Divided opinions: Question marks aplenty ahead of World T20

Former players can’t agree on Pakistan’s chances at the mega event

KARACHI:

Former players stand divided as to how Pakistan will fare in a tough Group 2 at the 2016 ICC World T20 as the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the schedule of the mega event in India.

The Men in Green are placed in the tougher of the two groups alongside hosts India, Australia, New Zealand and a qualifier, with only two teams from the five going through to the semi-finals.

The World T20 will be staged across eight venues in India from March 8 to April 3.



What makes the group even more dangerous is that the fifth team to join the group will be in-form Bangladesh or one of the two giant-killers, Ireland and Netherlands.

Pakistan will play their first match on March 16 against the qualifying side, followed by the big game against arch-rivals India on March 19 in Dharamsala.

Their next two matches are against New Zealand on March 22 and against Australia three days later on March 25.

Meanwhile, Group 1 pits reigning champions Sri Lanka, England, South Africa, West Indies and a qualifier — which could be one of Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Scotland and Hong Kong.

Former players unsure of chances

Former skipper Rashid Latif said that although Pakistan have struggled recently in the shortest format, they can still spring a surprise at the World T20.

“I won’t underestimate Pakistan despite the recent series loss against England because we’re very dangerous when it comes to the T20 format,” Latif told The Express Tribune. “Pakistan can beat any team on their day and for me that spells alarm bells for other teams in the group. However, all of this would depend on Pakistan selecting the best possible players from the available lot.”

The 47-year-old felt that Pakistan should participate in the tournament even if the proposed Pakistan-India series does not go through. “Pakistan need to be flexible now as India at least entered into talks with us,” he said. “We should also not rule out ‘hosting’ a series in India as we have nothing to lose and will get added revenue from it.”

Meanwhile, another ex-cricketer Shoaib Mohammad added that the team may struggle to even go beyond the group stage given the current problems within the side.

“We’re still in the experimenting phase and don’t even know our best eleven,” he said. “The constant chopping and changes have affected the players’ morale and confidence. Pakistan qualifying from the group stages would be nothing short of a miracle as the current side looks anything but settled.”

A total of 58 tournament matches — 35 men’s and 23 women’s — will be played in the 27-day tournament in Bengaluru, Chennai, Dharamsala, Kolkata, Mohali, Mumbai, Nagpur and New Delhi. New Delhi and Mumbai will host the semi-finals on March 30 and March 31, respectively, while Eden Gardens in Kolkata will be the venue of the April 3 finals. The women’s semi-finals and final will be followed by the men’s knock-out matches, with a reserve day being allotted for both finals.

The men’s event will carry a total prize money of $5.6 million, which is an 86% increase from the 2014 tournament, while the total prize money for the women’s event is $400,000, which is a 122% increase from the Bangladesh event.

“India is a country where cricket is a religion and not many places can match the passion for the game like India,” said ICC chairman Shashank Manohar, who attended the launch ceremony in Mumbai. “I am fully confident that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will deliver an outstanding world cricket event, just like the ICC Cricket World Cups in 1987, 1996 and 2011.”

Manohar’s sentiments were echoed by BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur. “We, as hosts, are fully prepared to organise one of the most entertaining spectacles in world cricket,” he said.

Meanwhile, ICC chief executive David Richardson said that the ICC World T20 is an event which pits the world’s best cricketers in the shortest format of the game against each other in a nation versus nation contest.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 12^th,  2015.

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