Co-hosts West Indies and USA are set to make the Twenty20 tournament ‘biggest ever’

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“This will be the greatest World Twenty20 Cup ever played,” are the prophetic words of Sir Andy Roberts, considered the father of modern West Indian fast bowlers.

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The great Antiguan paceman has hit the nail on the head. “If the West Indies don’t win it all, look for one of the minnows to cause a shock,” Roberts told the Sun in an exclusive interview. Could he have the United States in mind when he talks about a roach or even Afghanistan? Co-host United States has taken the tournament by storm, giving the sport a chance to gain a foothold in a country that has so many established professional sports franchises. The crowd was treated to non-stop excitement, top class batting and bowling, and exceptional fielding in the first segment of the competition. With the tournament moving into the Super 8 bracket on Wednesday, even more close finishes can be expected.

The eight teams are divided into two groups, with the top two finishers advancing to the final four. For the first time in this slam-bang competition, the batsmen had to play second fiddle to the bowlers. Take the recent Indian Premier League, where fans were treated to a plethora of fours and sixes flowing effortlessly from the bats. Not this time though. The bowlers have found their length and line and Roberts is happy that the bowlers are finally getting their day in the sun. “The rules are not in favor of the bowlers,” Roberts said. “Calling wides on any ball on the leg side is something that the ICC should reconsider and also the decision on some bouncers has not leveled the playing field,” added Roberts, who was a member of the World Cup-winning West -India from 1975 and 1979.

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Speaking of surprises, a few have been handed out. Few expected that Pakistan, New Zealand and Sri Lanka would be bundled together in the first phase of this competition. Then there’s defending champions England, who were given an early flight back to Heathrow in no time if enemy Australia didn’t do them a favour. England have Marcus Stoinis to thank for the reprieve, when he plundered 59 off 29 balls in the five-wicket win over Scotland with just two balls to spare. Scotland made 180 and the Aussies hit back with 181. If Scotland had won, England would have been eliminated. After a rain shower against Scotland, followed by a blow from Australia, they recovered with victories against Oman and Namibia.

One of the non-Test countries that gave an excellent account of itself was Canada. They went to the US in the opener, lost to Pakistan and then surprised Ireland. The last match against India was rained out. In the Super 8s, England have been placed in Group 2 with co-hosts the West Indies and the United States and South Africa. There should be fireworks in Group One as unbeaten co-favourites Australia and India are drawn level with Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The Aussies are now a step closer to becoming the first nation to win all three major ICC trophies, but a tricky test of spin stands in their way on the bone-dry Caribbean surfaces. Rishad Hossain will be the spearhead for the Bangladesh whiskers while Afghanistan could be a bigger threat with the trio of skipper Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmed and Mohammad Nabi. India will unleash Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav in next week’s blockbuster showdown in Saint Lucia.

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One team that has developed under the radar is South Africa, who are yet to win an ICC trophy despite fielding one of the strongest squads. In fact, the Proteas almost fell victim to little Nepal and that would have been the biggest shock in the history of Twenty20 cricket. Nepal restricted South Africa to 115 and it was only a stellar performance from spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who claimed two wickets in the 18th over, in which the Proteas escaped with a one-run win! Meanwhile, the hopes of the Caribbean countries got a huge boost when wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran played in the last match against Afghanistan. He scored an astonishing 98 in the home side’s total of 218 for five, the highest score in this competition in front of a raucous crowd in St. Lucia. Afghanistan were surprisingly no match for the West Indies as they were back in the pavilion for 114 runs with fast bowler Obed McCoy taking three wickets for 14 runs.

Pooran has hit form at the right time and West Indies will be hoping for another huge innings from him in the encounter against England. Pooran hit eight sixes, including three in the fourth over, for a record 36 runs – equal to the most expensive over in the men’s Twenty20 competition. Besides Pooran’s fireworks, there was a no-ball and five wides. Pooran was eliminated in the final while desperately trying to reach his century.

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