Khurram hopes for UAE investment

Two tame defeats to Netherlands and Ireland revealed the gap that exists between the amateurs of UAE and the leading lights of the Associate world. They are yet to play Test nation Zimbabwe, but UAE's World T20 campaign has already come to an end.

They fell short both on fitness and skill levels, more the former. While they will have picked up plenty of insights by participating in a world tournament, as their captain Khurram Khan agreed, he was also forthright in admitting that unless more professionalism was introduced by administrators back home, it will be difficult for UAE to bridge the distance between themselves and top Associates. While UAE do have the services of a respected former Test cricketer in Aqib Javed as their coach, the squad is composed entirely of part-time cricketers.

"The cricket board and the authorities in the UAE have to look into this matter," Khurram said. "Obviously if you are not professional...even if at least five, six, seven, eight guys, if you make them professional, let them get fit, I think it is going to make a difference. It is a good idea, the suggestion is already there and hopefully they are working on it."

Professional or not, UAE had earned their right to share this platform, and Khurram had said earlier that playing in this World T20 this was the biggest moment for them. He was confident that the exposure would assist his side's development considerably. Their next challenge at this level will come in less than a year at the World Cup.

"Definitely it is going to help a lot. The teams that we are playing at the world stage, we have not been exposed to such a stage. So obviously we are going to learn a lot from here and that is what we are doing. We already tried working hard since we came from New Zealand (where they played the World Cup qualifier). There wasn't enough time to prepare for this tournament but hopefully we will go back and start working hard for the next one."

While Khurram had blamed poor fielding and bowling for the defeat to Netherlands, he said UAE had just not been able to put enough runs on the board to push Ireland. "On this wicket the score was below par to be honest. If you look at the previous games 140-150 has been regularly achieved here. So 25-30 runs short on this wicket because of the finishing overs. I think we did not score much in the last few overs. In the last two-three games, every time that has been happening."

Not that the UAE batsmen fell short for lack of trying. They kept going for the big shots but were pulled down by eight overs worth of dot balls. Khurram admitted they had tried too hard, and in the end, could come up with neither enough boundaries nor rotate strike regularly.

"Let us not take any credit from them. They bowled very well, in very good areas. We were looking to get boundaries. The batsmen who were batting at that stage did not try to get singles. That does not mean you cannot get a boundary also. So a mix of both. We tried to get boundaries and did not concentrate on singles at that stage.

"There were a couple of times when we sent a guy in with the message that if you are not getting boundaries at least keep getting the runs , rotate the strike, and in between you will get the boundary. I think that was the difference in the end. We could not get enough boundaries in the last four or five overs to put pressure on the opponents."

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Sibanda shreds Zimbabwe nerves

Zimbabwe thought they'd sealed the deal, albeit fortuitously, when Sean Williams' inside edge skooted past Wesley Baressi for four. The scores were tied and there were three deliveries remaining. Surely it could not go wrong from there?

Williams missed the next ball but the scores were still tired and there were two deliveries remaining. Surely it could not go wrong from there?

Then Williams ran himself out trying to scramble a single to ensure it did not go wrong. The scores were tied and there was only one delivery remaining. It could easily go wrong from there.

Vusi Sibanda was under intense scrutiny. He was batting well outside of his regular opening berth, having being pushed all the way down to No. 6 because of the strategy on the day. He also didn't inspire much confidence. He only averages 15.28 in the format, an indictment for a batsman of his quality. Two of his last five T20 scores were in single fingers and when he did get going, he failed to push on. In the last match, he succumbed to the pull shot - the stroke that he tends to go back to when he feels cornered and that is often responsible for his undoing.

Against that backdrop, he had to face more pressure than has befallen him. It was not the pressure of building an innings but the pressure of ending one. At least someone one backed him to stand up to it.

"Vusi has been playing international cricket for 10 years; he is a very talented player," Brendan Taylor, Zimbabwe captain, said. "Obviously it was not a familiar position that he is used to and something new to him. But we always had faith in him and when the field's up, it does make it a little bit easier."

