie Richardson and Javagal Srinath.

READ: Hasan Ali released from the Pakistan squad

LEEDS: Pakistan’s white-ball captain Babar Azam on Tuesday, stated that his team have a “golden opportunity” to win the forthcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to commence on June 1.

Babar, in a press conference here ahead of Pakistan’s four-match T20I series against England, responded to a question regarding his reinstatement as Pakistan captain, just months after he stepped down from the role.

“To be honest, [I returned as the captain] because of the World Cup. In the past, we have played semi-final and final but this time I have the opportunity to win the World Cup,” Babar said.

“Second thing is that we have good bunch of players. We have a good batting lineup and specially our bowling is good because Amir is back. [We have] Shaheen, Haris and Naseem, they are good fast bowlers so yeah, we have a golden opportunity to win the World Cup,” he added.

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Babar further shared that Saim Ayub and Mohammad Rizwan will continue to open the innings for Pakistan while the skipper will bat one down.

“Look, as you might have noticed we did not make many experiments in the Ireland series. We fielded the same lineup we foresee [to utilise] in the World Cup.

“We are planning to go with which combination and we have almost decided what should be our batting and bowling lineup.

“You’ll see our planning in this series but yes, we can make one or so changes according to the conditions or what is required. But, mostly I’ll be batting at one down.

The Pakistan skipper also provided an update regarding Haris Rauf’s fitness and revealed that the right-arm speedster is completely fit.

“We’ve received clearance for Haris Rauf. He’s available for this series. So, by the will of Almighty Allah, he will surely be seen in action in the series.”

For the unversed, the four-match T20I series between Pakistan and England, scheduled to run from May 22 to 30, will serve as a warm-up for both teams heading into the T20 World Cup 2024 as the previous edition’s finalists will skip the warm-up matches for this year’s mega event.

Pakistan squad:

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Usman Khan.

England squad:

Jos Buttler (c), Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Reece Topley.

Pak vs Eng T20I series schedule:

1st T20I: Wed, May 22nd
2nd T20I: Sat, May 25th
3rd T20I: Tue, May 28th
4th T20I: Thu, May 30th

READ: England captain Jos Buttler upbeat for Pakistan’s bowling challenge

Afghanistan Tuesday roped in former West Indian all-rounder and the leading wicket-taker in T20s Dwayne Bravo as their bowling consultant for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said Bravo will be an asset for the team.

“West Indian World Cup winner Bravo has been appointed as bowling consultant and will join the squad during the preparation camp ahead of the marquee event,” the ACB release said.

Most members of the Afghanistan team have reached the Caribbean for a 10-day preparatory camp where Dwayne Bravo will also join them.

The 40-year-old is currently the leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket with 625 wickets in 573 games and was regarded as one of the pioneers of bowling in the shortest format.

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Afghanistan will play warm-up games against Oman on May 29 and Scotland two days later.

They are in a tough Group C with co-hosts West Indies, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Uganda.

Afghanistan will start their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against Uganda on June 5 in Guyana.

The 20 competing teams are divided in four groups of five teams with the top two in each progressing to the Super Eight stage.

The ninth edition of the T20 World Cup will be played in the United States and the West Indies from June 1-29.

Afghanistan Squad for T20 World Cup: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Ishaq, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan (c), Nangyal Kharoti, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad Malik

Reserves: Sediq Atal, Hazratullah Zazai, Saleem Safi

READ: Babar Azam settles opening pair debate for T20 World Cup 2024

The four-match T20I series between ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 finalists Pakistan and England will commence on Wednesday at Headingley as the two teams fine-tune their preparations for the T20 World Cup 2024.

The remaining three matches will be held in Birmingham (25 May), Cardiff (28 May) and The Oval, London (30 May), before the two teams depart for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the United States of America (USA) and West Indies.

The last T20I meeting between Pakistan and England took place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) in the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022.

Eventual champions England edged past Pakistan by five wickets in the close encounter with Sam Curran earning the player of the final award for his figures of three for 12.

