A buoyed Bahrain National team is all set to take off for Nepal tomorrow to participate in the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) Twenty20 Elite Cup tournament following their successful outing last December in Thailand where they finished runners-up to Singapore, writes Gopal Nambiar.
Veteran Mohammad Tahir Dar, who won the ‘player of the tournament’ award in Thailand, will once again lead the 14-member team in the 10-team event to be played from March 26 to April 3.
Bahrain are in Group B along with the UAE, Afghanistan, Oman and Kuwait, while Group A includes Malaysia, Hong Kong, Maldives, Singapore and hosts Nepal.
The 10 non-Test playing Asian nations will contest for available three places for the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier, from the Asian region other than Afghanistan, which has already qualified due to their ODI status.
This tournament is the way for a spot in the ICC World Twenty20 Cup 2014 to be held in Bangladesh.
Bahrain take on Kuwait on March 27 in their opening encounter and take on favourites Afghanistan, who played in the last Twenty20 World Cup, the next day. Following a day’s break, Bahrain clash with Oman on March 30 and the UAE on March 31 to conclude their group matches.
The top two teams from each group qualify for the semi-finals on April 2 and the final will be played the next day.
Skipper Dar’s deputy is another veteran, Qamar Saeed, who also performed exceptionally well in the Thailand tournament and came away with the ‘bowler of the tournament’ award.
The squad, which includes four Bahrainis, is a blend of youth and experience and has been training at the Al Najma Club grounds under the keen eyes of national coach Amir Waseem. The team also includes three Indians and seven Pakistanis, all long-term residents of Bahrain.
The selection committee was headed by Bahrain’s Under-19 coach Rexie Arulvasagam and included Vijay Sailor, Ajit Kumarasiri, Ibrar Hussain Babar, Yaser Sadeq and coach Waseem.
Coach Waseem, from Pakistan, said: “I am missing some of the players that played in the Thailand tournament but my boys are ready for the challenge and we are capable of giving a tough time to the other teams in our group.”
Only seven members of the squad that played in Thailand made the playing 14 this time round. Notable among those absent are vice-captain Shahzad Siddique, wicket-keeper Shahzad Ahmed and opener Asif Siddique.
The squad: Mohammad Tahir Dar (captain) 38 years, Qamar Saeed, (v-captain) 44, Mohammad Ashraf Mughal, 43, Jalil Ahmad Bashir Ahmad, 31, Imran Sajjad Ghulam Rasool, 33, Yasser Nazir, 23 and Anasim Khan, 34 (all Pakistanis), Sameer Yousuf Mohd Yousuf Abdulla, 21, Jaber Mohamed Syed Ebrahim Juma, 28, Bilal Arshad Latif Mohamed Latif Fadhul, 30 and Jamal Mohamed Yousif Noor Mohamed, 29 (all Bahrainis), Hardeep Singh, 21, Vasantha Kunder, 33 and David Patrick St John Cameron, 29 (all Indians).
Officials: Amir Waseem (coach), Surasingha Wijerathnalage Ajith Kumarasiri (manager) and Ahmed Ismail Mubarak Abdulla (physio).
Reserves: Nawaf Mohamed Shareef, 29 and Mohamed Asif Mohamed Saleem Mulla Alghazali, 25 (both Bahrainis), Maaz Zafar Khan, 20 and Mohamed Imran Anwer, 37 (both Pakistanis).