All Netherlands fielders were saving the single so Sibanda's only choice was to go over them. He sent Ahsan Malik's last ball further into the stands than anyone else had managed to in the match to remove Zimbabwean worries and keep them alive in the competition.

Sibanda gave fighting spirit a new image, one Taylor feels it could have done without, given what it did to his nerves. "We needed that win but we made it very difficult for ourselves," he said. "We shouldn't have finished in the last over."

Taylor felt the same about Zimbabwe's first match against Ireland. That was decided on the last ball as well and then, Taylor blamed his batsmen for not posting a sizeable enough score to defend. Then, a total of 180 on this pitch looked par, this time Taylor thought it had much less in it and felt responsibility lay with his fielders for not restricting Netherlands even further. "We leaked 15 or 20 runs and we should have restricted them to 120," he said. "We were really sloppy and we made it a lot more difficult than it should have been."

Although Zimbabwe did not drop any catches, they were lazy in protecting the boundary and on three occasions, lost the ball as it approached the rope. They were also beaten too often in the infield and sometimes, more times than Taylor was happy with, failed to pick up the ball cleanly when chasing. Taylor identified that as one of the areas they need to improve on before their last qualifier on Friday.

Despite letting Netherlands get away a bit, Zimbabwe never felt the chase was out of their grasp, even when the run-rate ballooned over nine. "We felt we needed wickets in hand," Taylor said. "Chasing 140 with a quick outfield on a pretty decent wicket to bat on, if you have got wickets in hand, you can always chase 10, 12 or even13 runs an over at the end." And if you are Sibanda you can even get six off the final ball.

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Ireland show who are 'top of the tree'

There has been this sense of quiet inevitability to Ireland's World T20 campaign so far. From the start, they have maintained that they are here to win three games and get into the Super 10.

Of course, that should ideally be any side's goal coming into the tournament, but Ireland have achieved two-thirds of it so convincingly they can now go back to doing what they often do. Making statements. This time, it was a rarer one - for their fellow Associates. Ed Joyce, Man of the Match in the emphatic victory over UAE, said Ireland wanted to let them know who was "top of the tree." Which is partly why Ireland wanted to win big over UAE, which they did.

"We have obviously got four points and there is the chance that we could lose the last game. Netherlands could have four points, Zimbabwe could have four points," Joyce said. "It was important to win well but also make a statement against our fellow Associates that we are still top of the tree there. So it was good to get a relatively easy win.

"We have played well against the others for a really long time now. We are aware that the teams around us are improving all the time. We have played a lot of close games against teams like UAE and Afghanistan and Scotland in the last few years. We have come out on top most of the times. We definitely can't take anyone for granted."

In the event they do go down to Netherlands in their final group game, net run-rate will come into the frame, which was the reason why Ireland went harder as they closed in on UAE's total. "It could come to run-rate. Once we were about 80-odd, we talked about it, made a conscious effort to increase the run-rate. Kevin [O'Brien] came in, he usually wouldn't do so. It didn't work out but we knew we were close enough, the game was won anyway."

Ireland had already seized control when they restricted UAE to 123 for 6. Paul Stirling's offspin brought two early wickets after which the seamers, led by O'Brien, tied UAE down throughout the innings on what Joyce felt was a good batting surface.

"We pride ourselves on the way we bowled and the wicket was probably more an Irish and UK wicket than we are used to here which is why we picked [seamer] Tim Murtagh ahead of [spinner] Andy McBrine. It was a good choice by the captain and the coach, so credit goes to them.

"But huge credit goes to the bowling attack. It is a very good wicket and to restrict them to 120-odd, Man of the Match should have gone to one of the bowlers, really. They did a fantastic job, we fielded reasonably. We've still got a way to go with our fielding but we bowled very well, with great discipline."

