Despite being considered as one amongst the minnows and an easy pushover for the stronger sides, the Ashish Bagai-led Canadian team will travel to the Indian subcontinent with the intention of creating a few upsets and go back home with some pride and accolades. In a group that has biggies like Australia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, Canada will look to contribute to the twists and turns of the mega tournament by trying to make themselves competitive against the big guns, all the while hoping to pick up the odd win against other teams in the same bracket as them.
Having won a World Cup warm-up match against Netherlands on February 6th at Abu Dhabi, Canada will be pumped up to begin their World Cup campaign with the right attitude and playing some good competitive cricket. Though this Canadian side has seldom played in the Indian subcontinent, the presence of players of Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan origin should mean that conditions aren't too alien for them. They are in the limelight straight away in the tournament, opening their campaign on Day 2 against co-hosts Sri Lanka on February 20th at Hambantota. It will be imperative for their confidence that they are not ripped to shreds by the likes of Muralitharan, Mendis and Malinga, and batting out their 50 overs will be one of the targets they set themselves when competing with the big boys.
Batting:
Although Canada will enter their third World Cup as a minnow, one cannot forget what opening batsman John Davison did against West Indies in the 2003 World Cup. His beserk innings of 100 from 67 balls still remains untouchable. Davison, now 40-years old, is the senior stateman in the Canadian side, and while no longer quite as lethal, he does still pose a threat. Hiral Patel, who has often been moved up and down the order, could play as Davison’s opening partner. The Indian-born Patel doesn’t have the stats to back him up but his energy and the urge to work hard and play well will help him fight any initial nerves on such a huge stage.
At number three, Canada will play the Sri Lankan-born Ruvindu Gunasekera. The 19-year old Gunasekera has represented Canada in just three ODIs but has scored half centuries in two of them. Although the southpaw failed to impress against Netherlands in the warm-up tie, he will be very useful in conditions that will suit him well. Captain and Wicket keeper Ashish Bagai, who is most likely to play at number four, will be Canada’s top dog. Bagai, who is one of the few members of the squad to have featured in a World Cup before, will bring in a lot of consistency into the team’s batting. Although Canada finished at 5th spot in the ICC World Cricket League Division One, Bagai played a few good innings and was instrumental in both their victories against Kenya in the tournament. He has also been very effective with the gloves effecting 13 dismissals in the two World Cups he has played. The Indian-born Bagai will lead his side for the first time in a World Cup and will be excited about the prospect of returning 'home' for the tournament.
In the middle order, Canada has the likes of Rizwan Cheema and Jimmy Hansra. The 32-year old Cheema is known for his fearless batting and is believed to have the audacity to hit big pacers all over the park. In the 21 ODIs he has played, Cheema has scored 523 runs at a brilliant strike rate of 119.40.On batsmen-friendly pitches, if this man gets going, even the strongest team will be in a spot of bother. Jimmy Hansra, another Canadian player of Indian origin, fits into the batting lineup as one of the lower order batsmen who can clear the ground as well as nudge the ball around and consolidate a partnership according to the given circumstances. In the warm-up tie against Netherlands, Hansra scored a patient fifty to set up his side’s run chase after a few initial hiccups, and took them to a good win ahead of the World Cup.
Bowling
Canada’s bowling attack is spearheaded by the Pakistan-born Khurram Chohan. Chohan is partnered by Henry Osinde, who is considered to be Canada’s fastest bowler. Both Chohan and Osinde are aggressive bowlers and will look to get their side a couple of wickets early on. Both have done reasonably well for Canada in ODIs, with Chohan picking up 22 wickets in 15 games at an economy rate of 4.78 rpo while Osinde has 35 wickets in 33 games at an economy rate of 5.00 rpo. Both of them bowled exceptionally well in the warm-up tie against the Netherlands, going for just 46 runs and picking up two wickets in 16 overs between them. The Canadian squad has a good first change medium pacer in Harvir Baidwan. Known for his impeccable line and length, Baidwan has done well in the 19 ODIs he has played so far, picking up 24 wickets at an economy rate of 4.83 rpo. Baidwan picked up two wickets and gave away just 29 runs in 7.4 overs at an economy rate of 3.78 in the aforementioned game.
