Sports

Sri Lanka to begin campaign against Namibia

Published

4 years ago

2021/08/18

Sahan Weerasooriya

Dasun Shanaka with the T20I trophy after Sri Lanka won the series against India, Colombo, July 29, 2021.

ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 schedule announced

Sri Lanka will open their campaign in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 against Namibia at the Abu Dhabi Stadium on October 18, it was confirmed yesterday as the ICC unveiled the schedule of the 16-team event. Sri Lanka are grouped with Ireland, Namibia and Netherlands in Round 1 and will take on Ireland and Netherlands on October 20 and 22.

Round 1 of the tournament, will begin with Oman playing Papua New Guinea followed by Bangladesh playing Scotland on October 17. Two teams from each group of Round 1 make it to the Super 12s, with Bangladesh, Oman, Papua New Guinea, and Scotland forming Group B.

The Super 12s will begin their contest on October 23 with Australia playing South Africa and England playing West Indies followed by archrivals India and Pakistan who will play against each other on 24 October.

Abu Dhabi will be the venue of the first semi-final on November 10 while the other semi-final (November 11) and the final (November 14) will be played in Dubai. All day matches are scheduled for 14h00 local time and the day-night matches are slated for 18h00 local time (+4 GMT).

Speaking on the tournament and fixtures, Sri Lankan Captain Dasun Shanaka said: “A T20 World Cup is always exciting for the players, fans, and all stakeholders who adore and love the game, and I am sure everybody is waiting for this tournament to take place, as do we as a team. A tournament of this nature helps popularize the game globally, as the short time span and the look and feel of the contest attracts the attention of the fans.”

Speaking on the players to watch out for Shanaka added: “Sri Lanka has players who can easily fit into a T20I team and deliver results. Our bowling is becoming potent, our batting has players who can build an innings and accelerate at key moments, whilst we are focusing big on our fielding as well. We do have several players in our present squad who can make an impact at any given time of the game, be it batting, bowling, or fielding. If I may name a few, Wanindu Hasaranga, who is among the top-ranked T20I bowlers, Kusal Janith Perera, who is an experienced wicket-keeper batsman, and Dushmantha Chameera, who looks extremely good with his bowling.”

Australian wicketkeeper and batter Alex Carey said: “I think the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is really exciting! We have waited an extra twelve months for this one and to have it now in the schedule and see the draw that Australia has got is truly exciting.

“Anytime we get to play against England is exciting, we know how dominant they have been in the white ball format over the last few years. Coming up against the West Indies recently, we know how tough that can also be. So, we are really looking forward to this tournament.”

Defending champions West Indies captain Kieron Pollard said: “We are excited to begin defence of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title later this year.

“T20 cricket is dynamic and the international scene is highly competitive, with players constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation and we are expecting a spectacular event in the UAE and Oman.

“We have particularly interesting Super 12 group, which sees us come up against Australia, England and South Africa. We can’t wait to get started!

“West Indian cricketers have always played an exciting brand of cricket and I am sure our fans in the Caribbean and all over the world are highly anticipating seeing us in action”.

South Africa Captain Temba Bavuma said: “The 2021 ICC T20 World Cup is of vital importance to the Proteas and South Africa as a nation. Not only is the T20 format a key part of Cricket South Africa’s strategy to introduce new fans to the game of cricket, but this tournament will also be the first of three opportunities for us to claim our first-ever ICC World Cup trophy.

“The group that we are in is an exciting one and we’re looking forward to facing off with everyone in it as we go about our mission to reach the final and the ultimate championship. We have an exciting team that we are building with a lot of raw talent, coupled with the experienced hands that will guide and lead the youngsters.

“We have spent the greater part of the year preparing for this contest and I look forward to leading our country in my first world showpiece as captain.”

England Captain, Eoin Morgan said: “The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is going to be brilliant. The standard of T20 cricket around the world is improving exponentially and every nation has a chance of becoming World Champions. It should be one of the closest and most competitive world tournaments to date and we can’t wait to get started.”

About the ICC Men’s T20

World Cup 2021

The seventh edition of the tournament comprises 16 teams and is being hosted by India in the United Arab Emirates and Oman

The tournament is being played at four venues – Dubai International Stadium, Oman Cricket Academy (Muscat), Sharjah Cricket Stadium and Zayed Cricket Stadium (Abu Dhabi)

Hosts India and nine other top teams in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings as of 31 December 2018 got direct entries

The top eight were placed directly in the Super 12s and the next two – Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – joined six other teams coming through a Qualifier event in the group stage

Two teams each from the group stage, consisting of four teams each, will join the eight direct entrants to complete the Super 12s line-up.