A full-strength Pakistan cricket team is expected to take the field at Headingley on Wednesday at the back of a 2-1 series win against Ireland in Dublin last week.

Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Shah Afridi snapped up the Player of the Match awards in the two victories.

England dominate the T20I rivalry with 19 wins to Pakistan’s nine triumphs, while one game ended as a no-result.

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England were the winners of the previous bilateral series against Pakistan, clinching the seven T20Is played in Lahore and Karachi 4-3.

Pakistan men’s white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten joined the side on 19 May for the first assignment of his two-year tenure.

Meanwhile, Pakistan captain Babar Azam expressed his confidence in his team’s ability to carry the winning momentum into the England series and also to the forthcoming T20 World Cup 2024.

“I am confident that Pakistan will carry the winning momentum from the Ireland series into the England T20Is. Our 2-1 victory in Dublin showcased the brilliance of our batters and bowlers, while also providing us with learnings as we aim to work on our areas of improvement.

“We’ve had productive training sessions at Headingley and with head coach Gary Kirsten linking up with the squad, we are focused on fine-tuning our strategies and combinations for the four T20Is against England and T20 World Cup.”

Pakistan squad:

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Usman Khan.

England squad:

Jos Buttler (c), Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Reece Topley.

Pak vs Eng T20I series schedule:

1st T20I: Wed, May 22nd
2nd T20I: Sat, May 25th
3rd T20I: Tue, May 28th
4th T20I: Thu, May 30th

READ: “We are not afraid,” Babar Azam on Jofra Archer’s return

LEEDS: Pakistan’s white-ball captain Babar Azam on Tuesday, cleared the air regarding the team’s opening pair for the four-match T20I series against England and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Babar, while addressing the pre-series press conference here, shared that Saim Ayub and Mohammad Rizwan will continue to open the innings for Pakistan while the skipper will bat one down.

“Look, as you might have noticed we did not make many experiments in the Ireland series. We fielded the same lineup we foresee [to utilise] in the World Cup.

“We are planning to go with which combination and we have almost decided what should be our batting and bowling lineup.

“You’ll see our planning in this series but yes, we can make one or so changes according to the conditions or what is required. But, mostly I’ll be batting at one down.

The Pakistan skipper also provided an update regarding Haris Rauf’s fitness and revealed that the right-arm speedster is completely fit.

“We’ve received clearance for Haris Rauf. He’s available for this series. So, by the will of Almighty Allah, he will surely be seen in action in the series.”

Babar Azam further acknowledged England as one of the best teams in the world and termed the four-match series against reigning champions as a golden opportunity to fine-tune their preparations for the T20 World Cup 2024.

“[We are] very excited before the World Cup, we have a good series and it will help a lot.

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For the unversed, the four-match T20I series between Pakistan and England will run from May 22 to 30 and will serve as a warm-up for both teams heading into the T20 World Cup 2024.

Pakistan squad:

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Usman Khan.

England squad:

Jos Buttler (c), Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Reece Topley.

Pak vs Eng T20I series schedule:

1st T20I: Wed, May 22nd
2nd T20I: Sat, May 25th
3rd T20I: Tue, May 28th
4th T20I: Thu, May 30th

READ: Imad Wasim terms England series crucial for T20 World Cup preparations

Cricket Australia (CA) on Tuesday, confirmed the addition of Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short as the travelling reserves to their preliminary squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to commence on June 1.

Explosive batter Fraser-McGurk and all-rounder Short earned a late ticket to this year’s mega event as reserves, meaning there is still no spot for Steve Smith, Jason Behrendorff and Tanveer Sangha.

Fraser-McGurk enjoyed an astounding Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with Delhi Capitals as he smashed 330 runs in just nine appearances.

His purple patch was close to taking him to the T20 World Cup 2024 but the likes of David Warner, Travis Head and Mitch Marsh saw him missing out.

Similarly, Short, who has been the standout opening batter in the Big Bash League (BBL), can also bat down the order and offer a solid off-spin bowling option, but narrowly missed out on making it to Australia’s Final 15.

