Why Afghanistan is not playing Asia Cup?

This is a strange decision. Afghanistan is the only associate ODI status country in Asia, and they have the status courtesy of the World Qualifier, and not just the ACC Cup. It is surprising that they have not been included in the Asia cup. Since the Asia cup is an ODI tournament, you would have thought that even if they dont want to play the ACC qualifier (which probably is Afghanistan anyway) they would still play Afghanistan due to their global standing.

Maybe ODIs and First class should not be the first step …

Realistically speaking, not many, if any, will be able to create a viable First Class structure at this point in time. A first class structure requires a lot of domestic level cricketers to be at professional or semi professional level. Most associates are having trouble with professionalizing the national squad ! Also, nothing beats playing numbers, which automatically brings up the raw talent. What gets playing numbers high, more than a first class structure, is a following for the game, or a following for the national team. Just take a look at how many cricketers in the current Ireland u19 team have Ireland beating Pakistan as their favorite cricketing memory?

No doubt first class structure is very important, but first, lets see if the associate can produce the players who are able to play 25 balls against a big test side. Then you can see if they can play 60 balls, and eventually 150+ balls. If the associates cannot even stand firm in a T20 game against the test side due to a serious gap is basic bat on ball skill level, it is unlikely that they will improve too much by having a first class structure.

ICC’s FTP should fundamentally be just tour based (rather than test based), involving all the 10 test and 6 associate countries. At minimum the Full member has to give 3 T20 to the touring side. The rest is upto them. If they feel that an associate can compete in an ODI that they can sell to their broadcasters, then the host test country would be free to convert the T20 into an ODI. Just the minimum required would be this. If Bangladesh and Zimbabwe play 2 of these series, either hosting or touring,  then that leaves the rest of the test teams to play just one such series in the year to give every associate 2 of these series every year.

ODIs are a tougher proposition than T20. Full members have to sell the broadcasting rights and also the tickets to their events, and in most cases than not, the associates have not really been able to match up. Once in a while they can, but not for a full series. T20 is a different game. The top associates can be quite competitive. If given a regular season and dosage of games, they can build their own product around that for financial income. A series of 3 T20 games will not be more than a week long tour. It is quite certain India will not be hosting any associate for 3 ODI series in India, but they might be more open to hosting them for a 3 T20 game series. If Ireland or Netherlands consistently beat Full Members in T20, the full member might be more inclined to start giving them full ODI series, as the public can start thinking of a longer game against the associate as not just being a one sided run bash. But for Ireland or Netherlands to consistently beat full members at T20, they need a structured way in which they will play them in T20, every year.

Of course all of this is expected to increase the awareness and following of the sport in the associate country.

Any eligibility question for Afghanistan?

I recently read this article on CricketEurope. It seems that someone has some confusion on what and who should be allowed to play for Afghanistan, and whether all Pakhtuns living in Pakistan should be eligible for the Afghanistan cricket team.

This is preposterous, and also, there is really no confusion anywhere. National cricket teams are just that, national. People eligbile to play for Afghanistan are those living INSIDE the UN recognized boundaries of the country Afghanistan, or those who are living elsewhere, but are eligable for an Afghan passport and ID card. Some pakhtun living in Pakistan cannot just go an play in Afghanistan cricket team because in 1947 Afgahnistan refused to agree to the Durand line. Pakistan seems to agree to it fine. Also, when push comes to shove, both Pakistan and Afghanistan pretty much agree on the border when chasing terrorists. That explains why they are always fighting with each other on whose mistake it is when someone gets away.

Punjab is divided between India and Pakistan. Indian Punjab is further divided into multiple states now. Mohajir population in Pakistan, particulaly in Karachi, are immigrants from UP state in India from 1947. Just based on these ethnic ties, people cannot qualify to play to other countries, unless the ethnicity also somehow gives the nationality to the person.

If any Pakhtun in Pakistan can go and get a passport from Afgahnistan, and also vote there, then perhaps it would be a complex issue. But its not. So lets not make it complex.

Huge number of Afghans lived in Pakistan, they still live there. Since they are Afghans (if they want, they can get Afghan citizenship and live there), they would be eligable to play for Afghanistan, but only after they have fulfilled the other ICC requirements (either live there for 4 years or get Afghan passport). However, just any Pakhtun living in Pakistan cannot just go and get selected in Afghanistan cricket team.

Regarding the playing numbers. I would think the playing numbers of 18K are closer to reality than 495. Sometime ago, it also showed up that Nepal’s playing numbers were 200 ! The numbers collected for the ICC report are about officially registered cricketers in official clubs that do book keeping etc. In the subcontinent, many times that doesnt happen. 4 million afghans lived in Pakistan for more than 20 years. What game do you think they played there all the time?

