Murtagh and Ireland give England a Brief Scare

Last summer I wrote about the retirement of the Ireland/England batsman Ed Joyce. A few weeks ago another Irish England player won the World Cup, a tournament for which the country of his birth failed to qualify. This week, both countries met at last in a Test match.

As a prelude to the Ashes, it was ever likely to be a meaningful challenge, was it? England would simply stack up 500-odd and bowl out the visitors twice inside a day. Happy days! However, it didn’t work out quite so smoothly. OK, so Chris Woakes and Stuart Broad admirably demonstrated the art of top-class seam bowling to demolish Will Porterfield’s side this afternoon, but when another thirty-something paceman is able to remove Burns, Roy, Bairstow, Moeen Ali and Woakes for a handful of runs, alarm bells should be ringing in the England camp.

Full credit to Tim Murtagh, backed by Mark Adair and Boyd Rankin, for embarrassing Root et al and staking his place on the Lord’s honours board. It shouldn’t be a surprise. Prior to this Test, the London-born bowler had precisely 800 first-class wickets to his name so taking several more on his home county pitch was not unexpected. The bald, bare facts state that England beat Ireland by 143 runs inside three days but the home nation had more problems from the Test cricket newbies than the draining heatwave which weighed heavily on South East England. Why?

Murtagh was the only regular Ireland representative currently playing regular county cricket. Middlesex colleague Paul Stirling remains a dangerous one-day opener, but Gary Wilson, Will Porterfield, Boyd Rankin and Kevin O’Brien have all seen their Championship days put behind them. All are in their thirties, with Murtagh rapidly approaching his 38^th birthday.  Perhaps players of the calibre of Wilson can stimulate the development of new stars in Ireland’s fledgling professional structure. If the shamrock-bearers are to achieve a Test victory, this is essential.

As for England, this was probably just a hangover from the World Cup and a case of underestimating the opposition. It will probably prove to be a mere hiccup en route to an Ashes triumph over Australia later in the summer. The batting failures – relying on nightwatchman Jack Leach for their second-innings runs – will quickly be forgotten when Buttler and Stokes return. I think Rory Burns will retain his place but not Joe Denly. If fit, Anderson and WC-winner Jofra Archer must surely be in the first Ashes Test XI unless Bayliss and co can persuade a certain 38 year-old Londoner to switch his national allegiance!

Ed Joyce retires a Test cricketer at last

I’m not sure what proportion of Ireland’s population was following the island’s cricket team’s progress to becoming part of the Test-playing fraternity, but this Englishman was definitely cheering them on. When it came to that inaugural five-dayer against Pakistan in Dublin a few weeks ago, I was less engaged than I should have been thanks to a relaxing holiday in the decidedly cricket-free land of Croatia. However, I was glad to learn that the Irish had not disgraced themselves. Losing a maiden Test is no disaster; after all, no country has ever won theirs since Australia in the very first match in 1877.

In recent years, several of Ireland’s best players have had to seek England qualification in order to face the world’s biggest stars. Boyd Rankin was granted a single Ashes appearance in 2014 and I recall seeing him in a one-dayer at Cardiff. Eoin Morgan, of course, ended up as England’s ODI captain. Kevin O’Brien now boasts Ireland’s only Test hundred to accompany that blistering World Cup innings which defeated England in 2011, while Tim Murtagh’s miserly seam bowling has finally been tested at the highest level.

But most of all I am delighted for Ed Joyce. At the age of 39, his status as Test cricketer assured in the history books, he has decided to retire from all forms of cricket. For so many years, he was a supremely consistent county stalwart, in the colours of  Sussex and Middlesex, yet unable to break into the England set-up, partly because he was born in Dublin. Then, in 2006, he made the breakthrough and opened with Marcus Trescothick against, perversely, his home nation of Ireland. There were the added contrary coincidences of his opposition that day including the aforementioned K O’Brien and Ed’s brother Dom!

After contributing to Ireland’s tournament qualification, Joyce went on to represent England in the 2007 World Cup, having just struck a debut century against the Aussies, before switching allegiance back to Ireland in time for the 2011 competition. Since then it has been all Ireland, and his runs have been an important factor in the nation’s rise from leading Associate member to fledgling Test team, seeking five-day scraps at the top table.

A twenty-year career has included more than 30,000 runs, including 18,461 in first-class cricket at a highly impressive average of 47.95. That’s better than Alastair Cook’s and vastly superior to Morgan’s 35. In 2014, by this time captain of Sussex, he hit seven centuries in Division One of the County Championship and, two years later, produced a career-best 250 against Derbyshire. He could have been the answer to some of England’s batting problems but his allegiance was by then firmly to the land of his birth.

Right up to his fortieth year, Ed Joyce’s runs have been vital for Ireland’s march to another World Cup but from now on they will be missed. It is rather sad that Ireland’s accession to the pinnacle has coincided with the approaching dismantling of the side because of age. Besides Joyce, Murtagh, the O’Brien brothers, Paul Stirling and current skipper Will Porterfield are al well into their thirties. So is Rankin. Where are the next generation coming from? That’s where Ireland’s new Test status is so important. Let’s hope Ed Joyce can bring the same class and inspiration he had as a player to a role of nurturing his country’s cricketing future.   