“You look at Jake’s form in the IPL – he took that by storm and he was a serious consideration for the final 15,” coach Andrew McDonald told cricket.com.au.

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“And so was Matthew Short. His BBL form has been outstanding over a long period of time and he’s shown glimpses at the international level as well, albeit at times he’s had to play a different role.

“When you’re on the fringes potentially you’re going to have to play different roles at different times and he’s really embraced some middle-order opportunities.

“We know that he’s best suited at the top of the order – and it’s probably similar for Jake as well – hence why they haven’t been picked in the initial 15.

“But should anything move, we feel as though both of them could have the flexibility to line up anywhere in that batting order.”

Notably, Jason Sangha was in contention to be considered for the travelling reserve spots but suffered a hip injury while training in Brisbane last week.

Australia squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa

Travelling Reserves: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Short

READ: Imad Wasim terms England series crucial for T20 World Cup preparations

LEEDS: Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim termed the upcoming four-match series against England crucial for the team’s preparations for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, starting on June 1.

Imad addressed the pre-series press conference here and emphasized the importance of the series just before the mega event while responding to a concern regarding players’ workload management and injury scares.

“It is a good thing. If you think that an injury would occur then that’s not the case. A series right before the World Cup is to finalize the team composition and obviously to win,” stated Imad.

“Also, success gives confidence, so, if we play well in this series then we’ll be able to carry this confidence ahead.

“So, I think we should not think about injury, it can happen anytime, even in the first match of the World Cup.”

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Imad Wasim further lauded the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) medical panel and shared that it has been managing players’ workload management effectively since the home T20I series against New Zealand.

“Our medical panel is quite good, it has been managing the workload since the New Zealand series both of fast bowlers and spinners,” Imad said.

“So, I think there is no such concern regarding injury. Everyone [in the team] is fit,” he added.

The all-rounder then acknowledged that the national men’s team did not play to their potential despite fielding a full-strength side in the home series against New Zealand and in the series opener against Ireland but vowed “not to get relaxed” in the upcoming matches.

“We played with our full-strength side and obviously, if we lost against New Zealand, we did not play good cricket. Even in the defeat against Ireland, we did not play good cricket. It’s a fact.

“But, I think, we need to think positively and I feel that it is good that we suffered a setback earlier not in the World Cup.

“Because it gives you an idea of how to approach and we can not relax even one per cent. Usually, we used to get relaxed. So, we planned after losing the first match against Ireland that we wouldn’t get relaxed and would play all the next matches with the same intensity with which we play after losing,” Imad concluded.

For the unversed, the four-match T20I series between Pakistan and England will run from May 22 to 30 and will serve as a warm-up for both teams heading into the T20 World Cup 2024.

Pakistan squad:

Babar Azam (c), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Usman Khan.

England squad:

Jos Buttler (c), Phil Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Tom Hartley, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Reece Topley.

Pak vs Eng T20I series schedule:

1st T20I: Wed, May 22nd
2nd T20I: Sat, May 25th
3rd T20I: Tue, May 28th
4th T20I: Thu, May 30th

READ: Rain likely to spoilsport Pakistan-England T20I series opener

Former West Indies all-rounder and head coach Phil Simmons has been appointed as ‘specialist coach’ by Papua New Guinea (PNG) ahead of the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to commence on June 1.

Simmons will support PNG head coach Tatenda Taibu with his extensive local knowledge, aiding players in adjusting and adapting to the Caribbean conditions.

The former all-rounder served as the West Indian head coach on two separate occasions, helping them with their second T20 World Cup in 2016 during his first tenure.

He has also worked with the national teams of Zimbabwe, Ireland, and Afghanistan, in addition to his extensive coaching experience in franchise cricket.

“My role here is as a consultant coach and [will be about] how I put across my experience, not just playing in World Cups but playing in the Caribbean and the things that we should be looking at to make sure we do it right in the Caribbean and especially the venues that we play at,” said Phil Simmons.

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“As a player internationally, for fourteen years and then as an international coach for eighteen years, it’s been a long time in the game.

