Tag: World Cup 2023

RAWALPINDI: New Zealand veteran Kane Williamson would not be left out of the ICC ODI World Cup later this year as the Blackcaps management considers roping him in a mentoring role if he will not be completely fit to play the megaevent.

New Zealand head coach Gary Stead has refused to rule out Williamson from the BlackCaps World Cup squad as yet, hoping the injured batter would make a full recovery before the tournament.

Williamson ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament of his right knee while fielding for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League match earlier this month and underwent surgery.

Typically, the injury takes around six-month rehabilitation, which means the Blackcaps regular captain will be in a tight spot ahead of the megaevent in terms of proving his fitness.

Speaking in a press conference ahead of the five-game PAK vs NZ ODI series, Stead provided an update on Williamsons’ fitness, saying, his surgery had gone well and he would be given ample to recover fully.

“Look, it’s still far too early to know,” Stead said of Williamson.

“He’s had the operation and, to date, what we know, that’s been successful. So he is in the very, very early stages of his rehab programme.

“It’s obviously pretty non-weight-bearing at this stage, and he’s in a brace. So, it’s really just meeting milestones as we go.

“Our line around Kane, at the moment, is still it’s unlikely that he will be available, but we certainly don’t want to rule out a person of his class and calibre, and the things he brings to this team, too early in case there is that chance still.”

New Zealand’s head coach claimed Williamson would still travel with the team to India for the World Cup to serve as a mentor in case he was not completely fit to play.

New Zealand finished as runner-up in the last edition of the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup in 2019 under Williamson’s captaincy. They lost to England in the epic final that went down to Super Over with the hosts eventually lifting the trophy on boundary count.

The 32-year-old’s absence in the upcoming edition of the 50-overs megaevent would be a major blow for his national side. The right-hander has scored more than 6000 ODI runs at an average of 47.83 in 161 ODI matches.

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LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has set its sights on ensuring that the national men’s team play their ICC Men’s ODI World Cup matches in Chennai and Kolkata only, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported on Tuesday.

The biggest cricketing event of this year is likely to commence on October 5, featuring 46 matches, which will be played across 12 cities including Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Mumbai, Rajkot, Bengaluru, Delhi, Indore, Guwahati, Hyderabad and Dharamasala.

The report further disclosed that top PCB officials approached the high-ranking International Cricket Council (ICC) executive and discussed the sensitive issue of the team’s security in the host country.

“A lot will depend on what BCCI and the Indian government decide but given a choice, Pakistan will like to play most of its World Cup matches in Kolkata and Chennai,” a source close to ICC Board told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

“In Kolkata, Pakistan played its T20 World Cup game against India in 2016 and the players were very happy with the security. Similarly, Chennai as a venue remains memorable for Pakistan. It’s also about feeling safe at specific venues,” the source added.

But the most-anticipated clash of Pakistan and India can be a bone of contention.

Ahmedabad’s newly-built stadium with over 1,32,000 capacity gives ICC, the best chance to earn optimum profits but the largest stadium is already booked to host the final and thus a new venue will be considered.

Consequently, other venues, most likely Kolkatta and Chennai are in the race to host the high-voltage Pakistan-India clash.

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DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States of America (USA) have advanced to the the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier, scheduled to take place in Zimbabwe in June-July.

In the six-team qualifiying tournament, USA and UAE finished in the first and second place respectively. Both teams secured eight points with four victories in their five matches but USA topped the standings due to better net run rate.

Hosts Namibia and Canada finished third and fourth respectively after claiming three wins each from their five fixtures, while Jersey could notch up a victory in five matches.

Papa New Guinea (PNG), on the other hand, failed to taste triumph in all their matches.

Namibia’s Gerhard Erasmus, who enjoyed a scintillating tournament with the bat, adjudged the player of the tournament. He accumulated 279 runs in five games at an average of 69.75.

USA’s Ali Khan, who played a pivotal role in his team’s top-spot finish, was the top wicket-taker with 16 wickets at an average of 12.37.

The 10-team qualifying tournament for this year’s World Cup will take place in Zimbabwe from June 18 to July 9.

