Category: ICC T20 World Cup Qualifiers

Cricket Canada Statement On T20 WCQ, Independent Review Of Program

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After failing to qualify for the ICC T20 World Cup last week in Dubai, Cricket Canada issued this statement regarding the teams performance.

‘Last Thursday our senior men’s team lost to UAE to conclude the recent T20 Cricket World Cup qualification tournament without a win. Though we were not alone in not moving on in the tournament, Cricket Canada takes this failure to move on very seriously.

2009 was a banner year for Cricket Canada, there were many firsts and after a few sub-par years, performances had turned around with the men’s team while success continued in all our other programs. This included a return to the 50 over world cups for the men and the u19 team.

Obviously we felt that this would continue into 2010 with both our senior men’s team’s and u19 teams engaged in high profile tournaments.

Like our fans and supporters both the adminstration and players expected more out of the first two months of the year and are deeply frustrated at the results. We are in a transition phase as we try to refresh our team with future stars while at the same time retain our commitment to putting a winning product on the field. This is not an easy task and we are paying the price for decades of stagnation in development programs in this country.

With this in mind, we are instituting a full review of all of our cricket programs. The review will commence later this month and will be spearheaded by person’s independant of Cricket Canada. We have asked that all of our personnel cooperate with us during this time and are confident we will emerge stronger and better prepared for the challenges that await us.

We thank you for your continued support’

via Cricket Canada.

CCTV Interview — Rizwan Cheema

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Full Name: Rizwan Cheema

DOB: 15/08/1978
Birthplace: Pakistan
Batting Style: RHB (Top Order)
Bowling Style: RA Medium
Domestic Club: PCB (TDCA)

I caught up with Rizwan Cheema before he left for Sri Lanka to take part in the T20 4 Nation Cup before team Canada heads to the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifying tournament in Dubai next month.

From the moment I started watching Cricket, my favourite player has always been Wasim Akram.  I loved the way he ran in and made the ball move in 3 different directions before it reached the batsman.  And I always got excited when he came into bat, in hopes that he would start launching sixes over the mid-wicket boundary.

Then Shahid Afridi came along.  It’s hard not to catch ‘Boom-Boom’ fever anytime he strolls in to bat.  After leading Pakistan to the T20 world cup finals victory with outstanding performances in the semi’s and final, he’s shown the world that he might just be able to reign in his natural aggressiveness and become a more mature player.

But, now I have a new favourite player.  His name is Rizwan Cheema and although the rest of the world might not know him (…yet), he is an entertainer just like the above mentioned Afridi and Akram.  His raw talent and ability to smash the ball all over the field have earned him the praise and respect of the international players he has played against.  He also bowls some handy medium pace and has a habit of picking up timely wickets.

Rizwan Cheema in action against Sri Lanka

‘Don’t look at the bowler, just look at the ball..’ Continue reading “CCTV Interview — Rizwan Cheema” →

Canadian Squad for T20 World Cup Qualifiers Announced

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The Canadian team for the upcoming T20 World Cup qualifying tournament in Dubai was announced today by Cricket Canada.  For the first time ever, it was released by a video on YouTube.

Continue reading “Canadian Squad for T20 World Cup Qualifiers Announced” →

Cricket Canada Announce Squad for Sri Lanka Training Camp

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Cricket Canada is pleased to announce a 14 man squad for the 2010 Sri Lanka Training Camp and Quad T20 Series.

The senior team will depart for Colombo in early January where they will engage in an intense training camp prior to locking horns with Sri Lanka A, Ireland, and Afghanistan in a T20 Quadrangular Series.

The training camp and series will serve as a warm up to February’s T20 World Cup Qualifier in Dubai.

Full Squad:

Ashish Bagai – Captain, Harvir Baidwan, Trevin Bastiampillai, Umar Bhatti, Saad Bin Zafar, Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan, Sunil Dhaniram, Sandeep Jyoti, Shaheed Keshvani, Thanna Kurooparan, Henry Osinde, Abdool Samad, Jason Sandher.

The squad will be joined by a select number of U19 players at the conclusion of the U19 World Cup from New Zealand as Canada prepares for an exciting and action packed 2010 cricket schedule.

Source:  Cricket Canada

ICC Announces Schedule for T20 World Cup Qualifiers

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The Emirates Cricket Board will host 7 other nations in February for a chance to qualify for the 2010 Twenty/20 World Cup to be staged in the West Indies.  The tournament will run from February 9-13.  The matches will be held at the Dubai Sports City and Abu Dhabi stadiums.

Group A – Ireland, Scotland, Afghanistan, USA

Group B – Netherlands, Kenya, Canada, UAE

Schedule

Feb 9th  Canada vs Netherlands

Feb 10th  Canada vs Kenya

Feb 11th  Canada vs UAE

view the full schedule here

The top 2 teams in each group will then play in the ‘Super Four’ round.  The 2 teams that reach the finals will qualify for the T20 CWC in April 2010.

Canada is the 5th ranked team in the tournament based on their finish in the 2008 event.