“It’s always brilliant to come home, always brilliant to come back to any part of the West Indies. You know how beautiful it is here. I’m looking forward to getting home, which is Trinidad.”

The PNG squad reached the Caribbean island of St Kitts last week, and are scheduled to face Oman and Namibia in warm-up fixtures in Trinidad and Tobago next week.

They are placed in Group C alongside co-hosts West Indies, New Zealand, Afghanistan, and Uganda. They will play their opening game in the T20 World Cup against West Indies on June 2.

Papua New Guinea squad for T20 World Cup

Assadollah Vala (c), CJ Amini (vc), Alei Nao, Chad Soper, Hila Vare, Hiri Hiri, Jack Gardner, John Kariko, Kabua Vagi Morea, Kipling Doriga, Lega Siaka, Norman Vanua, Sema Kamea, Sese Bau, Tony Ura

READ: West Indies rest key players for South Africa series ahead of T20 World Cup

KINGSTON: The Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming T20I series against South Africa, starting from May 23.

The three-match series will serve as the final preparation for both teams before the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, which is scheduled to be held in the West Indies and the United States of America from June 1.

Top-order batter Brandon King will lead the Caribbean squad against South Africa as their regular captain Rovman Powell will not feature in the series owing to commitments with the IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals.

Along with Powell, key players Andre Russell, Shimron Hetmyer, Alzarri Joseph and Sherfane Rutherford will also miss the series due to the ongoing IPL. However, Joseph and Rutherford will join the West Indies squad if their teams fail to reach the IPL final.

Meanwhile, Nicholas Pooran and Shai Hope have been given rest ahead of the mega-event, as their IPL teams have been knocked out.

“These are among the last competitive T20 international matches before the start of the World Cup,” lead selector Desmond Haynes said.

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“Players have the opportunity to fine-tune their skills and ensure they are as prepared as they can be for the World Cup, whether they are in the final squad or reserve pool.”

“We have not played together as a team since the Australia series, but we just completed a very high-intensity training camp in Antigua,” head coach Daren Sammy said.

“Now we have the chance to integrate some of our players returning from the IPL and build some momentum as a group going into the World Cup.”

West Indies squad for South Africa T20Is

Brandon King (c), Roston Chase, Fabian Allen, Alick Athanaze, Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher, Matthew Forde, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Shamar Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Obed McCoy, Gudakesh Motie, Romario Shepherd, Hayden Walsh Jr.

Series schedule:
First T20I, Jamaica, May 23
Second T20I, Jamaica, May 25
Third T20I, Jamaica, May 26

READ: Babar Azam close to surpass Virat Kohli’s T20I record in England series

Former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh termed Pakistan a tricky challenge for India ahead of their much-anticipated ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 clash.

Two of the most fierce competitors in the game of cricket — Pakistan and India — will lock horns at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on June 9.

Meanwhile, former spinner Harbhajan, while talking to a local news channel, asserted that the seizure of the bilateral series between the two cricketing nations will make the encounter a tricky one.

“At the end of the day, playing against Pakistan is always (tricky) as both countries do not play much against each other. We do not know much about their strong and weak zones but the Indian management keeps track of every player and their strong and weak zones,” Harbhajan said.

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Harbhajan Singh also acknowledged Pakistan’s bowling department’s mental and physical strength but insisted that the Indian team will counter them.

“In the bowling department too, Pakistan bowlers keep themselves mentally and physically strong. These aspects will be taken care of by the Indian team. These things will come into play when both sides will battle it out on the field,” he said.

Earlier, Harbhajan Singh slamed at the idea of drop-in pitches for the blockbuster clash of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, raising concerns about the unpredictability of the surface.

“Pitches there [Nassau Cricket Stadium] are known to none to be honest. Even the pitch curators might not know how many times will this pitch last. How much heat would be there how much water has been put in? How much bounce would it offer?,” Harbhajan said during a press conference.

“Once those practice games are played there, then we will get to know how the pitch is acting. And then we can think about combinations. Prior knowing that, we can’t say about team combinations.”

READ: Virat Kohli plays down hype around Pakistan-India T20 World Cup clash