If Sri Lanka and Bangladesh qualify from the first round, they will retain the seedings of A1 and B1 respectively for the Super 12s

The top two teams from each group of the Super 12s will make the knockouts, the matchups being – A1 v B2 and B2 v A1.

The groupings:

Round 1

Group A:

Sri Lanka, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Namibia

Group B:

Bangladesh, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, and Oman

(Top two teams from each group advance to Super 12s)

Super 12s

Group 1:

England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, A1 and B2.

Group 2:

India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, A2 and B1.

(Top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals)

Complete fixtures of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup hosted by India in UAE and Oman:

Round 1

17 Oct:

Oman v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Bangladesh v Scotland, Muscat (18h00)

18 Oct:

Ireland v Netherlands, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Sri Lanka v Namibia, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

19 Oct:

Scotland v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Oman v Bangladesh, Muscat (18h00)

20 Oct:

Namibia v Netherlands, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Sri Lanka v Ireland, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

21 Oct:

Bangladesh v Papua New Guinea, Muscat (14h00); Oman v Scotland, Muscat (18h00)

22 Oct:

Namibia v Ireland, Sharjah (14h00); Sri Lanka v Netherlands, Sharjah (18h00)

Super 12

23 Oct:

Australia v South Africa, Abu Dhabi (14h00); England v West Indies, Dubai (18h00)

24 Oct:

A1 v B2, Sharjah (14h00); India v Pakistan, Dubai (18h00)

25 Oct:

Afghanistan v B1, Sharjah (18h00)

26 Oct:

South Africa v West Indies, Dubai (14h00); Pakistan v New Zealand, Sharjah (18h00)

27 Oct:

England v B2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); B1 v A2, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

28 Oct:

Australia v A1, Dubai (14h00)

29 Oct:

West Indies v B2, Sharjah (14h00); Pakistan v Afghanistan, Dubai (18h00)

30 Oct:

South Africa v A1, Sharjah (14h00); Australia v England, Dubai (18h00)

31 Oct:

Afghanistan v A2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); India v New Zealand, Dubai (18h00)

1 Nov:

England v A1, Sharjah (18h00)

2 Nov:

South Africa v B2, Abu Dhabi (14h00); Pakistan v A2, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

3 Nov:

New Zealand v B1, Dubai (14h00); India v Afghanistan, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

4 Nov:

Australia v B2, Dubai (14h00); West indies v A1, Abu Dhabi (18h00)

5 Nov:

New Zealand v A2, Sharjah (14h00); India v B1, Dubai (18h00)

6 Nov:

Australia v West Indies, Abu Dhabi (14h00); England v South Africa, Sharjah (18h00)

7 Nov:

New Zealand v Afghanistan, Abu Dhabi (14h00): Pakistan v B1, Sharjah (18h00)

8 Nov:

India v A2, Dubai (18h00)

10 Nov:

Semi-final 1 (A1 v B2), Abu Dhabi (18h00)

11 Nov:

Semi-final 2 (B1 v A2), Dubai (18h00)

14 Nov:

Final, Dubai (18h00)

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Latest News

Sri Lanka squad named for ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup

Published

3 hours ago

2025/12/10

Priyan

Sri Lanka Cricket Selection Committee has named a 15-member squad to participate in the upcoming ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup (50 Over).

The team will depart for the United Arab Emirates today [0 December 2025] and has been placed in Group B, alongside Nepal, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.

Sports

Hospital CCTV helps clear long jumper of doping

Published

3 hours ago

2025/12/10

Priyan

Wang Jianan won gold at the World Championships in Oregon in 2022 [BBC]

China’s world champion long jumper Wang Jianan has been cleared of doping after a review of hospital CCTV footage.

Wang, 29, became the first Asian man to win world long jump gold with his 8.36m leap in Oregon in 2022.

He failed an out-of-competition doping test in November 2024, which showed traces of terbutaline – a drug primarily used to treat and prevent breathing problems in patients with asthma.

The China Anti-Doping Agency (Chinada) said the presence of the drug had been caused by passive inhalation while Wang was accompanying a relative to hospital for nebuliser treatment.

Chinada decided Wang bore no fault or negligence for the violation and would not be banned.

The decision was reviewed by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), which used hospital security footage and patient records to investigate Wang’s movements before his drug test.

The AIU’s investigation sought opinion from an independent scientific expert, who concluded “a passive transfer of the substance to the athlete could not be excluded”.

The AIU also said there was “nothing suspicious” about the documents and CCTV files shared by Chinada.

[BBC]

Latest News

Tickner and Rae bowl West Indies out for 205 to give New Zealand the edge

Published

4 hours ago

2025/12/10

Priyan

Blair Tickner picked up four of the first five wickets to fall [Cricinfo]

New Zealand’s patchwork fast-bowling attack delivered a strong show on the opening day of the second Test in Wellington, dismissing West Indies for 205 inside 75 overs at Basin Reserve. But the sight of Blair Tickner being stretchered off late in the afternoon with a suspected dislocated left shoulder took some sheen off their day of dominance.

