Toss: Netherlands won the toss and chose to bat first.
Venue: Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Umpires: Marais Erasmus & Rod Tucker
What Actually Happened
Winner: Ireland won by 7 wickets
Scores: Netherlands 106/10 – Ireland 107/3
Player of the Match: Curtis Campher
Best Figures
Curtis Campher – 4/26 (& Mark Adair 4-0-9-3)
Fred Klassen – 1/18
Most Runs
Max O’Dowd – 51(47)
Gareth Delany – 44 (29)
Moments of The Day: Ireland Medium Pacers, Top Order Give Them First Victory in T20 World Cup Over Netherlands
Curtis Campher’s historic 4 in 4rules the day for Ireland. Netherlands were nudging along nicely at 51/2 with Max O’Dowd stabilizing the innings. Then came the young all-rounder. Caught behind, LBW, LBW, bowled. Ackerman, Ryan Ten Doeschate, Scott Edwards, Roelof van der Merwe. Netherlands 51/6. Campher joins Rashid Khan & Lasith Malinga. Second T20 World Cup hat-trick after Brett Lee in the inaugural 2007 T20 WC.
Mark Adair restricts Netherlands – History repeats itself, or does it? The day before Ireland were at a similar position before coming back to score 140. At 88-6 with Max O’Dowd still there, anything could have happened. Not to be though after Adair took his wicket and ended with miserly figures of 4-0-9-3.
Paul Stirling, Gareth Delany finish it off. Stirling’s uncharacteristic 30* (39) ensured no collapses for Ireland. However it was Delany’s 44* (29) with 5 fours and 2 sixes that made sure Ireland win with a comfortable net run rate.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: RTD and RVDM
Ryan Ten Doeschate and Roelof Van der Merwe, Dutch legends, came back to the international squad for this World Cup after employing their trades in T20 cricket and County cricket for a few years. However, the rustiness was apparent as they were victims of the 4 in 4.
Is it 4 in 4 or a double hat-trick? Have your say? Lots of debate yesterday.
Why is 4 wickets in 4 balls being called a double hat trick? Last I looked a hat trick is 3 in 3. So double that is 6 in 6. You don’t get a double hundred if you score 101
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Jatinder Singh – 73* runs (Oman, 1 Match)
Zeeshan Mahmood – 4 wickets (Oman, 1 Match)
Calum MacLeod (Scotland, 1 Match) – 3 catches
Zane Green (Namibia, 1 Match), Neil Rock (Ireland, 1 Match) – 1 dismissal
Group A Table
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Sri Lanka
1
1
0
0
2
+ 2.607
2. Ireland
1
1
0
0
2
+ 1.755
3. Netherlands
1
0
1
0
0
– 1.755
4. Namibia
1
0
1
0
0
– 2.607
T20 World Cup 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our T20 World Cup Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
IPL is done, international cricket is back, and so is #BCDPredictions! Let us see how good the predictions of our fellow cricket fans on social media is.
We asked our viewers to respond with
#Winner
#Top4
#BestAssociates
#PlayerofWC
#MostRuns
#MostWickets
#BestCatch
#Surprise
#BrokenDream
So what do you say? Will we see any surprises? Are South Africa, Bangladesh, Afghanistan the dark horses for the tournament? How about rising Scotland? Any emerging players? Will we miss Faf, Tahir, Morris, Chahal, Narine, and more?
If you do not have enough information yet to do the predictions, check out these previews below.
#MostRuns: Buttler (may not be an Indian, cannot rule QDK too)
Discussion:
“…With Neesham, Boult, Lockie, Phillips, Kane, Jamieson all playing IPL advantage for them and not Pak…Guptill, Seifert, Kane, Conway, Phillips, Neesham, Santner, Sodhi/Southee, Boult, Ferguson, Kyle.”
“Babar, Rizwan out for less then 20 runs, then Pak may lose 99% if against NZ and India if chasing 170…For India, even after Rahul, Kohli, Pant Surya, Hardik, Jadeja, Shardul are there.”
“I feel having times like SA, Aus, WI, Eng in same group made Group B easy to qualify.”
Rohit-Rahul/Babar-Rizwan most settled opening pair
Toss: Bangladesh won the toss and chose to field first.
