All 10 squads for ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier New Zealand 2014 confirmed

Lahore: All eyes will be on next month’s ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier New Zealand 2014 (CWCQ), when 10 of the ICC’s leading Associate and Affiliate Members will battle it out for the remaining two places in the ICC’s flagship event, the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.

Apart from the 10 Full Members, Ireland and Afghanistan have sealed their place at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, which will be staged in Australia and New Zealand from 14 February to 29 March 2015, and the 14-team line-up will be completed as soon as the finalists are determined in New Zealand next month.

The side that wins the final in Lincoln on 1 February will join Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, New Zealand and Sri Lanka in Pool A of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, while the losing finalist will find a place in Pool B, which also includes India, Ireland, Pakistan, South Africa, West Indies and Zimbabwe.

All 10 squads for the ICC CWCQ NZ 2014, which will run from 13 January to 1 February, have now been confirmed. The 10 sides have been split into two groups of five each, with the top three from each group progressing to the Super Six stage.

From the teams that will do battle in New Zealand, Kenya has played in the ICC Cricket World Cup on five consecutive occasions (1996, 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011); Canada played in 1979, 2003, 2007 and 2011; the Netherlands in 1996, 2003, 2007 and 2011; Scotland in 1999 and 2007; the UAE has played once, in 1996; and Namibia played in 2003.

In January 2014, Nepal and Hong Kong have a unique chance to make history. Both countries qualified for next year’s ICC World Twenty20 Bangladesh 2014 through November’s ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier UAE 2013 when they finished third and sixth, respectively.

If either can reach the title-round next month in New Zealand, it will become the first side ever to qualify for two major ICC events in the same season after progressing through the global qualification structure, the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League.

From the sides that will be seen in action in New Zealand next month, Canada, Kenya, Namibia, the Netherlands, Scotland, the UAE and Uganda also featured in the ICC CWCQ 2009 in South Africa.

For Canada, captain Ashish Bagai, Harvir Baidwan and Khurram Chohan are the survivors from the last edition. Each member of the Canada squad for New Zealand, though, has been in the country’s Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Championship 2011-13 (WCLC) squad.

Kenya has many campaigners in its squad from the ICC CWCQ 2009. Only Ragheb Aga, Duncan Allan, Irfan Karim, Shem Ngoche and Nelson Odhiambo didn’t feature for the side in South Africa. Apart from skipper Rakep Patel, Collins Obuya, Duncan Allan, Irfan Karim and Hiren Varaiya have all played the WCLC, with Varaiya the side’s highest wicket-taker in the tournament.

Patel, who has taken over the reins from Collins Obuya as captain, will aim to set the bar high alongside interim coach Steve Tikolo, and will hope that his wards can benefit greatly from the advice of Gary Kirsten and Mudassar Nazar, who will be assisting the team as consultants.

For Namibia, captain Sarel Burger, JB Burger, Louis Klazinga, Bernard Scholtz, Nicolaas Scholtz, LP van der Westhuizen and Craig Williams were all members of the squad for South Africa four years ago.

Each member of the side except JB Burger has featured in Namibia’s WCLC squad. Christi Viljoen took the most wickets for Namibia during the tournament (23 from 14 matches), but the team from Africa will be without the services of its highest run-getter in the series, Raymond van Schoor, who scored 360 runs from 14 matches.

For the Netherlands, many of its squad will experience the pressure of a CWCQ for the first time in New Zealand.  The side includes five players who featured in the 2009 event – skipper Peter Borren, Mudassar Bukhari, Daan van Bunge, Pieter Seelaar and Eric Szwarczynski. However, the Netherlands brings an experienced one-day side to New Zealand, with only Atse Buurman and Vivian Kingma not having featured in the WCLC.

The side will do without the services of three-time ICC Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year Ryan ten Doeschate.

Scotland has five campaigners from the class of 2009 – captain Kyle Coetzer, Gordon Drummond, Majid Haq, Moneeb Iqbal and Calum McLeod. Each member of its squad except Michael Leask has featured in the WCLC, with Coetzer the second-highest run-getter of the tournament.

For the UAE, skipper Khurram Khan, Amjad Ali and Amjad Javed are the only players that saw action in the CWCQ in South Africa in 2009. A more or less settled line-up, the UAE’s squad for New Zealand features only two players, Salman Faris and Chirag Suri, that didn’t play in the 2011-13 edition of the WCLC.

Uganda skipper Davis Arinaitwe Karashani, who was adjudged player of the tournament of Pepsi World Cricket League Division 3 in April 2013, will be hoping Roger Mukasa, Benjamin Musoke, Frank Nsubuga, Laurence Sematimba and Charles Waiswa, who all played in the ICC CWCQ 2009, can form an experienced nucleus. Uganda will be hoping to break a jinx and qualify for its maiden ICC Cricket World Cup, having not advanced to the last three editions.

Papua New Guinea and its most well-known player, former England Test cricketer Geraint Jones, are hoping to qualify for an ICC world event for the first time ever. The side finished third in Pepsi World Cricket League Division 2 in April 2011, with Mahuru Dai the side’s leading wicket-taker for the tournament.

For Hong Kong, specialist coach Simon Cook, a former Kent and Middlesex player, will be looking to use his expertise to help the side continue its rise through the ranks.  After finishing fourth in World Cricket League Division 2 in 2011, Hong Kong will arrive in New Zealand with seven players who competed in Division 2.

Nepal captain Paras Khadka will be aiming to continue leading his side’s meteoric rise through the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League divisions.  The side won Division 4 in September 2012 to advance to Division 3 in May 2013, which it won to seal a place at the ICC CWCQ NZ 2014.  Nepal’s squad features 10 players from the victorious Division 3 outing.

The ICC CWCQ was previously known as the ICC Trophy, and began in 1979. Sri Lanka was the first winner, followed by Zimbabwe (1982, 1986 and 1990), the United Arab Emirates (UAE) (1994), Bangladesh (1997), Netherlands (2001), Scotland (2005) and Ireland (2009).