India win Under-19 World Cup

I first became aware of the 2018 Under-19 World Cup last summer. While staying on Jersey, I found myself having breakfast in the same hotel dining room as the squads representing Denmark, Scotland and Ireland, each vying for a qualifying place in the New Zealand competition proper. Unfortunately I left before the Irish clinched the deal but I made a mental note to follow their progress.

Six months later, they predictably failed to win the tournament. Instead, and far more expectedly, it was India who duly became the first nation to win four Under-19 World Cups. Was the result ever in doubt?! They won all six matches in the tournament, taking Australia apart by eight wickets in the final, so skipper and opener Prithvi Shaw thoroughly deserved to raise the trophy in Christchurch.

The young Irishmen can at least hold their heads up high, having defeated one of the eventual semi-finalists Afghanistan at the group stage. Perhaps one or two will make it big in the future, but I reckon it will be some of the Indian team who could forge successful cricketing careers in the future. Manjot Kalra won the Player of the Match in the final, thanks to a measured century, while team-mate Shubman Gill was the most consistent scorer throughout the tournament. Amongst the bowlers, I’m sure Rahul Dravid will also be extolling the virtues of his paceman from Rajasthan, Kamlesh Nagarkoti who also shone in the field.

However, looking back at previous Under-19 World Cup finalists, it’s interesting to note how few bowlers went on to become global names.. Mushtaq Ahmed (1988), Josh Hazelwood (2010), Graeme Swann (1998), Ravi Jadeja (2006 and 2008) and the emerging whizz-kid Kagiso Rabada are exceptions to the rule. Admittedly this competition has witnessed the launch of brilliant careers for Albie Morkel (2000), Trent Boult and Tim Southee (both 2008) but they never performed in the final.

On the other hand, there are numerous batsmen who have gone on to succeed at the very highest senior level.  Yuvraj Singh, Sarfraz Ahmed, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Graeme Smith, a beardless Hashim Amla and Babar Azam have all competed in the under-19 final, while the likes of Atherton, Hussain, Cook and Root all starred for England en route to captaining the senior side. However, it is Owais Shah who remains the only English player to lift the cup. Future Test bowler Alan Mullally was a winner in 1988 but for Australia, and both Jonathan Trott (South Africa, 2000) and Eoin Morgan (Ireland, 2006) also made their respective marks for the nations of their birth.

So why haven’t the youth bowlers progressed at the same rate as batsmen? I guess it could be part burnout, injuries, poor coaching or just that bowlers either peak early or mature relatively slowly. I don’t know the answer. In 2016, Jack Burnham struck three centuries for England, while Sam Curran and Mason Crane also caught the eye. The latter two have been fast-tracked into the senior squad although it’s Tom Curran who seized his ODI opportunity in Australia last month. Burnham’s time may yet come, but first he’ll have to drop his stupid and career-damaging drug habit.

Elsewhere, I fancy that Keagon Simmons (West Indies), Aussie captain Jason Sangha and the aforementioned Indian trio will become internationally renowned within five years, provided suitable first-team opportunities open up!

Pakistan end Ireland's World Cup dream

It was all set up for a memorable St Patrick's Day celebration but it has all gone wrong. Wales ended Ireland's long unbeaten run at rugby in Cardiff whilst in Adelaide, the gallant cricket squad lost the winner-goes-through encounter with Pakistan. Nobody could offer any support for centurion Will Porterfield, leaving a fairly simple target of 238. Keeper Sarfraz Ahmed's maiden hundred ensured there would be no collapse and victory cam with almost for over to spare.

With the West Indies making light work of the United Arab Emirates, Ireland went out on net run rate despite beating the Windies earlier in the tournament. Despite outperforming Zimbabwe in the 2015 World Cup, presumably the ICC will prevent the Irish from building on their minor successes in global tournaments by persisting with the blinkered, brain-dead proposal of keeping the Associate nations out in 2018. Of course if the sport's rulers had gone for an eight team World Cup based on 2015 group positions, there would be no place for England! Then I suspect there would have been a definite re-think!

Nevertheless after 42 matches, we now enter the knockout phase where anything can happen. The first quarter-final on Wednesday is perhaps the hardest to call. South Africa, with AB De Villiers at his outrageous best, have been piling on huge totals despite losing early wickets but Sri Lanka can never be ruled out. However, surely not even Kumar Sangakkara can score hundreds in every match, and if Morne Morkel and Imran Tahir keep applying the screw and taking wickets, AB's men ought to win.

Bangladesh have so far done everything asked of them, with just one defeat (to Sri Lanka), the big scalp of England and an excellent fight against table-toppers New Zealand. Normally they are super-reliant on all-rounder Shakib-al Hasan but in the group stage they have owed a lot to Mahmudullah's two centuries and Mushfiqur Rahim's consistency. Nevertheless they now face a confident Indian side. Shikhar Dhawan is back in form, supported by Kohli and Raina but even more impressive has been the bowling unit. Mohammed Shami has 15 cheap wickets but Ashwin, Sharma and Yadav have all been in the mix, too. As a result they ought to make the semis at least.

