T20WC

Australia has named a star-studded squad for their ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 campaign, with captain Aaron Finch and Steve Smith among a host of big names returning to action. Finch (knee) and Smith (elbow) have been backed to return from injury for the tournament, with David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins and Kane Richardson also set to be back in action after sitting out the team's tours of the Caribbean and Bangladesh in July-August. The return of the seven stars is a major boon for Australia as they chase their first Men's T20 World Cup trophy. The Australians have endured a lean time of late in T20 cricket, having lost each of their past five series. However, in the three most recent of those they have been unable to field a full-strength XI and will be hopeful the return of Warner and company sets them on the right course. Among the 15-member squad, the most surprising name is Josh Inglis. Uncapped to this stage at the international level, Inglis...

Andy Balbirnie is embracing the pressure that comes with captaincy as he heads into his first ICC event as Ireland skipper.   A mainstay in Ireland’s team across all three formats, Balbirnie has captained the limited overs XIs since 2020 and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 will be his first global event with the team reins. “Whether you’re playing or captaining, there is always going to be pressure,” Balbirnie said. “Captaining – it’s the first time I’ll do it an ICC event so I’m very excited for it and excited to see how the guys adapt to it. “Pride as well, it’s not every day you get to lead your team into a World Cup. We’ve got a lot of cricket to play beforehand but I think once we’re on the plane on the way out it will certainly sink in that we’re getting to do something very special.” Having debuted in 2010, it was only in 2015 that Balbirnie established himself as a fixture in Ireland’s ODI XI, playing all six of their matches at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup that year, n...

L ooking to make the knockout stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup for the first time, Bangladesh will have to go the long way, starting their campaign in the First Round. As the top-ranking team in their group, Bangladesh go into the tournament as favourites to reach the Super 12 Stage but captain Mahmud Ullah knows they cannot take anything for granted. “In any World Cup every match is important equally,” Mahmud said. “Each game is important. You have to be on the top from the first ball. You have to be in a frame of mind, focused on your team process so that you can win every game.” Fuelling their campaign will be a core group of all-rounders, led by Shakib Al Hasan, who sits at the top of the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I all-rounder rankings. Alongside Shakib’s all-round skills, Bangladesh boast a powerful batting order with the likes of Mahmud and Mushfiqur Rahim, a pace attack spearheaded by the in-form Mustafizur Rahman, and a plethora of cunning spinners. Essentially, the...

M atthew Wade is backing Australia’s surprise strong suit to come to the fore as the side chase their first ever ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Trophy. A team historically famous for its powerful batsmen and fierce fast bowlers, it’s Australia’s spinners who have thrived for the team of late, with Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar fixtures in the top 10 of the ICC’s T20I bowling rankings since 2019. Alongside Zampa and Agar, Australia will also have the services of all-rounders Glenn Maxwell and Ashton Turner, and that is spin bowling quality Wade says bodes well for the team going into a T20 World Cup campaign in Asia. “I think our spin bowling has always (been) one thing that we’ve been looking for and I think now in our current T20 team it is something that is definitely our strength with Zampa and Agar," Wade said. “It’s probably something that you wouldn’t say Australia have had as a strength over the last 10 years in white ball formats but I think the experience those guys have got over t...

After their experience of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2016 First Round in India, Oman is targeting a top-two spot to enter the Super 12 stage in this year’s edition. Buoyed by playing games on home soil at the Al Amerat facility, Oman will host Bangladesh, Scotland and Papua New Guinea in an open Group B, looking to go one better than their one-victory effort five years ago. The occasion is certainly not lost on right-hand batter Aqib Ilyas, who has struck two centuries and six fifties in his international career thus far. Likely to play an important part in Oman’s campaign, the middle-order player was not a member of their 2016 campaign, though understands the scale of the tournament, especially as an opportunity for the game’s emerging stars to stand up. “The T20 World Cup is one of the most popular sporting events taking place on the planet,” Ilyas said. “It’s one of the best platforms for all Associate players and Associate teams to compete against the best playing nations.” On...

Former quick Shane Bond has joined New Zealand as a fourth coach for the upcoming T20 World Cup in October-November and the three-game T20I series against India that follows it. The ‘fourth coach’ role has been used by New Zealand in past home summers, away tours and world events such as the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019, where it was carried out by current batting coach Luke Ronchi. “The fourth coach for me is an opportunity to bring in different voices to the environment and we’ve used it in a whole host of ways in the past,” head coach Gary Stead said. “Shane is someone who always adds value and we’re delighted to have him on board.” Bond is familiar with the Black Caps set-up having spent three years as the bowling coach from 2012 to 2015 and was involved in a 2019 T20I series against England. He has also spent stints in charge of New Zealand A. Until recently Bond was coaching the Sydney Thunder in Australia’s Big Bash League competition, and since then has been assisting the...