Venue: Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Muscat
Umpires: Ahsan Raza & Richard Kettleborough
What Actually Happened
Winner: Scotland won by 6 runs
Scores: Scotland140/9 – Bangladesh 134/7
Player of the Match: Chris Greaves
Best Figures
Mahedi Hasan – 3/19
Brad Wheal – 3/24
Most Runs
Chris Graves – 45 (28)
Mushfiqur Rahim – 38 (36)
Moments of The Day: Bangladesh’s Spinners, Chris Greaves, and MacLeod’s Catching Makes It Scotland’s Day
Bangladesh Spinners Turn The Screws – George Munsey and Matthew Cross had taken Scotland up to 45/1 in 7 overs after the early wicket of their captain. Within the next 5 overs, Bangladesh took full control with the Mahedi Hasan-Shakib al Hasan duo. Scotland
Chris Greaves and Mark Watts Manifest Recovery of the Ages – Switch hits, smart running, and with proper cricketing shots, the Greaves-Watts partnership of 51 (34) gave Scotland belief. Watts departed by Greaves continued on his merry way to 45. Add Safyaan Sharif’s 8* (2) including a mighty six, Scotland got much needed momentum.
Calum MacLeod Catches Three Out of Thin Air – Although tight all-round bowling was the reason Bangladesh could not chase the score, equally as important was Calum MacLeod’s role as a boundary rider. Important catches of Shakib, Mahmudullah, and Nurul Hasan was the difference between a win or loss. One drop, and Bangladesh close that six run margin. However, MacLeod’s brilliance made sure that did not happen.
Honorable Mention: There Is Swing at the T20 World Cup! Taskin, Saifuddin, Brad Wheal, & Josh Davey all found some hints of swing
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: The Musfiq-Shakib Partnership
Mushfiqur Rahim has been one of the best wicketkeeper-batters over the past decade, and Shakib Al Hasan is undoubtedly one of the greatest all-rounders of all time (and now the highest wicket taker in T20Is). However, today’s loss might be attributed to their slow partnership – 47 (46) recovery was done, but could not carry on. 38 (36) & a painful 20 (28) does not do justice to their talents and experience.
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Jatinder Singh – 73* runs (Oman, 1 Match)
Zeeshan Mahmood – 4 wickets (Oman, 1 Match)
Calum MacLeod (Scotland, 1 Match) – 3 catches
Group B Table
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Oman
1
1
0
0
2
+ 3.135
2. Scotland
1
1
0
0
2
+ 0.300
3. Bangladesh
1
0
1
0
0
– 0.300
4. Papua New Guinea
1
0
1
0
0
– 3.135
T20 World Cup 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our T20 World Cup Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
Image Courtesy: Graphic (original work), Kyle Coetzer – Photo by Francois Nel-ICC/ICC via Getty Images, Mahmudullah – Photo by Mike Hewitt-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
Moments of The Day: Amini-Vala’s Fluency, Maqsood’s Over, and the Ilyas-Jatinder Show
Bilal Khan, Kaleemullah set the tone for Oman. PNG never really recovered from the maiden wicket over & the 1-run wicket over. Tony Ura & Lega Siaka were both bowled for ducks.
Assad Vala & Charles Amini turn it on for PNG. Left-arm batters are a joy to watch. Put two of them together, and it is even better. Captain Vala and Amini regularly danced down the track and hit lofted shots to muster a 81 (60) partnership.
Then a W, 1, W, 0, W, 0 over by opposing captain Maqsood caused a collapse from which PNG never recovered.
Honorable Mention: 131-run partnership from Aqib Ilyas (50*) and Jatinder Singh (73*) as Oman coasted to victory; Jatinder Singh does the Shibhar Dhawan ‘Gabbar; celebration after a catch.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: The Run Out
PNG had recovered from 0/2 and were coasting at 81/2. Then came the hara-kiri moment—ran from the non-striker’s end a, Nadeem picked the ball, and direct hit. Amini was looking so good…as
Tweets of the Day
Despite not having the best days on the field, it was a huge moment for Papua New Guinea nevertheless. Here are some tweets and threads that made this day special for the players and the fans in the backdrop of the beautiful mountains behind Oman’s stadium.
PNG support staff in tears during their national anthem. It's the tears of reaching to this stage after such hardwork, cricket is a beautiful sport. pic.twitter.com/TfJfV46n7t
The World Cup is about to start. And that means the latest nation will be joining. Papua New Guinea.
You will hear them being referred to as a family a lot. And compared to other cricket teams they certainly feel more like a family than a collection of athletes.
Today is the first day of the Cricket World Cup and in a COVID-induced twist of events, it's kicking off in Muscat, Oman
Having cut my teeth playing on cement & sand for the national junior team a decade+ ago, feels surreal to watch cricket in a beautiful stadium in Oman on ESPN pic.twitter.com/v0S44pFwzf
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Highest Run Scorer, Highest Wicket Taker, Most Catches, and Most Dismissals. We will keep updating it in every article!