Tickner, playing his first Test in two years and leading the bowling with 4 for 32, was central to turning a bright West Indies start into yet another collapse, while Michael Rae, the 30-year-old debutant drafted into a severely depleted pace unit, complemented him with 3 for 67 in an energetic outing that gave New Zealand the bite they had lacked in the opening hour. That bite mattered because the first hour had belonged entirely to West Indies despite losing the toss, in a match where the hosts announced five changes and the visitors three.

On a pitch far milder than the traditional green seamer, John Campbell and Brandon King put on 66 for the opening wicket. Jacob Duffy and Zak Foulkes, burdened with heavy workloads from the first Test after the injuries to Matt Henry and Nathan Smith in Christchurch, bowled honest but ineffective spells that allowed scoring opportunities.

Campbell drove through the line, King played compactly, and West Indies looked assured.

But once New Zealand turned to Tickner and Rae – fresher workload-wise, and sharper in pace – the difference was visible. They operated either full or short but always at the stumps or the body, and the tone of the innings shifted dramatically.

Tickner was the first to strike when he prised out King in the 17th over. King, playing the Test after Tagenarine Chanderpaul picked up a side strain on the eve of the Test, and opening for only the second time in his Test career, was pinned lbw when Tickner’s delivery from a short-ish length jagged in and hit him on the pad. One over later, Kavem Hodge was undone for a duck by a fuller ball from Tickner that tailed in late and struck him in front of middle and leg. The double-blow helped New Zealand quickly erase an indifferent start heading into the lunch break.

Rae, who had leaked runs in his first spell in Test cricket, made an impact after lunch. Coming around the wicket, he angled a full ball across Campbell, who leaned into a drive with firm hands and edged to first slip, and at 93 for 3, West Indies’ position was slipping.

Shai Hope and Roston Chase attempted to restore stability with a 60-run stand for the fourth wicket. Hope scored freely but never convincingly; Tickner and Rae repeatedly hurried him with the short ball, and he took two blows to the helmet with concussion checks following as the afternoon surface grew livelier. Hope reached 48, but Tickner finally cracked him with another rising delivery that he tried awkwardly to fend off, gloving a catch to Kane Williamson at third slip. That, Tickner’s third wicket, had seemed almost inevitable given the sustained discomfort he had caused the batters, and Chase followed soon after, cramped by a Tickner delivery that jagged in sharply to catch the inside-edge on to leg stump for 29.

Justin Greaves, West Indies’ double-centurion in Christchurch, lasted 52 balls before Rae drew a faint outside edge with a tight off-stump line. Mitchell Hay completed the catch behind the stumps, leaving West Indies’ lower order exposed. Rae then trapped Kemar Roach lbw with a fuller delivery that kicked enough to beat the bat and straighten into middle stump, and at 184 for 7, the innings was in freefall.

But New Zealand’s mood would sour dramatically in the next over. Tickner sprinted across from fine leg to stop a boundary-saving flick from Tevin Imlach and dived full-length near the rope. He landed awkwardly, stayed down, and the players signalled urgently as medical staff from both New Zealand and the venue rushed to him. After several minutes of treatment, he was stretchered off – sitting up, but in pain – to warm applause from the Basin Reserve crowd. He later left the ground in an ambulance, with early indications pointing to a suspected dislocated shoulder.

Glenn Phillips, the most prolific wicket-taker in New Zealand’s XI with 31 strikes coming into the game, then removed the last recognised batter, bowling Imlach with a fuller ball that straightened just enough to beat the inside edge.

Anderson Phillip was run out soon after attempting a risky single – first surviving a throw from Devon Conway but then succumbing when an alert Kristian Clarke broke the stumps on the rebound. Duffy ended West Indies’ innings by having Ojay Shields edge to third slip to end the innings at 205. West Indies lost their last seven wickets for just 52 runs.

New Zealand openers Tom Latham and Conway batted nine overs before stumps, with West Indies’ seamers asking questions occasionally and inducing a couple of edges that didn’t carry to the slip cordon. The 24 runs they added before stumps gave New Zealand the firm upper hand, now behind by only 181 behind going into the second day where batting promises to be easier.

Brief scores:[Day 1 Stumps]
New Zealand 24 for no loss (Devon Conway 16*, Tom Latham 7*) trail West Indies 205 in 75 overs (Shai Hope 48, John Campbell 44; Blair Tickner 4-32, Michael Rae 3-67) by 181 runs

[Cricinfo]