Pakistan have qualified by the back door but Australia should underestimate them at their peril. Wahab Riaz has looked dangerous and Misbah-ul-Haq is always difficult to remove. The Aussies haven't dominated the run charts either, but one of their matches was rained off. Glenn Maxwell's strike rate of almost 200 is their most eye-catching statistic, and Mitchell Starc's 6-28 against New Zealand is the second-best bowling performance of the tournament to date. With Michael Clarke back in the saddle and such formidable batsmen as Finch and Warner, not to mention a partisan Adelaide crowd, Australia must be the hot favourites.

Most impressive team must be New Zealand. The co-hosts have exploited the swing-friendly conditions to perfection, and Trent Boult and Tim Southee were unplayable against England. Daniel Vettori has marked his return to the big time by taking more wickets than any other spinner with an economy rate second to none. Their opponents at Wellington, the West Indies will need to practise against swing this week if they are to stand a chance against the Black Caps. A runfest is unlikely and, assuming Chris Gayle isn't allowed to rack up the sixes, you'd fancy Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor or Cory Anderson to achieve any target batting second.

The form book says a semi-final line-up of India, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa but don't rule out a Caribbean cracker!

Coetzer and Bangladesh join the World Cup record breakers

The 2015 World Cup has served up so many batting records I'm losing count. With Gayle's 200, AB De Villiers' fastest 150, all the 400+ totals and record partnerships, the statistics are mounting up to suggest in some people's minds that this competition is the best ever. No, it's just the tournament with the worst balance of bat and ball.

All the records seem to be made by batsmen. I'm not denying that crowds enjoy watching the likes of world superstars Brendan McCullum, David Warner and Kumar Sangakkara strike fours and sixes around the park but it seems like innings of 300 of becoming the norm and 400 is no longer the rarity it was even four years ago. Personally I'd rather see a 250-250 thriller than one side set a target of 400 which even the top teams would struggle to approach. That means bowlers taking wickets and it's not only Broad and Anderson failing to do so with disappointing regularity.

Economy rates are also affected by the constant tinkering of rules, bat and ball technology and the apparent shrinking of playing areas towards the square itself. Watching highlights of previous World Cups reminded me that the boundary used to be the advertising boards immediately in front of Row A. Now the 'rope' is routinely placed about 5 metres beyond spectators and don't tell me it's for the fielders' safety.

So far there have been only seven five-fors, which makes Tim Southee's 7-33 against England and Mitch Starc's 6-28 against the Black Caps even more outstanding. Even Steve Finn's five wickets against the Aussies came at the expense of 71 runs, hardly something to celebrate.

Anyway, some batting performances are to be applauded. Yesterday's magnificent 156 was not only a personal List A career best for Kyle Coetzer but also out-did any previous innings by an Associate nation player. Such a shame that Scotland could not capitalise on their best total and register that elusive first World Cup victory. That they failed was on account of a wonderful run chase by Bangladesh.

I was surprised that Tamim Iqbal's 95 was Bangladesh's highest in a World Cup but further swift fifties by Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib al Hasan took them across the 319 target line with eleven balls to spare at Nelson. Suddenly it's not impossible that Bangladesh could reach the quarter-finals. If they do, it will almost certainly be at the expense of England, who must beat them on Monday to remain in the hunt.

And then there's Australia. The hosts and pre-tournament favourites will want to beat Sri Lanka because if Bangladesh triumph at Adelaide next week they will have to beat the Scots to progress. Defeat is unthinkable but the ultimate shock would thrill millions. Ireland were brought down to earth this week and if they lose to Zimbabwe at the weekend, the prospects of another Associate side reaching the knock-outs will recede further. They will need to overcome Pakistan to give themselves a chance, unless the West Indies fail to beat UAE. Even if they win, it could be down to net run rate.

The Windies' plunge down the rankings saddens me but for the good of global cricket I'd love it if one of the non-Test nations makes the last eight. In reality that means Ireland. Ah, a man can dream...!

Ireland and Afghanistan rival Gayle for excitement

A few days ago, all the World Cup talk was about Chris Gayle's sensational double-century against Zimbabwe. However, for all the records he and Marlon Samuels established at Canberra, nothing beats an exciting humdinger between two well-matched teams.

The money-grabbing idiots at the ICC, who see only dollar signs when the likes of India, Australia and England are scheduled for Melbourne, Sydney and Wellington, don't want a tournament with too many boring games, too many one-sided contests. I agree. 8 wickets with 38 overs to spare? Hang on, that's NZ v England. 130 runs with 10 overs left? Wait, that's India v SA. 111 runs and 8 overs short? Oh, England v the Aussies.

Yet the best matches have been Ireland's victories over the Windies (a 4 wicket margin in a 600-run thriller) and the UAE (2 wickets with 4 balls remaining) and now Afghanistan's stunning last-over, one-wicket triumph over Scotland. The spectators at leafy Dunedin may have been outnumbered by the Indian flag-wavers at the MCG but would they rather have been anywhere else given the superb entertainment dished out?