Jatinder Singh – 73* runs (Oman, 1 Match)
Zeeshan Mahmood – 4 wickets (Oman, 1 Match)
Jatinder Singh (Oman), George Munsey (Scotland) – 2 catches
Group B Table
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Oman
1
1
0
0
2
+ 3.135
2. Papua New Guinea
1
0
1
0
0
– 3.135
2. Bangladesh
4. Scotland
T20 World Cup 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our T20 World Cup Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
Time for Group A 2021 T20 World Cup Squads analysis.
In the mini-qualifier group, there are two groups (Group A & B) of 4 teams each, top 2 of which will go in the main round (Group 1 and 2). Ireland, Namibia, Netherlands, and Sri Lanka form ‘qualifying group of death,’ Group A. Group B has teams Bangladesh, Oman, Papua New Guinea, and Scotland.
In the main draw, 4 qualifier teams will join either Group 1 (Australia, England, South Africa, West Indies) or Group 2, (India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and New Zealand).
Here is the detailed squad analysis—Most Balanced, Surprise Exclusions, In-Form Inclusions and Predictions!
Paul Stirling, 2. Kevin O’Brien, 3. Andy Balbirnie (C), 4. Harry Tector, 5. Shane Getkate, 6. George Dockrell, 7. Neil Rock (WK), 8. Simi Singh, 9. Curtis Campher, 10. Mark Adair, 11. Josh Little/ Andy McBrine
Average Age: 27
Unlucky to Miss Out: William McClintock, Craig Young (reserves)
Surprise Inclusions: Graham Kennedy
Watch Out For: Paul Stirling, the best ODI player of 2020, and Curtis Campher, a potential world class allrounder for the future
Prediction:Rank 4th in Group A. I just do not see this Ireland side going too far.
Does Ireland Have It In Them to Qualify for the Next Round?
Ireland just won a T20I series but T20 cricket is not their strength. If Ireland are to do well, their all rounders and power hitters have to come to the fore to support the steadiness that Balbirnie-Tector provide in the middle.
Namibia T20 World Cup Squad
Batters
Spin Bowling All-Rounders
Medium Pace All-Rounders
Wicket-Keepers
Spin Bowlers
Fast Bowlers
Stephan Baard
Gerhard Erasmus
David Wiese
Zane Green
Ben Shikongo
Karl Birkenstock
Bernard Scholtz
JJ Smit
Michael van Lingen
Michau du Preez
Jan Frylinck
Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton
Ruben Trumpelmann
Craig Williams
Pikky Ya France
Mauritius Ngupita
Group A 2021 T20 World Cup Squads: Namibia
Australia Probable XI
Stephan Baad, 2. Craig Williams, 3. JJ Smit, 4. Gerhard Erasmus (C), 5. Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, 6. David Wiese, 7. Zane Green (WK), 8. Michau du Preez, 9. Jan Frylinck, 10. Bernard Scholtz, 11. Ben Shikongo
Average Age: 27
Watch Out For:Gerhard Erasmus, player of the 2019 T20 World Cup Qualifier. He has a T20I average of 40.33 at a 141.10 SR with 5 fifties. That is a great record, even if it is against Associate nations.
Unlucky to Miss Out: JP Kotze, Zhivago Groeneweld (retired)
Prediction:Rank 3rd in Group A. At least one upset around the corner?
Does Namibia Have It In Them to Qualify for the Next Round?
The dark horse of the qualifying group. Qualifying for the first time in a World Cup since 2003, this has been one of the feel-good stories of recent times. The big story is that David Wiese, a star in the CPL and PSL, who has represented South Africa at the international level (even 2016 T20 Worl Cup) will now represent Namibia due to his paternal heritage.
Netherlands T20 World Cup Squad
Batters
Spin Bowling All-Rounders
Medium Pace All-Rounders
Wicket-Keepers
Spin Bowlers
Fast Bowlers
Stephan Myburg
Pieter Seelar
Ryan Ten Doeschate
Scott Edwards
Philippe Boissevain
Timm van der Gugten
Max O’Dowd
Colin Ackerman
Fred Klassen
Ben Cooper
Roelof van der Merwe
Logan van Beek
Bas de Leede
Brandon Glover
Paul van Meekeren
Tobias Visee
Shane Snater
Group A 2021 T20 World Cup Squads: Netherlands
Netherlands Probable XI
Max O’Dowd, 2. Stephan Myburg, 3. Ben Cooper, 4. Bas de Leede, 5. Ryan Ten Doeschate, 6. Pieter Seelar (C), 7. Scott Edwards (WK), 8. Roelof van der Merwe, 9. Timm van der Gugten, 10. Philippe Boissevain, 11. Paul van Meekeren
Average Age: 30
Surprise Inclusions: Ryan Ten Doeschate, Roelof van der Merwe
Watch Out For: Max O’Dowd, has been in a bit of form earlier this year
Current T20I Ranking: 17th
Recent Results: Won 2, Lost 2, Tied 1 in the Nepal Tri-Nation T20I series (lost finals) alongside Nepal & Malaysia
Prediction:Rank 1st in Group A. Gut feeling that they will win against Sri Lanka and might upset another major team in the main draw if they qualify.