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Bravo wants batting promotion

Dwayne Bravo wants to bat higher in West Indies' order as they aim to defend their World T20 title with Sunday's opener against India looming. Bravo, who hit 43 off 31 balls in the warm-up win over Sri Lanka, believes that a move up will allow him his desired role as the fulcrum of the West Indies' middle-order.

"In this format of the game, I always fancy myself batting higher and as early as possible to give myself that extra time to get set and take the game right down to the end [of the innings]," he said. "Obviously, we have a lot of power-hitters in our line-up but my role is to hold the middle and help us lay a good foundation."

Bravo pointed to Darren Sammy, Marlon Samuels, Lendl Simmons and Andre Russell as the batsmen he would be able to take on the responsibility of big-hitting as he felt his best role was as a "stabiliser" in the team. He praised the openers, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith, for relieving the pressure off the middle-order and thinks they will be a key duo, particularly by allowing him to bat freely in the crease.

However, Bravo added that all the batsmen were high on confidence after series win at home against England, followed by warm-up wins against England and Sri Lanka in Bangladesh, and thinks that his team have already adjusted to the World T20 conditions.

"It's good to win these practice games and we're looking forward to Sunday [against India]. We left the Caribbean after winning the series against England with good momentum and after these warm-ups, we feel confident and reassured as these are the conditions we'll be playing the big games in. We expect the conditions to be good for batting. It's a bit on the slower side so try not to be predictable as a bowler.

Bravo also said that while focus would be placed on their spin bowlers, one player who would be a huge asset would be left-arm seamer Krishmar Santokie for his variations, swing and slower-balls. Bravo believed that Santokie, coupled with Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine, was one of their most formidable T20 bowling attacks to date.

West Indies, though, are aware of the dangers of becoming complacent but added that their experience in T20 cricket would counter this, especially as the core of the 2012 title-winning squad was still intact.

"Compared to the last World Cup, this one is harder as it is fewer games and we are in a tough group," he said. "We still have most of our players [from 2012] and we're not going to get ahead of ourselves. But we're playing good cricket and once we continue to show this form, we'll fancy our chances to defend the title. It might be the last World Cup for some of us in this format of the game."

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England batting continues to stumble

West Indies 132 for 3 (Gayle 58*) beat England 131 for 7 (Morgan 43*) by seven wickets
Scorecard

England captain Eoin Morgan was forced to address more questions of England's batting after a miserable performance saw them swept aside by seven-wickets by West Indies in their opening World T20 warm-up.

Despite a new "solar red" kit, England, as they did in the Caribbean, lost wickets in the Powerplay and brought their middle order to the wicket sooner than they would have liked. England's top three were dismissed by the end of the sixth over and made only 45 runs between them.

"It did hurt us a bit," Morgan said. "It was tough to get going. Their spinners are high class, they take wickets early and we've struggled with that. We never really got any substantial partnerships going which was disappointing given the progress we made at the back end of the West Indies trip."

England ended their tour of the Caribbean with a victory in the final T20 but a change of scenery saw them relapse despite conditions that Morgan described as similar to the West Indies.

"The only difference is the bounce," he said. "There is similar turn and similar pace here but it doesn't go through. We know about the lower bounce out here and that's something we have to adjust to quickly. Hopefully we can do that sooner rather than later."

England set just 132 in Fatullah, a target West Indies golluped down in only 16.1 overs, and managed to hit only one six, a shortcoming Morgan was not too concerned over.

"I don't think that's the real problem," he said. "You can never just concentrate on hitting sixes, getting the fours is more important. Around 82% of games are won by the side who hit the most fours. We never put ourselves in a position to take their bowling on. They bowled well but we didn't play well enough to take them on."

England head to Mirpur for their final warm-up against India before the competition proper begins for them on Saturday against New Zealand in Chittagong. Morgan was hopeful that Stuart Broad would "pull up well" but won't have Luke Wright available, who has a side strain. Ian Bell, called up despite having not played a T20 for England since January 2011, won't be considered.