The Asian Games Conundrum: Should the Middle East sides field teams?

Cricket will be amongst a number of new sport additions at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, China. Given that the Asian Games is the continent’s premier sporting event, this is a fantastic result for the ICC, the ACC, Chinese Cricket, and the other member countries. A brand new cricket-only stadium with a capacity of over 5,000 people is currently being constructed in Guangzhou. In this unlikeliest of locations, one which which belies the sport’s colonial niche, the four test playing countries, China, and a number of other countries will be locked in intense battle not for pride, not for prestige, not for ashes – but for medals Or will they be? The unfortunate reality is that the test playing nations will dominate and destroy with little intensity. The question is how much will they dominate? How severely will they destroy? This will be determined by which non-test playing countries participate and by whom they are represented.

In a continent where many of the top non-test playing teams are dominated by Subcontinental expats with first-class experience, countries who want to and are eligible to participate in the Asian Games at the discretion of their Olympic Associations will struggle to field a team, let alone a competitive one.

The Middle East sides are prime culprits.Syed Asraful Haq added much fuel to the fire by recently advising the UAE not to field a team because they would “outclassed and embarrassed.” This was met by much criticism from Abdul Razzaq Kasim, long time patron of Emirates Cricket, the ECB (Emirates Cricket Board), and Oman Cricket. So the debate rages on. This is what I think.

UAE, Oman, and Kuwait have all indicated their interest in fielding teams at the tournament and may very well do so. The problems with this are multi-fold and serious.

- the tournament will be a farce. Scorecards may read: Kuwait vs India – Kuwait 10 all out, India 10/0 in 0.2.

- this will result in negative publicity for the sport amongst the media, fans all around the world, and governing bodies of the test countries. I can see the mainstream media carving into the likes of the ACC, and ICC about their development programs, and the OCA (Olympic Council of Asia) for allowing such a one-sided tournament to take place at the highest level.

- fans will be dispirited seeing such one sided games and appalling quality from some of the sides. “We should have just sent our local district team to play instead of Oman. It might’ve been a better game.” In the countries of the sub-continent where thousands of immensely talented cricketers never leave their local maidan, the tournament might well espouse sentiments of envy, anger, and complete disrespect towards the sport and its unfair nature.

- I don’t see the top test players being too appreciative of taking two weeks to play in China only to be cornered and trapped in excruciatingly substandard tournament. If the top players do not approve of the tournament, the top associations won’t approve of the tournament. This may lead to it being played by Test U-19 sides or discontinued all together. Nothing could be worse for the game.

- An uncompetitive tournament may leave the Chinese government, press, and public with a poor impression of the sport. The ACC and ICC have pumped millions into cricket in China, and a lack of public or media interest in the sport in not something they need. However, given that Chinese teams are starting to see some semblance of success in the international arena, and the government has made active, long-term decisions to pursue the development of cricket in China, this argument does not have much weight.

So what are the Middle East countries saying? They argue the following:

- Participation will expose local players and officials to a higher level of competition, and will offer them a chance to play on the big stage. This exposure, they argue, will help the development of national players and coaches in the long run. Is one tournament really going to do this? Are ‘nationals’ who have only played the game for two years really going to benefit from being repeatedly peppered by Malinga, or Mohammed Aamer or bamboozled by Bhajji?

- Asian Games participation will spark major interest amongst locals and governments in the respective countries. Success, and not participation sparks long term interest. 10 wicket drubbings are humiliating for fans, and governments will spark criticism, and disinterest in the sport.

- Lastly they say, if China is being allowed to participate without any problems, why is so much noise being made about us wanting to? This arguement has the most merit. In all fairness to the Middle East teams, China will probably be thrashed quite dramatically in the tournament, and this will have its on adverse effects on the development of the game. It all comes down to the ACC’s decision not to hold a qualifier with nationality qualifications similar to the OCA’s. Countries such as Afghanistan, Nepal, Maldives, Malaysia, and Bhutan who field 100% ethnically local sides would have been successful, and participated more competitively at the Asian Games.

The situation that exists is not a pretty one, however what finally transpires remains to be seen. Lets hope we don’t have a situation where we turn on our television sets hoping to watch a day of cricket at the Asian Games only to find out that game has ended four hours ago.