Such as shame for Scotland, still without a World Cup win, but what a result for Afghanistan, worthy World Cup competitors after only ten years! They gave Sri Lanka a good game, too, while Scotland were three wickets short of a major upset against home side New Zealand.

Samiullah Shenwari's 96 was as classy and, well, perfect as any innings we have seen in the past few weeks. Not a six-fest but he cleared the ropes when he had to. The only failure was his dismissal just 4 runs short of a century. Shapoor Zadran's 70s style length of both hair and run-up didn't stop him nabbing four key wickets either. It didn't matter either that the Ireland-UAE clash featured only three sixes. Shaiman Anwan's 106 (following an ultimately unsuccessful 67 vs Zimbabwe) and Kevin O'Brien's late-innings heroics still lit up proceedings. Kev's brother Niall struck an unbeaten 79 to steer the Irish to that success against West Indies in Nelson, a game where Gayle could only scratch around for 65 balls to score 36.

These Associate stars need the spotlight that a global tournament offers. I don't care what the TV companies and organisers say: for all the cash and adulation heaped on the likes of Kohli, AB, Warner and co, we want to see some fun-packed finales. In football, FIFA has continually expanded its own World Cup, and there's talk of even more nations being allowed to qualify for the final stages. That may well owe more to politics and the power wielded by the smallest of countries but without the rise from 16 to 24 nations in the 1980s, would African nations and players have developed as much as they have? Ditto Japan, South Korea and Australia?

I think there is no chance of the current Associates being elevated to Test status in the foreseeable future but please let's have more fixtures between, say, Ireland and India, Afghanistan and Australia, and so on. Even if they are one-off bolt-ons in more glamorous tours. It would be a start and, who knows, the United Arab Emirates could become the Sri Lanka of the 2020s. In the mean time, we must all put pressure on the ICC to change their mind and develop the sport instead of pandering to the BCCI, CA and the rest.

A few more upsets in the coming weeks would be even better.

The magical minnows get the T20s off to a great start

Months ago, when the T20 World Cup qualifiers were in full flow I surprised myself by how involved I became. I didn't see anything on TV but the results somehow seemed more significant than those of the Tests being played at the same time. Not because I was suddenly a keen student of Papua New Guinean or Canadian cricket but because the outcome would have a potential huge impact on the global game.

The ICC and its major members had little interest in seeing representatives of cricket's outposts mixing it with the big boys but last week's qualifying groups at the tournament proper produced some fabulous entertainment and some genuine surprises. In the final two fixtures of Group A, tiny Nepal shocked Afghanistan and came close to knocking out Bangladesh when Hong Kong's dramatic two-wicket victory over the hosts left Shakib's side with the same nuber of points but a marginally superior net run rate.

In Group B, seeded Zimbabwe were knocked out at the first hurdle but only after an enthralling group climax. On Friday at the Sylhet Stadium, Ireland went into their match against the Netherlands needing a win to qualify. The Dutch required a victory by a substantial margin whereas a relatively narrow triumph would leave Zimbabwe the qualifiers. When Andrew Poynter and Kevin O'Brien advanced their total to 189-4, it meant that Peter Borren's team's target was 190 in a paltry 86 balls. That they achieved it with a few balls to spare, against bowlers of the quality of Tim Murtagh and George Dockrell, was even more remarkable. Stephan Myburgh thrashed a world record equalling half-century then Tom Cooper almost eclipsed that before being dismissed on 45 in a mere 15 balls. The match contained an amazing 30 sixes.

And so the Super Tens (why not just call it the Second Round?!) began with the likes of Gayle, Dhoni, Finch, McCullum et al having to live up to the standards provided by so-called lesser players for lesser cricketing countries. So far, Umar Akmal, Glenn Maxwell, Virat Kohli and others have indeed produced some batting performances up there with the very best. With the ball, Umar Gul, Imran Tahir, Ravi Jadeja and Amit Mishra have looked very useful in stemming the flow of boundaries.

As for who will win, of course it's a complete lottery. I never expected the Associates of throwing up an eventual World Cup winner. However, in T20s, they are perfectly capable of producing an upset which in turn could destroy the hopes of a fancied outfit. Similarly, any of the leading nine are potential winners, and I don't consider poor pre-tournament records tob an enormous hindrance. For example, Stuart Broad's whinges or the occasional thunderstorm, will do more damage to England's chances than poor spin bowling or putting Jos Buttler at five instead of four. India's promising start bodes well, with world-class batsmen supported by a trio of economical spinners. I fancy Australia to maintain their fine form in all three formats but New Zealand or Sri Lanka could well upset the current rankings. South Africa and England probably don't have the depth of slowies, and the West Indies' reliance on Gayle and Narine may be too optimistic, and their medium pacers too profligate.

It's not proper cricket but if the competition continues to serve up more close encounters and Dutch delights even I may be converted, if only for a few weeks!

World T20 Qualifiers

The drama of Sachin Tendulkar's farewell has somewhat overshadowed a very important competition that started this week and continues throughout the rest of November. No millionaire superstars but the six best teams will end up having a real opportunity to be part of one of modern cricket's top tournaments, the ICC World Twenty20.