"We have a range of options which is a good thing," Morgan said. "Moeen's at three at the moment and he offers us some off spin too. Wrighty has done it too and been pretty solid. We are quite versatile and flexible and that can be dangerous when we fire. It's a strength of ours.

"We've always been quite adamant about playing warm-ups as competitive games and trying to get confidence by winning those games. Since 2010-11 Ashes we've always made these games as competitive as we can because we feel we get more out of it that way.

"The last game at Mirpur early on it didn't bounce and later on it carried through. It's about adjusting accordingly. I've scored some runs there in the past but it can vary on the surface and what time of day you bat."

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No going back over KP - Clarke

Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, has said there is no going back to Kevin Pietersen, putting a line through any speculation of a potential England recall.

Clarke said the decision to sack Pietersen was a "brave one" as England look to rebuild following the disastrous Ashes tour and Andy Flower stepping down as team director. His message to England supporters clamouring for Pietersen's return was to "move on".

"Who plays for England is a matter for the national selectors and their decision was a brave one," Clarke told the Evening Standard. "You select your captain, you discuss what that captain requires, what he's looking for. He has to decide what that team is about and what needs doing. This is about the culture of the team."

Pietersen was sacked in February for breaking team ethics and the only possible path back into the national side would be via a new head coach who insisted on Pietersen's selection. Clarke appeared to have ruled out such a scenario.

"English supporters must move on. There isn't going to be any going back, that's for sure. The Ashes tour was a watershed.

"Your No. 3 batsman leaves the tour after the first Test. That's pretty cataclysmic, frankly. Then your world-class offspinner retires. You cannot stop men retiring even during a series. Then you lose the series. You've got to build a team. You're going to need to make changes."

Creating a new team ethic is at the heart of England's rebuilding, under new managing director Paul Downton, and Clarke is hoping English cricket can learn from rugby, where head coach Stuart Lancaster has led a revival.

"Lancaster has done a fantastic job," Clarke said. "In a very short space of time, he has sorted out English rugby. He's talked the language of teams that Paul Downton and I like very much.

"Paul said to me, 'If you look at the most successful sporting team over the last 100 years, of course, it is the All Blacks'. One of the fundamentals they live by is the team. You just don't get to play if you don't believe in it. In the end the team must matter."

Pietersen may have been judged to not believe in Team England anymore but the Delhi Daredevils feel he is the right man for them, appointing him as captain for the new IPL season. Delhi are coached by Gary Kirsten - seen by many as the outstanding candidate to become England's new head coach; Kirsten has ruled himself out of the running.

England will appoint a new head coach in May ahead of the Test series against Sri Lanka but for the immediate future they enter their second World T20 running without the player who led them to their maiden global title in 2010, when Pietersen was Man of the Series in the Caribbean. Their preparations took a further blow with a crushing defeat to West Indies in their opening warm-up match in Fatullah.

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'Never seen such dew in my life' - Al-Amin

Bangladesh seamer Al-Amin Hossain hasn't played too many evening matches in his young career, so the dew on the outfield of the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium surprised him. Ultimately, it was a matter of controlling the ball when delivering it. Bangladesh did that right against Nepal, restricting them to an under-par 126 and setting up their eight-wicket win.

It was a challenge from the start for Al-Amin, who had to contend with a wet seam early in his first over. Despite a difficult first over, in which he bowled three wides and conceded a boundary, he ended up with an impressive 2 for 17 from four overs.

"The dew made it hard to control from the first over," Al-Amin said. "I was thinking afterwards that I had to make amends in the next three overs. The wicket had grass, and I had to make it count.

"It is my first (T20) World Cup, and just my third T20 match at this level. I thought my bowling in the first match wasn't too bad but I had to improve on it. I was trying to make a comeback in this game and it went pretty well."