Does Netherlands Have It In Them to Qualify for the Next Round?
They definitely have the ingredients. Max O’Dowd-Myburg form a potent opening partnership on which Doeschate-Seelar-der Merwe can build upon. Paul van Meekeren became the first Dutch player to play in the CPL and that experience will help out. Expect van der Gugten-van Meekeren to shoulder the pace bowling responsibilities.
Does Sri Lanka Have It In Them to Qualify for the Next Round?
Sri Lanka are currently on a losing streak and have been in transition for half a decade, but 2021 might be where the tide turns. With the bat, de Silva and Avishka Fernando are chipping in with consistent performances to support Perera, Chandimal, and Shanaka.
Hasaranga has been a revelation (#2 ICC ranked bowler), can bat at the top and finish games off and can bowl anywhere in the lineup. Sri Lanka have also found mystery spinner Theekshana and left arm spinner Jayawickrama (apart from Test spinner Embuldeniya and reserve Dhananjaya). Pacers Chameera-Pradeep cap off a balanced bowling attack.
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With India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan in this group already set, this is a mini Asia Cup battle. In the preliminary qualification round, if Sri Lanka is ranked 2 in Group A and if Bangladesh tops Group B, we might see a potential 5/6 Asian teams!
This might not be named the Group of Death from the outside, but I think this group will be closer than it appears. Here is our team-by-team analysis—Most Balanced, Surprise Exclusions, In-Form Inclusions and Predictions!
Prediction:Rank 3rd in Group 2. In spin conditions, if their batters can put up a decent score, expect Afghanistan to surprise a few of the big teams.
Does Afghanistan Have It In Them To Win the T20 World Cup?
Another World Cup. Another captaincy change right before the World Cup for Afghanistan. Rashid Khan had received the captaincy baton from Asghar Afghan, but he has resigned on the eve on the World Cup since he was not consulted for the WC squad. Add to that the current political situation, and Afghanistan’s entry in the WC is not even guaranteed.
Iconic trio Hamid Hassan, Mohammad Shahzad, and Shapoor Zadran return after years of international hiatus. Fitness will be the key concern, but Afghanistan have a good mix of youth and experience. They are also guaranteed 5 games in the main draw.
Unlucky to Miss Out: Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur (reserves), Washington Sundar (injured), Shikhar Dhawan, Yuzvendra Chahal, Krunal Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Shubman Gill, Natarajan, Khaleel Ahmed, Manish Pandey, Sanju Samson, Dinesh Karthik. If you want the list of all 75 players which form Indian cricket team’s depth, read this.
Surprise Inclusions: R Ashwin, Varun Chakravarthy, MS Dhoni (Mentor)
Watch Out For: Trial by Spin—Rahul Chahar, R Ashwin, & Varun Chakravarthy can single handedly bamboozle most batting lineups. With Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel providing control, India might not have to chase large targets. Expect Ashwin in powerplays, Chahar-Jadeja in middle overs, and if he plays, Varun at the death.
Prediction:Rank 2nd in Group 2. Since this side has not played together, India might drop a game or two till they figure out their best XI, but should find momentum towards the latter stages of the tournament.
Does India Have It In Them To Win the T20 World Cup?
A well balanced side overall. Selectors have finally picked IPL as the standard for T20I selection and separated it from ODI players. IPL dynasty Mumbai Indians have six players in this 15.
Shikhar Dhawan was the highest scorer for India in both the ODI and T20I series against Sri Lanka and has been at the top of the charts (with decent SR) in the last two IPLs, but has still not made the cut. Bold move to cut Chahal but Chahar is the in-form leg spinner.
India have punted on spinning conditions and hence, exposed their fast bowling. Too much responsibility on Bumrah? Will we see a Sharma-Kohli opening partnership? Can India finally add an ICC Trophy after a decade of semi-finals and runner-ups trophy?