What I like about this contest is spotting familar players alongside unfamiliar team-mates. Papua New Guinea again boast former England wicketkeeper Geraint Jones, veteran Saffer and Warwickshire favourite Neil Carter represents Scotland, Middlesex all-rounder Gareth Berg lines up for Italy and ex-Glamorgan batsman David Hemp performs for his home nation of Bermuda. And then there's the fan's game of spotting the traditional Danish, Italian and HK names amidst those with Pakistani, Sri Lanka or South African heritage.

As with the proper World Cup, I've always been a supporter of the minnow nations participating on the big stage. But who from the sixteen competing countries in the UAE will make that step to face a second round of games and ultimately meet the likes of India, England and Sri Lanka in Bangladesh next year?

Based on reputation alone, the familiar names of Ireland and Netherlands must be favourites, with Canada, Afghanistan, Kenya and Namibia giving them a run for their money. So after two or three matches apiece, how are things shaping up?

In Group A, Ireland have won all three matches, including two nailbiters against Canada and the UAE, so are looking good. The latter nevertheless sit in second place alongside Hong Kong, who have beaten two of the weaker sides. Namibia have some catching up to do, while the USA may have edged out neighbours Canada but nobody else to date.

Group B could be much tighter, especially after the Dutch lost to PNG. The surprise leaders so far are tiny Nepal. They thumped Denmark then won an excellent run chase against Kenya. If they beat Scotland tomorrow, they will be sitting even prettier. Nevertheless, Afghanistan have lost only to the Netherlands and I would expect both to accumulate enough victories over the Affiliate nations to make the top three. The third qualifying spot looks more open. With Scotland and Kenya pointless after two matches, the road is open for the UAE or Bermuda to proceed to the big time.

But wouldn't it be fabulous should the PNG island or Himalayan heroes maintain their winning sequence for another week or two? Paras Khadka, Basant Regmi and Tony Ura could be mixing it with Steyn, Kohli and Anderson. In most games, those contests will be horrendous mismatches but just one shock result will vindicate the ICC's decision to give countries on the edge of cricket's radar a shot at the big prize. Bring it on!

The Luck of the Irish - er - English - er- Irish English?

While wickets were a-falling in the morning dew across England, it was the run-makers making late summer hay in two of cricket's British Isles outposts. North of the border, Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh helped themselves to useful centuries as Australia's one-day team demolished Scotland by 200 runs. However, the major action was taking place across the Irish Sea.

An incredible crowd of almost 10,000 flocked to the new stadium in Dublin to cheer the men in green against England's second-string ODI Eleven. Much was made beforehand of the nation-switching players and almost inevitably they were the ones making the headlines. Dublin-born Eoin Morgan struck 99 on his ODI debut for Ireland against the Scots seven years ago but today he was the captain of England. Boyd Rankin, son of Londonderry, began his international career for Ireland versus Bermuda but he, too, was representing the old enemy across the water in this contest. Even more complications were provided by Ed Joyce, once of Ireland, then England and then Ireland once more!

Much to the local fans' irritation, it was Rankin and Morgan who essentially won the game for the visitors. Ravi Bopara's 101 not out was another excellent contribution as he shared a record England fifth wicket partnership with Morgan. However, England didn't have it all their own way. Will Porterfield's name has been a reassuring one at the top of the Irish scorecard for several years, and has not disgraced himself as Rankin's team-mate at Warwickshire either. This afternoon, the home skipper produced a beautifully crafted century, number six in a 65-game career, to boost Ireland's total to a creditable 269-7. Then, with the estimable Tim Murtagh (born in London) and Trent Johnston (New South Wales) ripping through the top order inside fifteen overs, an upset really looked on the cards.

England debutants Michael Carberry and Gary Ballance failed to take their chances, the latter caught behind for a second-ball duck. Then Morgan found an ally in Bopara first to steady the ship then steer it home at such a rate of knots that the target was reached with seven overs in hand.

So what have we learnt? Ireland do have a useful squad, especially now that Middlesex's Murtagh has used his ancestry to represent the land of his grandparents. They still have the capacity to cause upsets, as they did so memorably in the World Cup. But will they be Test material by 2020? Not if they can't retain talent like Morgan or Rankin, they won't be. As for England, I certainly wouldn't discard Carberry and Ballance on the basis of one match. Indeed, I'd rather keep the Hampshire opener than Luke Wright in the 50-over set-up, although Bell, Cook and Pietersen should remain first picks when available. Tredwell performed well as prime spinner, but Steve Finn was again disappointing with the new ball. Anderson, Bresnan, Broad and even Rankin need not be too concerned in the future. Australia won't be too traumatised either at facing the reserve attack in the coming fortnight.

World T20 Qualifiers: No surprises yet

Unlike the interminable IPL, the World T20 qualifying tournament in the UAE has quickly reached the knockout stage after 56 round robin fixtures. We're familiar with the likes of Ireland, Canada, Kenya and Holland from the 50-over World Cup but two of the other pre-competition favourites topped their respective groups. Afghanistan and Namibia both claimed 100% records and go onto meet in what is technically known as a preliminary final.