Among the spinners, Canada has the 20-year old Parth Desai, who is considered to be one of the best young spinners in Canada. With his disciplined line and length, Desai is capable of keeping the runs down, while picking up the odd wicket too. He had a decent outing in the ICC World Cricket League Division One, picking up six wickets in six games at an economy rate of 3.96. He also bowled exceptionally well in the warm-up tie against Netherlands, finishing with figures of 2 for 18 in 5 overs. In conditions that will suit spinners more than the pacers, this Indian-born off-spinner will look to make the most of this opportunity and help his side to win a couple of games. Captain Bagai also has another spin option in Balaji Rao. Rao also bowled very well in the warm-up tie, picking up two wickets, giving away just 12 runs in his quota of 6 overs.
Squad:
Ashish Bagai (c & wk), Rizwan Cheema, Harvir Baidwan, Balaji Rao, John Davison, Parth Desai, Tyson Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Jimmy Hansra, Khurram Chohan, Nitish Kumar, Henry Osinde, Hiral Patel, Zubin Surkari, Karl Whatham, Hamza Tariq
Support Staff:
Coach - Pubudu Dassanayake, Assistant Coach- Chandika Hathurusingha, Match Analyst- Rathan Moorthy, Strength and Conditioning Coach- Coling Berenhaut, Physio- Dr. Giovanni Perri, Manager- Michael Henry, Assistant Manager- Johnny Bujan
Likely XI: Hiral Patel, John Davison, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Ashish Bagai(c & wk), Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan, Jimmy Hansra, Harvir Baidwan, Henry Osinde, Parth Desai, Balaji Rao
Players to Watch
John Davison- Davison, with his 67-ball century in the 2003 World Cup is one of the most dangerous batsmen that Canada possesses. The 40-year old is probably playing in his last World Cup and would be looking to go all out to perform well and give the cricket fans in Canada something to cheer about.
Ashish Bagai - Playing three crucial roles of the Captain, Wicket keeper and often even opening the batting, Ashish Bagai will be the man to watch out for on the batsman friendly pitches in the Indian subcontinent. The former Delhi-lad will look to lead the team from the front and play the role of sheet anchor in his side’s pursuit to make sure they bat out the 50 overs.
Dark Horse:
Jimmy Hansra - Jimmy Hansra, who often plays in the side as a floater, will look to seize this opportunity to cement a permanent spot in the batting order. Bagai can use Hansra wisely by bringing him out according to the demands of the situation. He already displayed his ability to revive a batting collapse in the warm-up tie against Netherlands where he scored a resilient half century to take his side to victory.
Schedule
The minnows Canada have their task cut out from the word go at the World Cup as they begin their campaign against one of the World Cup favourites and the co-hosts, Sri Lanka on February 20th at Hambantota. They then travel to Nagpur on February 28th for a game against Zimbabwe, where they will look to play out of character and squeeze out a win against an opposition that will find the subcontinent pitches a bit more of a challenge.
The action then shifts to Colombo, where they take on a strong Pakistan side on March 3rd. Despite Pakistan’s problems before the World Cup, Canada is unlikely to challenge the Asian powerhouse. Canada then travel to Delhi to take on Kenya on March 7th. Having beaten Kenya on two previous occasions in the ICC World Cricket League Division One, this will be Canada’s most crucial fixture and they will hope to pick up all the points from this game. They next travel to Mumbai to take on New Zealand, who have not been in the best of form in ODIs. Canada is easily the weaker side but will look to take their chances and hand the Kiwis an upset.
Canada end their group stage matches with a game against Australia on March 16th at Bengaluru. They will be keen to escape that match with their dignity intact, and end the tournament on a high.
Fixture List:
February 20th: Sri lanka vs Canada at Hambantota at 14:30 local time
February 28th: Canada vs Zimbabwe at Nagpur at 09:30 local time
March 3rd : Canada vs Pakistan at Colombo at 14:30 local time
March 7th: Canada vs Kenya at Delhi at 14:30 local time
March 13th: Canada vs New Zealand at Mumbai at 09:30 local time
March 16th: Canada vs Australia at Bangalore at 14:30 local time
Recent Form:
September 2010: Ireland vs Canada ODI Series- Series Drawn (1-1)
July 2010: ICC World Cricket League Division One – Fifth Place
April 2010: West Indies vs Canada: West Indies won 1-0
Predictions:
The minnows from North America will come in with no expectation and will set themselves a target of a minimum of two wins in the Group Stage of the competition. But more often than not, a big stage like the World Cup, gives these 'little ones' an extra reason to go out onto the field and set the stage alight. In their bid to beat the biggies of the Cricketing World, expect Canada to play out of their skins and entertain the huge crowds before they head back home with a group stage exit.
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