New Zealand T20 World Cup Squad
Batters
Spin Bowling All-Rounders
Medium Pace All-Rounders
Wicket-Keepers
Spin Bowlers
Fast Bowlers
Kane Williamson
Mitchell Santner
Kyle Jamieson
Glenn Phillips
Todd Astle
Trent Boult
Devon Conway
Mark Chapman
Daryl Mitchell
Tim Seifert
Ish Sodhi
Lockie Ferguson
Martin Guptill
James Neesham
Tim Southee
Adam Milne
Group 1 2021 T20 World Cup Squads: New Zealand
New Zealand Probable XI
Tim Seifert (WK), 2. Martin Guptill, 3. Kane Williamson (C), 4. Devon Conway, 5. Glenn Phillips, 6. Jimmy Neesham, 7. Mitchell Santner, 8. Tim Southee, 9. Lockie Ferguson, 10. Ish Sodhi, 11. Trent Boult
Average Age: 30
Unlucky to Miss Out: Colin de Grandhomme, Will Young, Finn Allen, Tom Blundell, Henry Nicholls/Tom Latham/Ross Taylor, Doug Bracewell/Hamish Bennett/Jacob Duffy/Blair Tickner, Ajaz Patel
Surprise Inclusions: Mark Chapman, Todd Astle
Watch Out For:Lockie Ferguson & Devon Conway. Ferguson’s KKR experience in UAE might come in handy and can Conway continue his dream debut year?
Prediction:Rank 4th in Group 2. Although a great team on paper, going against 3-5 Asian sides in UAE will just not be an easy task.
Does New Zealand Have It In Them To Win the T20 World Cup?
Interesting team selection this based on condition and form. Glenn Phillips-Conway-Seifert had solidifed their positions with a rich run of form last year. This meant that Will Young and Finn Allen could not break in the squad despite great T20I performances toward the end. Great depth in New Zealand cricket means several players had to miss out.
Colin de Grandhomme is the interestesting exclusion for me. If fit, he could have been devastating but Mitchell-Neesham-Santner-Jamieson have booked their tickets with a coule of good performances earlier in the year. Adam Milne unlucky to just be in the reserves because he is been on fire in the Big Bash and The hundred since his comeback. End of T20Is for Ross Taylor.
Pakistan T20 World Cup Squad
Batters
Spin Bowling All-Rounders
Medium Pace All-Rounders
Wicket-Keepers
Spin Bowlers
Fast Bowlers
Babar Azam
Imad Wasim
Hasan Ali
Mohammad Rizwan
Haris Rauf
Sohaib Maqsood
Mohammad Hafeez
Mohammad Wasim
Azam Khan
Mohammad Hasnain
Khushdil Shah
Mohammad Nawaz
Shaheen Shah Afridi
Asif Ali
Shadab Khan
Fakhar Zaman
Usman Qadir
Shahnawaz Dahani
Group 1 2021 T20 World Cup Squads: Pakistan
Pakistan Probable XI
Babar Azam (C), 2. Mohammad Rizwan, 3. Mohammad Hafeez, 4. Sohaib Maqsood, 5. Imad Wasim, 6. Azam Khan/Khushdil Shah/Asif Ali, 7. Shadab Khan, 8. Hasan Ali, 9. Mohammad Nawaz, 10. Haris Rauf, 11. Shaheen Shah Afridi
Average Age: 27
Unlucky to Miss Out: Fakhar Zaman, Usman Qadir (Reserves), Iftikhar Ahmed, Shoaib Malik, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Faheem Ashraf, Haider Ali, Sharjeel Khan, Imam-ul-Haq, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Amir, Usman Khan Shinwari, Sohail Tanvir, Wahab Riaz, Misbah-ul-Haq, Waqar Younis (Coach)
Prediction:Rank 1 in Group 2. Should get through the group with ease before collapsing in the semi-finals.
Does Pakistan Have It In Them To Win the T20 World Cup?
Pakistan have opted for a young squad dropping all of Shoaib Malik, Iftikhar Ahmed, Sarfaraz, and Wahab Riaz. If the lower order of Imad Wasim-Shadab-Hasan Ali can consistently score some quick runs, Pakistan will be in good shape.
The top 4 do not have competition from others in the squad, so expect Babar-Rizwan-Hafeez-Maqsood to play with freedom. Shaheen Shah Afridi-Haris Rauf-Nawaz-Hasan Ali-Shadab-Imad-Hafeez make a potent bowling line up as well. Would have liked Zaman, Qadir, Faheem Ashraf, and one of the seniors in the 15 but overall, the squad is pretty solid nevertheless.
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