The Qualifiers will feature five teams who finished at the bottom of the World Cup Super League (Netherlands, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, West Indies and one of Ireland or South Africa), top three teams from the ICC’s World Cup Cricket League 2 (Nepal, Oman and Scotland) and two teams from the Qualifier Playoff (USA and UAE).

READ: No DRS in Qualifiers with two World Cup spots up for grab

HARARE: The upcoming qualifiers for the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 will be played without the Decision Review System (DRS) in Zimbabwe in June-July, reported a renowned cricket website on Thursday.

According to ESPN Cricinfo, the upcoming qualifiers for the 50-over World Cup will be played without the DRS, while there will be a third umpire monitoring run-outs.

The absence of the DRS technology depicts the 2019 World Cup qualifiers, which were also held in Zimbabwe in 2018. However, the previous qualifiers also did not have a third umpire monitoring run-outs in the majority of the matches.

Meanwhile, this year’s qualifiers will have a third umpire for all the matches but there will be no other review tools, such as UltraEdge or ball-tracking,

The 10-team qualifying tournament for this year’s World Cup will take place in Zimbabwe from June 18 to July 9, featuring five teams who finished at the bottom of the World Cup Super League (Netherlands, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, West Indies and one of Ireland or South Africa), top three teams from the ICC’s World Cup Cricket League 2 (Nepal, Oman and Scotland) and two teams from the Qualifier Playoff (USA and UAE) that was completed in Namibia this week.

The top two teams from the qualifying round will proceed to the ten-team bracket in this year’s World Cup.

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WINDHOEK: Pakistan-born pacer Ali Khan exhibited an outstanding bowling performance to help USA beat Jersey on Tuesday and bolstered their hopes of featuring at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, later this year in India.

Ali wreaked havoc on Jersey’s batting line-up as he grabbed seven wickets for 32 runs in his sides’ final round-robin match at the CWC Qualifier Play-off in Namibia.

With the win, USA confirmed their spot in the megaevents’ Qualifiers in June, moving a step closer to finding a place at this year’s ODI World Cup.

The 32-year-old dismissed five batters during a terrific opening spell at the United Cricket Club Ground before returning at the death to wrap up the Jersey tail just when they were well-positioned to take the victory.

With his bowling exploits during the game, Ali registered the seventh-best figure achieved in men’s ODI cricket. Sri Lanka great Chaminda Vaas is the only bowler to take more than seven wickets in a 50-over contest.

The Punjab-born fast bowler moved to the USA as a teenager and started to display his capabilities in various T20 leagues around the world in the last decade. He represented Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League before making his ODI debut in 2019 for his adopted country of the USA when he featured against Papua New Guinea.

it is pertinent to mention here that USA will face the likes of 1996 champions Sri Lanka and two-time winners the West Indies at the Qualifier tournament in Zimbabwe during June and July.

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KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain Moin Khan on Monday, stated that Pakistan should not tour India for World Cup if the Indian team does not play their Asia Cup matches in Pakistan.

Moin interacted with the media here and commented on the most debated deadlock between the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) over the Asia Cup and World Cup venue.

The former captain opined that the PCB should take a strong stance on the matter and not send the national team to India for World Cup if the Indian team does not come here to participate in the Asia Cup.

“If India does not come to Pakistan to play the Asia Cup, then Pakistan should not go either for the World Cup. I think Pakistan Cricket Board should oppose this,” said Moin.

“If India plays the Asia Cup at a neutral venue, Pakistan’s matches should also be held at a neutral venue,” he added.

Moin also stated that the BCCI can not impose its decision on other boards by extortion of money while also stating that the two cricket boards should resolve the deadlock by dialogue and called for cricket diplomacy between the two nations.

“India cannot impose its will on other cricket boards by extortion of money. Cricket should be played, and for this, there should be a discussion in the boards of India and Pakistan,” stated Moin.

“There should be cricket diplomacy between the two countries,” he concluded.