As is the way of modern competitions, you can't simply have two semis and a final between the winners. No, whoever wins out of the group winners will progress to another final, but the second and third placed teams in each group now play off to determine who plays the losers of the other preliminary final, and the winner of that plays the winner of the first preliminary final. Clear as mud?! I suppose it allows six teams a further opportunity to have a chance of being one of the two Associate/Affiliate nations to join this year's World T20 party, so who will it be?

Obviously one of the Group winners will definitely be in Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan must be favourites. Their batting line-up is strong, led by Mohammad Shahzad and Karim Sadiq, and boast a good mix of seam and spin. However, Namibia's Raymond van Schoor is the leading run scorer so far and his team-mate Louis van der Westhuizen blasted a 56-ball century against Scotland. Ireland came within five runs of beating them a few weeks ago and Will Porterfield's side must fancy their chances of reaching the final two. First they have to see off a weak Canada and then the winners of Netherlands v Scotland. The former have missed star man Ryan Ten Doeschate, who opted for another lucrative franchise payday rather than represent his country. However, Peter Borren's team have a reasonable chance of beating the other European challengers, although I fancy Scotland and Ireland meeting in the deciding 'semi'.

Of course, this is Twenty20 so anything could happen. However, over seven matches the chances of the Affiliate minnows progressing were always going to be slim and so we won't see the likes of Nepal, Papua New Guinea or Oman playing Australia or India later this year. What about some of the familiar names representing unfamiliar cricketing nations this month? Michael di Venuto may be one of the most prolific Aussie first-class batsmen in history but T20 has never been his bag, and he failed to lift Italy. Ex-England 'keeper Geraint Jones contributed almost 200 runs to his native PNG, who finished fourth in Group A. Veteran David Hemp, ex-Glamorgan, has played more than 20 ODIs for Bermuda but they managed just a solitary victory in this competition.

They won't be at the ICC's finals but I shall plump for Afghanistan and Ireland being the two qualifiers. Frankly either of them could win the final in Dubai but the main prize would be achieved by merely getting there at the weekend. How they might cope with Malinga, Warner, Sehwag and co I dread to think but I'm glad they at least have the opportunity to test themselves against the best. Cricket should never be a closed shop for the rich.

A cavalcade of catches!

On the face of the scorecard, the Kenya-Ireland Intercontinental Cup match looked an exciting contest, with Ireland pulling off a 10-run victory. However, it was a bit of a disappointment because this was a first-class cricket fixture and it ended with more than two days to spare. All forty wickets fell in 165.2 overs.

As with a lot of international cricket recently, spinners were to the fore. Hiren Varaiya led the way with six Irish victims in each innings while Albert van der Merwe and Somerset's teenage George Dockrell captured all twenty Kenyan wickets between them. Van der Merwe - how Irish does that sound?! - finished with 11-68 for the match. The climax proved interesting because at one stage Kenya were in dire straits at 38-8 before the ninth wicket pair of Varaiya and Nelson Odhiambo took them tantalisingly within reach of the meagre target of 119. The home side still needed 25 with one wicket left but when last man Ngoche struck a four and six, there was still hope before van der Merwe polished things off.

The most fascinating thing about the match was that all 22 wickets to fall on the first day were the result of catches! Not a single LBW, bowled or stumped, despite the dominance of slow bowlers. Can this ever have happened before in a first-class match anywhere in the world?! On the second and concluding day of the game, 'only' eleven of the 18 victims were caught, producing a match total of 33. I'll leave it to those with better access to statistics but at least there wasn't much demand for DRS!

The Associates cannot win!

Talk about a rollercoaster ride. First, the ICC Annual Conference back-tracks and sanctions another 14-nation World Cup in 2015 and then changes the rules for the World Twenty20 tournaments while the qualification competition is already underway, reducing the number of non-Test playing nations from six to two!

I must say that I was delighted with the Hong Kong delegates' decision to allow Associates to participate in the next global 50-over event. I have written before about the importance to the promotion of cricket of seeing the likes of Ireland, Netherlands, Kenya and Canada line up against the big guns. It doesn't matter if they are beaten in most games they play; as long as they can create some scares and genuine upsets, as the Dutch and Irish inflicted on England last winter, then they are worth their place. In Australia, it is possible that Afghanistan will earn a place in the finals, which should give a huge boost to that war-torn country. That should outweigh any moans about lack of sponsorship earning potential from Cricket Australia.

I do worry that a 14-nation World Cup will end up with at least as many fixtures as we had last time, but how you avoid having two groups of seven, I don't know. The subsequent move to punish the Associates for the temerity to challenge on the 2015 World Cup ruling by denying all but two to compete in the T20 competition is pathetic. I would have preferred to see a 12-team World Cup and 14-team T20 event but the ICC has succeeded only in causing even more friction, demonstrating lack of sensitivity and placing cash deals before showing the world how good a sport cricket can be. But I suppose that is the way of most major team sports these days. The rich get richer and the poor go to the wall.

It took Sri Lanka's World Cup win in 1996 to prove to the authorities and public they could be a force in world cricket and I'd love to see one of the minnows outplaying the big fish in at least one of the competitions just to prove the ICC wrong. Kevin O'Brien or Ryan Ten Doeschate smashing the winning six off Lasith Malinga or Dale Steyn? Why not?! At least they could now have the opportunity and for that I give thanks, but the ICC really should get their act together before they lose what credibility hey have left.