A Preview of the Upcoming ACC T/20 Cup Part 1: Group A

Asian Non-test playing cricket is back in the United Arab Emirates with the ACC T/20 Cup due to start in a couple of weeks at the magnificent Sheikh Zayed in Abu Dhabi, and the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Dubai. The tournament which was originally intended to be a qualifier for the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou is now devoid of any substantial meaning as it was decided that countries should apply to participate directly with their Olympic Associations. It is, however, a wonderful opportunity for many of these teams to compete in a tournament of reasonably high quality (in the non-test cricket scenario) on international standard turf wickets. For some of the more established sides – Hong Kong, Oman, Singapore, UAE, Nepal – it provides perfect opportunity to test out new talent, toughen up promising youngsters, and test themselves under the rigours of T/20 cricket ahead of a busy 2010 highlighted by the U-19 World Cup, the ACC Elite Cup, the World Cricket League, the 2010 T/20 World Cup Qualifiers and the 2010 Asian Games.

Twelve teams have confirmed their participation with Maldives, Bhutan, and Thailand being the notable omissions. One fails to see why these countries have refused to send teams.

Part 1 of this preview is a short analysis of Group A, which consists of upcoming giants and first seeds Afghanistan, perennial challengers the UAE, a confident Singapore side fresh from an impressive unbeaten run in WCL Division 6, ACC Trophy Champions Hong Kong, an unpredictable Saudi Arabian outfit, and newcomers China.

Afghanistan

On the back of consistently awe inspiring performances in the World Cricket League and an exceptional showing in its recent tours of Zimbabwe, and the Netherlands as an ODI country, Afghanistan have got to be overwhelming favourites for the trophy. Having played with Hamid Hassan, I am quite aware of the destructive capabilities of his bowling. Their batting, too has matured impressively especially with blossoming of opener Noor Ali, and Mohammad Shezhad. They bring with them talent, lots of experience, and most importantly a do or die attititude towards winning. While their first match against China could be one of the most one-sided in international cricket history, their second against Singapore should be an intriguing prospects and one that indicates the side’s strength and quality.

Key Players: Hamid Hassan, Nowroz Mangal (captain), Noor Ali, Mohammed Shezhad
X-Factor: the pace and fire of Hamid Hassan
Prediction in Group Stages: 1st
Overall Prediction: 1st

UAE

If there’s one side in the tournament capable of uprooting the Afghan challenge, its the UAE, however despite the presence of world class facilities, recent performances have been below par, and much has been said about the country’s continued reliance on Pakistani and Indian expats to bring home the goods. While they haven’t officially named their side yet, presumably, much will depend on the class of veteran Khurram Khan, the experience of two other stalwarts in Arshad Ali and Saqib Ali. Amjad Javed is known for his big hitting and could be a headache for opposition sides opening the batting, and bowling his skiddy medium pacers. Whoever is picked in the squad, coach Colin Wells will be hoping his boys can turn the tables and restamp their authority on the Asian region.

Key Players: Khurram Khan (if playing), Saqib Ali, Amjad Javed, Zahid Shah, Fayyaz Ahmed
X-Factor: the success of their spinners in backing up their dependable top six.
Group Prediction: I do not see them beating Afghanistan. Let me make a big call here by saying I think Hong Kong and Singapore have a one up on them at this stage. 4th
Overall Prediction: 7th.

Singapore

Singapore are seeded 3rd in a tough group, but going by their recent performances they will be a handful for any team in the competition. Encouraged by the well-oiled organizational engines, and professionalism of the Singapore Cricket Association, a recent association with Trever Chappell, and their unblemished record in the recent World Cricket League Division 6 Tournament, they will be brimming with self-confidence and ambition: an ambition to no doubt lay their hands on the trophy. Buddhika Mendis was fantastic for them with a number of fifties and a hundred in the recent WCL tournament, while there were handy contributions Munish Arora, Chetan Suryawanshi, Pramodh Raja, and Dharmichand Mulewa as well. A repeat of their WCL Division 5 victory against Afghanistan could definitely see them sneak into the semi-finals, and from there on anything is possible.

Key Players: Buddhika Mendis, Dharmichand Mulewa, Saad Janjua, Chetan Suryawanshi
X-Factor: the big hitting of Sagar Kulkarni (who has scored a 200 in a domestic game), and Christopher Janik
Group Prediction: They will be competitive but will struggle in a group that includes Afghanistan and Hong Kong. 3rd.
Overall Prediction: 5th

Hong Kong

Hong Kong have definitely emerged as one of the top competitors in the Asian region over the last three or four years. They are coming into this tournament with the tags of ACC Trophy Champions, and ACC U-19 Cup Champions (they’ve also qualified for the U-19 World Cup). That said, the abrupt departure of former England ODI player Aftab Habib as coach, and the decision to send no less than eight U-19 players to this tournament to give them more exposure before New Zealand, could hurt them.