It is worth mentioning here that the upcoming edition of the Asia Cup and Pakistan’s participation in the Men’s ODI World Cup has been in jeopardy after the BCCI refused to tour Pakistan for the aforementioned tournament on political grounds.

The BCCI maintained their stance of not touring Pakistan for the Asia Cup, while the PCB was adamant that if they do not, then Pakistan might not travel to India for the World Cup in October-November.

The uncertainty around the 2023 Asia Cup began in October last year when the ACC president, and BCCI secretary, Jay Shah refused to send the Indian team to Pakistan and has since been trying to shift the tournament to a neutral venue.

Several ideas have been pitched to find a way through the long-persisted deadlock including the hybrid model to host the matches of Pakistan and India during the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup and Asia Cup at neutral venues.

However, the deadlock persisted after the BCCI flatly refused to accept the hybrid model and insisted on shifting the entire Asia Cup to a neutral venue and hosting all World Cup matches in Pakistan.

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JOHANNESBURG: Aiden Markram hit 175 off 126 balls as South Africa took a giant step towards automatic qualification for the Cricket World Cup with a 146-run win over the Netherlands in the third one-day international at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Sunday.

“We did exactly what we wanted to do,” said South Africa captain Temba Bavuma at the after-match presentation.

South Africa climbed into eighth place in the Super League table, going above the West Indies and improving their net run rate with a second emphatic win in three days.

Ireland are the only team who could squeeze South Africa out of automatic qualification for the World Cup but they will need to beat Bangladesh 3-0 in a series in England next month to draw level on points.

Ireland will also need to improve their net run rate.

“In terms of the points and qualification, we’ve done ourselves justice,” said Bavuma.

“In the cricket as well, there were a lot of positives in the batting and the bowling.”

South Africa completed a 2-0 win in a series which was halted because of a Covid scare after the first game was rained off in November 2021.

The West Indies will have to play in a qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe in June and July to decide the final two teams that will play in the World Cup in India in October and November.

Markram hit 17 fours and seven sixes in scoring his first one-day international century.

He and David Miller (91) set up a South African total of 370 for eight with a fifth wicket partnership of 199 off 118 balls.

Netherlands made a spirited attempt to keep up with the required run rate but lost their last five wickets for seven runs to be bowled out for 224.

Fast bowler Sisanda Magala claimed his first international five-wicket haul, taking five for 43, with four of his victims being bowled.

Left-hander Musa Ahmed received two painful early blows on the chest and shoulder from express fast bowler Anrich Nortje but went on to make top score of 61, his first international half-century.

Netherlands captain Scott Edwards said his team had matched South Africa for periods during both games.

“Three-hundred and seventy was always going to be tough,” he said.

“We kept up with the rate but we needed someone to get a big score like Aiden.”

The Dutch will also play in the World Cup qualifier in Zimbabwe alongside the hosts, West Indies, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Scotland and Oman.

The three remaining spots in the 10-team event are still to be decided.

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BENONI: South African captain Temba Bavuma took his team a step closer to automatic qualification for the Cricket World Cup when they beat the Netherlands by eight wickets in the second one-day international at Willowmoore Park on Friday.

Bavuma made 90 not out in Benoni as South Africa achieved a victory target of 190 with 20 overs to spare.

Another win in the final match in Johannesburg on Sunday –- or a no-result -– will take South Africa into the eighth and final qualification place for the World Cup in India in October and November.

Bavuma said his own form was linked to “a certain level of backing and confidence that is going around in the environment at the moment”.

Bavuma did not refer directly to the appointment of Rob Walter as head coach following the resignation of former Test wicketkeeper Mark Boucher but said: “I think a lot of the guys are feeding from the environment. We are also quite clear about how we want to go about things.”

Fast bowler Sisanda Magala was named man of the match. He took three for 37 as the Netherlands were bowled out for 189. He dismissed both openers after Vikramjit Singh (45) and Max O’Dowd (18) put on 58 off 66 balls, then came back to claim the wicket of top-scorer Teja Nidamanuru, who made 48.

South Africa lost Quinton de Kock for nine to off-spinner Aryan Dutt, who shared the new ball and took one for nine in four overs.