He removed Sagar Pun off a catch to cover and two balls later, he had Gyanendra Malla with an excellent delivery that cut back in to the right-hander from a length, trapping him leg-before. Al-Amin has been training to bowl cross-seam deliveries to counter any trouble when bowling with a straight seam.

"I bowled a few wides but I must say, I have never faced such dew in my life. I saw the seam was wet when I looked at it before bowling the second ball. I bowled cross-seam for a while and then I used the seam when it was better," he said.

If the spinners had picked up wickets like they did against Afghanistan, Bangladesh would have finished off the game quicker. Al-Amin added that Nepal's eventual score wasn't good enough.

"They batted defensively, and I think they wanted to bat 20 overs. They didn't take too many chances. I think 126 is a normal score, not a large one. There was no chance to relax.

"This is a do-or-die match. We tried to play good cricket. We took a few early wickets but if Shakib bhai [Al Hasan] and Raj bhai [Abdur Razzak] could have got us a few more in the middle overs, we could have wrapped them up for a smaller total," he said.

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Nepal batting fails to hit the heights

Nepal have hit some heights recently - coming from "the roof of the world" should mean they can handle them - but they were unable to sustain the dizzying altitude achieved by winning their first World T20 match as they came up against the hosts, Bangladesh, who had the bit between their teeth during an eight-wicket win.

Victory against Hong Kong, although by a huge margin, had been founded on steady batting followed by disciplined attack with the ball against nervy opponents. Bangladesh were always going to ramp the pressure up a few notches, with reputation as well as qualification on the line, and although Nepal put in another solid display after being inserted they were unable to achieve the required upwards curve at the end of their innings.

Nepal's coach, Pubudu Dassanayake, was understandably pleased with the way his team had acquitted themselves in their first encounter with a Test-playing nation but regretted that the batting fell away again, this time to more costly effect.

"They went through the plans well," he said of his players. "We wanted to be 90-100 for not too many down in the 15th over. They did what we asked of them. But what we lacked was a good finish. If we had got 140-145 things might have been different. Overall I'm very happy with the quality of shots they played and the aggression that they showed. It was a good game for us, despite the result."

Nepal were 86 for 3 after 15 overs, with Paras Khadka and Sharad Vesawkar well set after coming together with the score on 39. Fourteen runs came in the 17th over but they otherwise struggled to find the boundary, a situation compounded at the end when Al-Amin Hossain conceded just a single and a wide from the final six balls.

As happened two nights ago, Khadka was forced to rebuild after Nepal's openers perished for insubstantial scores. Dassanayake said that Al-Amin's dismissal of No. 3 Gyanendra Malla for 13 was key and backed Subash Khakurel and Sagar Pun to continue developing into an effective partnership at the top of the order.

"In the last two games I've been happy with the way Subash and Sagar shaped up," he said. "We've had an issue with the openers for a while but we started believing in them and they have begun to play as a pair, as a partnership. They are showing the quality, but still they have to get more runs. That will come. Paras is leading from the front and showing his quality at this level. We missed Gyanendra a bit today, when he was dismissed early. He's another one who can score at this level."

Nepal first planted a flag in world cricket by winning the Plate Championship at the 2006 Under-19 World Cup, with a team featuring Khadka, Vesawkar, Malla and spinner Basant Regmi, who claimed 1 for 14 from three tidy overs against Bangladesh. All of Nepal's players are homegrown, in contrast to many Associates, and Dassanayake praised the system that has underpinned their impressive rise through the tiers of ICC competition, culminating in what has been a hugely impressive debut World T20 appearance.

"Looking at Nepal, the national team and the youngsters, they're very sound technically," he said. "The most important part is that they train very hard and play very hard. That is what we are, our brand of cricket. If you saw the qualifiers in Dubai, we fought in every game to the last ball. Top-quality fielding, the bowlers stuck to plans, the batsmen were well aware of what was needed in a chase, how to plan an innings. Today was a bit different, because of the occasion of playing against a Full Member country."