Nevertheless, they will still be very difficult to beat with players such as the Ahmed brothers, Najeeb Amar who scored a hundred in the ACC Trophy final against UAE, and Hussain Butt, in their ranks. Two difficult games against Afghanistan and UAE in the first three days will decide their fate.

Key Players: Nadeem Ahmed, Hussain Butt, Najeeb Amar, Moner Ahmed
X-Factor: If Irfan Ahmed gets going with the bat or ball, things will become alot easier for the dragons.
Group Prediction: 2nd behind Afghanistan
Overall Prediction: Finalists

Saudi Arabia

Much like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia are somewhat of an enigma. Scintillating victories against the likes of UAE, have been accompanied by ordinary losses against teams like Malaysia in the last three years. A key concern in the past has been players’ fitness over a period of more than seven days, and if the men in green can cope with the rigours and intensity of six games in the space of eight days, they could be dangerous. In all reality though, they cannot possibly be a match for any of the other sides in the group bar China. However, cricket is a funny game and we just have to wait and see.

Key Players: Suhrab Kilsingatakam is one name in the squad that has stood out over the past two or three ACC tournaments.
X-Factor: The flat decks and a lightning outfields outfields of Abu Dhabi and Dubai will suit their explosive style of batting.
Group Prediction: 5th
Overall Prediction: 10th

China

This tournament will be quite the learning curve for a Chinese team that is being quite keenly pushed for accelerated growth and development by the ACC and ICC. The Chinese’ only previous exposure to the rigours of men’s international cricket has seen team struggle considerably against teams like Thailand, the Maldives, and Iran, and tournament will in all likelihood see them struggle somewhere. Coach Rashid Khan, and everyone in the international cricket community will be happy to see some semblance of improvement in the team’s results over the course of the tournament. In all likelihood, however, they will be cannon fodder. I shudder to think of what will happen to them at the Asian Games next year.

Key Players: Unknown
X-Factor: Nothing I can think of. The off-chance of rain will definitely work in their favor.
Group Prediction: 6th
Overall Prediction: Last (12th)

Why even bother with cricket development?

On all the development blogs, we worry about the “what, how, good and bad” of cricket development. But sometimes, people ask a very basic question: take a step back, and ask exactly what the point is of developing cricket in the associate countries? If they have the culture of cricket, the numbers etc, then they will improve themselves. Why are we proactively worried about it?

From the other side, some baffoons give statements about focussing on only China and US as they have great money potential. As if the game is starving for money right now.

Here is the problem with this thinking. It is not the associates that need cricket. Cricket needs the associates. The game needs something new, all the time, something fresh.

No one denies that one of the best world cup ever to take place was the 1992 one in Australia/NZ. It was for multiple reasons: colored clothing, day night cricket,  great format, great game production, and last but not least, a new team. SA was the one thing that every cricket watcher noticed. Unknown players, good standard, almost a cinderalla team.

The novelty aspect of the game is long gone after the advent of cable. Now, you will never wonder what a player is like that you have heard about so much. You will never wonder if someone is really as fast as they say he is. If he has been playing ODI or Tests against other countries, the chances are that you have seen him, and know the answer to that already.  Its pretty easy to follow global cricket when there are only 8-9 teams playing it. There is no mystery there.

The other novelty aspect, that you get to play different teams, with different strengths and weaknesses, thats not there either. The same teams play each other all the time. England played Australia for 7 ODIs, then were also playing them in the semis of the Champions Trophy. The result was also in line with how things had been in the past. Ind/Nz/Sri played each other in a triseries, and Pak played Srilanka for 5 ODIs right before Champions trophy. Pak and NZ now start an ODI series after their semi. And ofcourse, just 2 months before all that, there was the T20 tournament. Even Pakistan vs India, the most viciously watched game, was becoming somewhat of a passing by event due to the 2006-2008 overdose.

More teams ARE needed, more fresh players are needed. Otherwise the game will get completely pointless. I personally believed that the Champions Trophy should have been only 6 teams. With 8 teams, its just the world cup ! But if there are 20 competitive cricket teams, even at Bangladesh standard, they would create some freshness.

The second reason is from the perspective of association. Why do illetrate people in Pakistan know that there is a country across the world down under where there was a man called Don Bradman? Why would people find interesting that Usain Bolt’s favorite sportman as a child was Waqar Younis? Through the common aspect of the sport, you tend to begin and understand the other culture, methods, people a lot better. Wouldnt the Indians want that Sachin Tendulkar is known well in the 1.3 billion chinese population? Wouldnt the Australians want that Brett Lee is well known in the US. Wouldnt these players want it themselves?