Ireland and Co get new World Cup Lifeline

Think back to the World Cup. What were the most memorable moments? The India v England tie? Tendulkar being lifted on a lap of honour after the final? The atmosphere at the India v Pakistan semi? All are possible. But for me one of the outstanding memories of that great tournament was Kevin O'Brien's record-breaking century and Ireland's victory over England. Of course, the competition thrives on well-supported and generously-sponsored games involving the major cricketing powers but I have always argued that World Cups are made as much by the poor plucky losers as well as the wealthy stars. Even though Ireland, Canada, Kenya and the Netherlands never really looked likely to reach the knockout stages, they did put the wind up some of the Test-playing nations and occasionally actually beat them.

I was appalled when the ICC originally decreed that only the current top ten of Test cricket - not ODIs, mind you - should be allowed to take part in the sport's biggest one-day international event in four years' time, thus robbing us of such giant-killing thrills. The co-hosts had got their way, but the Associates and their supporters put up such a fight, with legal threats tossed into the mix, that ICC president Sharad Pawar found a way to appease them and raise hopes of reversing that scandalous decision at the forthcoming ICC's annual conference in Hong Kong.

I'm not advocating a repeat of the 'all play six' format that involved a number of less-than-appetising encounters and extremely one-sided fixtures. However, a 12-nation tournament can't be too difficult a compromise to reach. Even if the Aussies and others on the ICC insist on sticking to the ten-team maximum, surely the Associates should at least have the opportunity to qualify by playing off against the likes of Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, West Indies and whoever else is likely to be in the bottom four of the top tier. It at least gives the youngsters with national pride something to aspire to, rather than seek their living as England, South Africa or Sri Lanka fringe players. The ICC can never claim to be willing to expand cricket around the world if it doesn't give those other countries exposure of top-class competition rather than face a future of endless games against Papua New Guinea, Cyprus and the like. In four years, Afghanistan could well be pushing hard, too.

Cricketing growth should not be allowed to rely on the grubby hands of short-term commercialism that is IPL, which is only one private brand of short-form cricket, albeit very entertaining and lucrative and which attracts most of the world's best exponents.

When Cricket Australia demand that only the ten best teams in the world should participate in 'their' tournament, that's fine. Just don't tell us who they should be four years in advance of the event. Let the teams compete for the honour. If Zimbabwe, Bangladesh et al succeed in qualifying, so be it. But I sincerely hope the ICC's meeting in June shows common sense and keeps the World Cup as a truly open and global tournament and not just a private event for the privileged few.

World Cup - The Associates remembered

England will be glad to see the back of them, Ricky Ponting never wanted them in the first place and now they are all eliminated from the World Cup, and probably for at least eight years. The Associate countries have nevertheless contributed to the 2011 tournament even if only one of them actually beat one of the Test-playing nations.

With the exception of Andy Flower and his charges, Ireland made lots of friends in recent weeks. Kevin O'Brien's sensational innings sparked that remarkable three-wicket victory over England in Bangalore two weeks ago and Paul Stirling's rapid century clinched an entertaining triumph over the Netherlands this week, but the Irish also scored more than 200 against the might of India and West Indies and gave Bangladesh a game, too. They can feel hard done-by if they are effectively excluded from the next World Cup just as they are showing what they can do at the top table. If they developed some top-class bowlers, too, they would be at least the equals of Zimbabwe.

When the Dutch pushed England all the way in Week One, expectations of more success were raised. However, Peter Borren's side failed to register a single victory. Not for want of effort. I picked Ryan Ten Doeschate as one to watch for the competition and his two centuries took him to more than 300 runs in the group stage, a great achievement and more than were compiled by the likes of Shane Watson, Hashim Amla and Tillikeratne Dilshan. They could yet prove that the future is orange but only at Twenty20.

Canada started out as cannon fodder....... but they went on to produce some better performances, led by runs from skipper Ashish Bagai and Amarbir Hansra. Teenage opener Hiral Patel also attacked world-class bowlers Tait and Lee this week, taking the Aussie pacemen for a 45-ball 54, albeit in an ultimately lost cause. For Kenya, Collins Obuya has already hit as many sixes as the much-vaunted Watson and with the Zimbabwe game to come, has already scored 242 runs at an average of more than 60. However, it looks likely that the Kenyans will exit without a victory, having succumbed to Canada and their Africa-born 'quick' Henry Osunde.

As I indicated earlier, what lets the World Cup minnows down is the lack of consistent quality bowlers. Credit must go to Canada's Harvir Baidwan, whose 13 victims put him near the top of the wicket-taking table, ahead of Lee, Swann and Murali. However, his wickets proved relatively expensive in terms of economy, and this was the case for all the Associates' bowling. They just didn't have the pace, guile, nous or maybe just the experience at this level to tie up or bowl out superior batting line-ups.

Nevertheless I applaud the contribution made to the tournament of all the aforementioned nations. Next week may see the start of the 'real' World Cup, as the top eight go head to head in the knockout format, but let's not forget how the likes of O'Brien, Obuya and Ten Doeschate lit up the competition while many were moaning that they didn't deserve to be even on the pitch.