Dassanayake stressed Nepal would not be looking beyond Afghanistan, their final opponents, but qualification for the Super 10 is still not beyond them, should Bangladesh suffer a shock against Hong Kong on Thursday. The way the hosts clinically disposed of Nepal suggests that is unlikely, with a significant swing in run rate required, and the coach was happy that his side had prevented the contest becoming a mismatch.

"Batting 20 overs comfortably against a top quality team that is also the home side is an achievement," he said. "We did have a few plans that we could not execute during the bowling part of the game but this is part of the learning process. The boys have shown that they are up to it."

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Rising Associate v struggling Full Member

Match Facts

March 17, 2014
Start time 1530 local (0930 GMT)

Big Picture

One is a Full Member and one an Associate. That itself tells the story, and also does not. Zimbabwe are probably the poorest advertisement for a Full Member with their chronic struggles - financial, administrative, cricketing. But they continue to be a Full Member. Ireland are probably the best advertisement for an Associate, banging hard on the door of cricket's small and privileged clique with encouraging performances. But they continue to be an Associate. One can argue in favour of changing the status quo in both cases.

In that sense, this is a clash filled with significance, both symbolic and real, for the wider cricketing world. Symbolic because it pits one still included mostly by virtue of being already in against one still excluded mostly by virtue of having never been allowed in.

Real because Bangladesh v Afghanistan and Ireland v Zimbabwe were widely expected to be the two games that would decide who qualifies for the Super 10 stage of the World T20. Bangladesh could have slipped on the banana peel again, like they did in the Asia Cup, but this time, they crushed it. Both Ireland and Zimbabwe will have probably seen that and drawn their lessons from it.

Zimbabwe have endured the embarrassment of a loss to Hong Kong in the warm-ups but rebounded by downing Ireland's fellow Associate high-fliers Afghanistan. Ireland beat Nepal in their first practice game but were then quelled by Bangladesh. Both sides can claim the upper hand on various counts. Zimbabwe have subsisted on training sessions and practice games for months now, while Ireland have recently defeated West Indies in the Caribbean.

Zimbabwe have been to Bangladesh many more times than Ireland have, and their players have been a regular feature in Bangladeshi leagues such as the BPL and the DPL.

Neither side has played in Sylhet, though, and the brand new Sylhet Divisional Stadium would be a fitting location for those seeking to establish a new order to challenge the old, and the old to resist them.

Form guide

Ireland LWWWL
Zimbabwe LLLWL

Watch out for

Zimbabwe have not played international cricket since September, so there is little to go by in terms of current form. Hamilton Masakadza struck 93 off just 52 balls, including seven sixes, against Afghanistan in the warm-up. He likes to take his time in the one-dayers, but once in the mood, he can cause plenty of damage in quick time. He also has three T20 hundreds to his name.

Paul Stirling may not have a hundred in the format, but by the time he falls, he's often set the match up for Ireland with his uninhibited hitting. To have a strike-rate of close to 140 over 84 games takes some doing, and to add to that, he can also be utilised for some overs of offspin, something that Ireland will likely find handy in Bangladesh.

Team news

William Porterfield spoke highly of the young offspinner Andy McBrine, saying he had impressed over the last six weeks in the West Indies and in the warm-up matches. The combination of the experienced George Dockrell and the rookie McBrine could test Zimbabwe, who have tended to struggle against spin in the past.

Ireland 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Ed Joyce, 4 Andrew Poynter, 5 Gary Wilson (wk), 6 Kevin O'Brien, 7 Max Sorensen, 8 Alex Cusack, 9 Tim Murtagh, 10 George Dockrell, 11 Andy McBrine/Stuart Thompson

Zimbabwe have brought along two legspinners in Tafadzwa Kamungozi and Natsai M'Shangwe. The 26-year old Kamungozi last played for Zimbabwe back in 2006. Sikandar Raza has opened with Hamilton Masakadza in both the warm-up matches. Will Zimbabwe continue with the same pairing or go back to Vusi Sibanda at the top of the order?