Third reason is a basic one. If its a global sport, then it should not be limited to 1/3 of the worlds population. There should be an attempt to help promote it in the other 2/3.

The 4th reason is talent based. The greatest talents can be anywhere in the world. The one billion population of India did not produce Viv Richards. He was from of Antigua, a country of 60K people across the world. The world of cricket is better off because of Viv Richards. Since talent can be anywhere, you have to make sure you go everywhere to find it.

Money is the 5th reason. It is there, I dont deny it. But its not the main reason. If you make this the main reason and then only go after high GDP/capita countries, its foolish, and you lose out on the other points. Money is important as it creates more of a cricket economy, even for people in cricket playing nations in the developing world.

News: Masakadza overtakes Ponting for most runs in 2009

After the high scores against Kenya, Zimbabwean opener Hamilton Masakadza is currently the highest run getter in ODIs in the world for 2009. He just beat out Ricky Ponting.

For the full list, click here to go to the cricinfo site.

And now Rankin?

This story is quite interesting. Rankin’s response is also interesting. He is right that he cannot play test cricket for Ireland, so he has to make the most of that opening if it comes.

What happens if 6-7 Irish crickers are playing for England? Will the team still be called England or Ireland?

Zim takes 2-0 lead over Kenya …

This is pretty much what everyone had expected. I am personally quite disappointed in Kenya still being a one trick pony relying on Tikolo.

Some things need to be kept in perspective. Zim thrashing Kenya does not necessarily mean that Zim is much higher than the associates. Zim should play Ireland, Afghanistan, Netherlands and Canada to see whether they can do so consistently against higher ranked associates than Kenya or not. Personally I think the ICC missed a trick when they did not get Afghanistan to play ODIs against Zim when the toured for the Intercontinental cup.

For Zim, their batting is quite strong, even in the absense of Taibu. It was their pace bowling that was weak, but they seem to have found a good quickie in Jarvis.

Thailand’s Women – Pioneering Success

The profile of women’s cricket on a global scale has risen considerably over the last few years. We’ve seen increased coverage of the game on television characterized by the widespread broadcast of the recent World Cup in Australia. Sponsorship levels have gone up and many more countries are professionalizing their domestic set-ups. Regional bodies such as the European Cricket Council (ECC), the Africa Cricket Association (ACA), and the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) have also been pulling their weight and organizing more tournaments, both junior and senior for their region’s women. Many countries have been taking advantage of these developments, and one of these is Thailand.

The country has traditionally produced able, yet unspectacular men’s teams and never really challenged the top rung of ACC nations such as UAE, Afghanistan, Hong Kong, and Nepal in the men’s game. On the back of a 3rd place finish at the inaugural ACC U-19 Cup in 2008, and a runners-up finish (they lost in the finals by 4 runs to Hong Kong and beat Nepal, Singapore, Qatar, Bhutan, Iran on the way) at the ACC Women’s 20/20 Asian Games Qualifying Tournament, Thailand’s women are slowly developing a name for themselves.

An 100% ethnic Thai squad made up of former national baseball, basketball, and volleyball players, all natural athletes, a school cricket program for women in three provinces, and the recent introduction of cricket into the annual National (Makhamwan) Games, and the ASEAN University Games are all indications of a bright future for the country’s female cricketers. To top it all off, the girls have sealed qualification to the Asian Games Women’s Cricket Competition in Guangzhou next year where they will compete against four test-playing countries, 2 other qualifiers (Nepal, Hong Kong), and hosts China. This will be the country’s first cricketing soujourn at this level and it is hoped that this will generate interest for the sport amongst the general public, and ring in the sponsors. For this to have long term effects, the embarrassment of one-sided thrashings by the test nations needs to be avoided and to make sure this happens, the country will have to train extensively for the tournament, and expose itself to quality competition (in the form of series against Hong Kong, Bangladesh or other leading Associates such as PNG, and Ireland) on a regular basis

It is hoped the success of the women’s sides will rub onto the men sooner or later, and that they will start to produce cricketers capable of leading the country to the higher echelons of ACC competition, and into the World Cricket League in the near future. In wake of the women’s success on the regional stage, all that’s need is some clear strategic planning, and the development of an ethnic player base and appropriate domestic development and competition structures for the men to do the same. Thailand has the population, the facilities, and the government support to take Asian Cricket by storm.

PS: A recent profile on the Asian Cricket Council Website (http://www.asiancricket.org/h_1009_thaiwomen.cfm) documents their development and success in detail.