But Dutt injured his right knee in a collision in the outfield with Musa Ahmed and had to leave the field. He came back later but was clearly in discomfort and conceded 21 runs in two more overs.

Bavuma and Rassie van der Dussen (31) put on 70 for the second wicket before Bavuma and Aiden Markram (51 not out) went on the attack to add an unbeaten 102 off 69 balls to finish the match on a cold, blustery evening when there was a threat of rain which did not materialise.

The match was the second in a three-match series. The first encounter in November 2021 was rained off and the remaining two games were postponed because of a Covid scare.

With Sri Lanka having been eliminated when they lost to New Zealand earlier on Friday, a win for South Africa on Sunday will take them to the World Cup unless Ireland win all three matches in a series against Bangladesh in England in May.

KARACHI: The hybrid model to host the matches of Pakistan and India during the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup and Asia Cup at a neutral venue is likely not to go ahead after the Board of Cricket Control in India’s (BCCI) flat refusal.

Earlier, a report emerged that the two cricket boards were gradually moving towards a compromise and had nearly agreed to host India’s matches on a neutral venue while the rest of the Asia Cup will be played in Pakistan.

As per the latest development, however, the BCCI has refused the hybrid proposal for both events and once again demanded to shift the Asia Cup entirely from Pakistan.

Following BCCI’s initial refusal to tour Pakistan, the PCB also hinted at not touring India to participate in this year’s World Cup.

Although PCB has not said anything officially on the prospect of using the hybrid model – India playing Asia Cup matches on a neutral venue – for the ODI World Cup but has hinted it will be discussed at the ICC forum.

“This is not to say that the hybrid model will not be advocated at the proper ICC forum at the right time,” the last line of a PCB release said, while denying the hybrid model was discussed in last week’s ICC meeting.

Pakistan will due to suffer an extra expense of half a million dollars to broadcast India’s neutral venue matches in the Asia Cup. But the consequences of Pakistan not playing in India will be greater, both in terms of sponsorship and broadcast expenses. In that India has to add a Co-host for the event.

“Situation is very fluid,” said a top source dealing with the situation. “A final decision will only be made in June and by that time the ICC will adopt a wait and see policy.”

It may be noted here that the uncertainty around the 2023 Asia Cup began in October last year when the ACC president, and BCCI secretary, Jay Shah refused to send the Indian team to Pakistan and has since been trying to shift the tournament to a neutral venue.

HAMILTON: Sri Lanka missed out on direct qualification for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 after New Zealand defeated them in the third and final ODI by six wickets on Friday. 

Electing to bat first, Sri Lankan batting lineup struggled against the Kiwis’ pace attack as Matt Henry (3/14), Henry Shipley (3/32) and Daryl Mitchell (3/32) jointly led the charge and bundled out New Zealand for a paltry 157.

Pathum Nissanka (57 off 64), Dasun Shanaka (31 off 36) and Chamika Karunaratne (24 off 42) were the only batters to show some resistance as Sri Lanka failed to fire in yet again.

In reply, New Zealand underwent a shaky start as they lost three wickets inside the first seven overs. Four of their batters – Chad Bowes, Tom Blundell, Daryl Mitchell and Tom Latham – failed to cross single-digit.

However, Will Young and Henry Nicholls anchored the chase afterwards and took the hosts over the line. The pair gathered a valiant 100-run partnership with Young and Nicholls remaining unbeaten on 86 and 44 respectively to steer New Zealand to 2-0 series win.

With the defeat, Sri Lanka have failed to snatch the direct qualification spot from the West Indies. Sri Lanka end their Cricket World Cup Super League Campaign on 81 points, seven behind West Indies.

Sri Lanka will now travel to Zimbabwe in June to compete in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier to secure a place in the mega event scheduled later this year in India.

West Indies, however, could still lose the direct qualification race to South Africa (78 points) or Ireland (68). South Africa will take on the Netherlands in two home ODIs, while Ireland have a three-game ODI series against Bangladesh in May.

READ: ‘Hybrid model’ under discussion for Asia Cup only, clarifies PCB