Zimbabwe 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Sikandar Raza, 3 Brendan Taylor (capt & wk), 4 Vusi Sibanda, 5 Sean Williams, 6 Malcolm Waller, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Prosper Utseya, 9 Natsai M'Shangwe/Tafadzwa Kamungozi, 10 Tinashe Panyangara, 10 Tendai Chatara/Brian Vitori/Shingi Masakadza

Stats and trivia

• Ireland beat Zimbabwe in the previous meeting between the two sides, a one-dayer in 2010
• This will be the first T20 between the two sides
• Sylhet will become the 208th international cricket venue

Quotes

"The fact that we haven't played them in a T20 before does not really matter. When you play against each other in international cricket, everyone knows pretty much everyone."
Ireland captain William Porterfield

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Netherlands seek batting turnaround

Match facts

March 17, 2014
Start time 1930 local (1330 GMT)

Big picture

The scene outside the Sylhet Divisional Stadium was typically subcontinental. Long queues stretched outside the ticket windows, heated arguments ensued when someone tried to sneak in, and there were plenty of security personnel. The only difference was that hosts Bangladesh are not going to play in Sylhet.

Try filling a 14000-capacity stadium in India for a game not involving MS Dhoni's side. Then try doing it for a match involving two Associate teams. Good luck with that. This is what makes Bangladeshis probably the most passionate followers of the game on the subcontinent, and by extension, the world. Teams such as Netherlands and UAE could not have got a hungrier audience.

Peter Borren, the Netherlands captain, said at the press conference that no one would recognise his players on the streets of Amsterdam. They might go unnoticed in Sylhet as well, at least for now, but the crowd will nevertheless appreciate what Borren and his men have to offer.

Borren will hope the offerings do not mirror what his batsmen have dished out in the warm-up matches. Against Hong Kong, they were 84 for 3 in the 12th over chasing 128, and collapsed to 100 all out. Against Afghanistan, they were 49 for 2 in the sixth over chasing 122 in 15, and slumped to 86 all out. An exasperated Borren had said he was pi**ed off with his batsmen. There is no reason for him to have that feeling with a varied attack in which up to eight men can be counted upon to contribute.

Netherlands will need all the contributions they can come up with, for as the UAE captain Khurram Khan said, his side are more used to the slow-and-low tracks that Bangladesh usually offers. While a world event is not exactly unfamiliar territory for Netherlands, UAE will be out to enjoy what Khurram called the "biggest moment" for his players when they walk out under lights on Monday evening.

Watch out for

Given their batting woes in the warm-ups, Netherlands will be glad they will have the services of Tom Cooper, who is an injury replacement for Tim Gruijters. Cooper brings with him years of experience in the Australian domestic circuit, which could prove useful in case Netherlands threaten to implode again.

If the Sylhet pitch plays anywhere close to how Dhaka and Chittagong usually do, the veteran left-arm spinner Shadeep Silva, who began his career in Sri Lanka, should enjoy bowling on it. Another veteran is captain Khurram Khan, who at 42 is still his side's leading batsman. Who said T20 is a young man's game?

Teams

Netherlands (from): Peter Borren (capt), Wesley Barresi (wk), Mudassar Bukhari, Ben Cooper, Tom Cooper, Tom Heggelman, Ahsan Malik, Vivian Kingma, Stephan Myburgh, Michael Rippon, Pieter Seelaar, Michael Swart, Eric Szwarczynski, Logan van Beek, Timm van der Gugten

UAE (from): Khurram Khan (capt), Ahmed Raza, Amjad Ali, Amjad Javed, Faizan Asif, Manjula Guruge, Kamran Shazad, Moaaz Qazi, Swapnil Patil (wk), Rohan Mustafa, Rohit Singh, Shaiman Anwar, Sharif Asadullah, Vikrant Shetty, Shadeep Silva

Stats and trivia

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