World Cup Week Two - Minnows Bite Back

Just when the World Cup was beginning to look a bit tedious, we have been treated to a few wonderful games with the occasional surprise hurled in from around deep square leg.
Pakistan are now the only teams playing at least three matches who have a 100% record, but they have had to work for it. Last weekend they upset Sri Lanka with an 11-run victory, followed on Thursday by a batting wobble against Canada which was rescued by another great performance by Shahid Afridi. Normally the man to watch with the bat, it has been the captain's clever mix of spin, pace and flight with the ball which has bamboozled the opposition. The only 'boom-boom' has come from the sound of the stump microphone being clunked as another batsman misreads Afridi's line in the search for late-order runs. Nine wickets for 57 in twenty overs is a fabulous return for the Pakistan skipper. Only Australia now pose a major threat to his challenge for top place in Group A.

Sunday witnessed one of the most exciting matches in World Cup history, that record high-scoring tie involving co-hosts India and England. Superb innings from Strauss and Tendulkar, great bowling from Zaheer Khan and drama right to the very last ball. That result should have raised England's confidence but then they blow it all against lowly Ireland. Once Kevin O'Brien started to batter the attack with more gusto than a fryer in a Scottish chipshop, panic set into the English, not for the first time in recent history. Given that Ireland also came close to matching Bangladesh in the first week, Will Porterfield's men are putting themselves in with a shout of making the quarter-finals. I can't see them beating South Africa or India but if they catch the West Indies on a bad day, who knows?

It was a shame that today's showdown between the Aussies and Sri Lankans was curtailed by the rain. Malinga's six-wicket haul against Kenya put Sri Lanka back on track and could have posed Watson, Haddin et al a lot of problems. Meanwhile New Zealand have been impressively ruthless against Associate opposition, adding Zimbabwe to their ten-wicket victims this week and should easily reach the quarters. South Africa continued their fine start, with the brilliant AB De Villiers constructing a second century in their demolition of the Dutch. Hashim Amla also demonstrated his pedigree with a hundred of his own, and Imran Tahir proved the Proteas' attack is not all about Steyn and Morkel. Back in Group B, the West Indies have also reminded us of their international class by thumping the Dutch and Bangladesh. I have been very disappointed in the co-hosts' performances. I had them down as potential quarter- and even semi-finalists but in this form they look set for an early departure from the tournament. Their batting was simply woeful against Roach, Sammy and Benn on Friday.

Player of the week? A very close run thing between Shahid Afridi and Kevin O'Brien just gets my verdict. I can't ignore the fastest ever World Cup hundred, especially as it came against one of the leading teams in international cricket, and it illuminated the second week of the tournament. Shame so few were in Bangalore to witness it.

There are some intriguing fixtures in the coming week. I predict England's rollercoaster ride will yield them a win against the fancied South Africans and a struggle against Bangladesh on Friday. India should reassert their authority on Group B with victories over Ireland and the Netherlands, while in Group A, Canada may have the edge over Kenya in the 'wooden spoon' clash and New Zealand's bowlers may do enough damage to Pakistan to garner a further two points. I'll probably be wrong, of course, but at least Week Two results have set the scene for some more potential surprises.

World Cup - Irish Eyes Are Smiling!

When addressing someone who is brighter than they first appear, my Mum has a saying: "You're not as green as you're cabbage looking". Well, after the latest amazing game at Bangalore, the Irishmen in green were the bright-eyed victors and the England team were looking like cabbages.

Kevin O'Brien's dyed hair may have appeared a bit insipid but his batting had been full-blooded, to the cost of Andrew Strauss and his bowling attack, especially poor Stuart Broad whose injury lay-off had left him struggling for line, length,pace or imagination. OK, so the rest of the team were afflicted by all sorts of yips, with no fewer than five dropped catches, including rare fumbles by the skipper and even Matt Prior off awkward but eminently catchable high swirlers. Nevertheless, Ireland's recovery from a seemingly impossible situation at the halfway stage to nick the win in the final over was remarkable. For a 26 year-old who has yet to really make his mark on the first-class game, to surpass the achievements of Richards, Hayden, Gilchrist, Lloyd and Sehwag and score the fastest World Cup hundred ever was something to treasure, as were the scenes involving the small huddles of Irish supporters in the stadium. O'Brien is a bit of a bete noir of Strauss, whose wicket was claimed by the Irishmen with his very first ball in an ODI five years ago!

Where does this leave England? After almost coming a cropper against the Netherlands and so nearly beating the tournament favourites India, this latest reverse illustrates the surprising inconsistency affecting a side with excellent individual players and which should be settled and experienced by now. Of course they will still qualify amongst the top four for the knockout stage, barring further embarrassing defeats, and then anything could happen. However, they need to find some rhythm, especially with the ball. Their top order batting has been largely excellent so far, with only Collingwood and Prior yet to shine, but with the exception of Swann, the bowling attack has been miserable.

Maybe they need to abandon the 'sprinkler dance', dye their hair (maybe not Prior) and take up Riverdance and absorb the luck, and skill, of the Irish.