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this format. He not only opened the batting
for his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore
but also the bowling. He is certain to play
a big role in South Africa’s bid for
the title.
AB DeVillers: He is in
the form of his life and he continued that
run in the IPL too with many match winning
performances. His contribution with the
bat is vital.
X-Factor: South Africa’s
new sensation Yusuf Abdulla announced his
arrival in the big league against Australia.
A performance he followed up with 14 wickets
from 9 matches in the IPL. He was one of
the front-runner for the purple cap before
he was replaced by Brett Lee.
Dark Horse: Roelof van
der Merwe is yet another player who launched
himself in the recently concluded IPL. He
didn’t afraid to flight the ball and
was effective throughout the tournament
and scored quick runs with the bat too.
Team:
Captain: Graeme Smith
Johan Botha, Yusuf Abdulla, Mark Boucher,
AB DeVillers, Jean-Paul Duminy, Herschelle
Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Morne
Morkel, Justin Ontong, Wayne Parnell, Robin
Peterson, Dale Steyn and Roelof van der
Merwe.
Coach: Mickey Arthur
NEW ZEALAND
The Kiwis played some competitive cricket
against India in their backyard recently
and their players who played IPL came to
the party as well. The Black Caps need to
play as a team with little aggression to
make it to the top four.
Watch Out For:
Brendon McCullum: Captaining
Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL, McCullum went
through a horrible time both as a captain
and as a batsman although he finished on
a high showing a glimpse of how devastating
he can be.
Daniel Vettori: The Kiwi
captain is not only a smart bowler but also
one of the most economical bowlers in this
format.
X-factor: A magical innings
form this exciting batsman changed the fortunes
of his team in the IPL. Ross Taylor can
do the unthinkable if he is on song.
Dark Horse: Despite coming
back after an injury Ian Butler has been
impressive with his accuracy and speed in
the last season or two. New Zealand will
need him to get the early breakthroughs.
Team:
Captain: Daniel Vettori
Neil Broom, Ian Butler, Brendon Diamanti,
James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Brendon
McCullum, Nathan McCullum, Peter McGlashan,
Kyle Mills, Iain O’Brien, Jacob Oram,
Jesse Ryder, Scott Styris and Ross Taylor.
Coach: Andy Moles
SCOTLAND
Scotland will fancy their chances of pulling
off an upset although it is a distant reality.
Their batting as well as the bowling is
lacks experience and I am afraid they might
just make up the numbers.
Watch Out For:
Gavin Hamilton: Captain
and the most experienced player of the side,
Hamilton has played a Test for England in
1999. He has a decent experience of playing
county cricket for Yorkshire.
John Blain: John is a tall
right-arm fast bowler with reasonable international
and county experience. He has represented
Northamptonshire and Yorkshire in county
cricket in England.
Team:
Captain: Gavin Hamilton
Richie Berrington, John Blain, Kyle Coetzer,
Gordon Durmmond, Majid Haq, Neil McCallum,
Dewald Nel, Navdeep Poonia, Glenn Rogers,
Colin Smith, Jan Stander, Ryan Watson, Fraser
Watts and Craig Wright. |
