Italy, Nepal & Uganda Ready For ICC WCL Div 3
Italy, Nepal and Uganda are arriving in Bermuda for the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League [WCL] Division 3, the latest step on the road to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 in Australia and New Zealand.
They are three of six teams that will come together this weekend [28 April] to compete for the chance to lift the WCL Division 3 trophy and get closer to ICC’s flagship global event, the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
The top two sides of the WCL Division 3 will progress to the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier, which will be held in New Zealand in 2014 and feature 10 of the leading Associate and Affiliate teams. The top two sides from the New Zealand event will then advance to the 14-team ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, where they will join the 10 Full Members.
Italy captain Alessandro Bonora says his team is prepared for a tough week of cricket. “As a player you know you are going to come up against tough and consistent opposition and it will no doubt be a rarified and exciting week of cricket, I hope I can step up and hit form early in tournament. I hope we all can. It will be a tremendous honour for all of us to represent Italy and I will be incredibly proud if we can take it a step further to the 2014 ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier,” he said.
The 34-year-old top-order batsman is confident that his squad has the experience as a team unit to perform well in Bermuda. “Most of the squad had come to the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier and to Hong Kong before that in the last 50-over WCL event.
“So, we have been together for a long time. We know our games plans and we know that this group of players can implement them consistently,” he added.
Having finished fourth in WCL Division 3 in 2011 and 10th at the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE in 2012, Bonora wants his side to learn from its experiences against the top Associate and Affiliate teams. “In Dubai, we believed we had a hugely competitive team and proved that to a certain extent.
“We were consistent and dangerous but didn’t have that explosive edge to cause a killer blow to a really big team. That taught us a number of lessons about ourselves and how really good teams play the game and we will take that knowledge and confidence with us to Bermuda. The next step for us is to turn it up a gear.”
Nepal captain Paras Khadka, who has represented Nepal in three ICC U19 World Cups – 2004, 2006 and 2008 – says his team dreams of qualification to the ICC Cricket World Cup.
“We know that opponents will challenge us in every department of the game as all the teams in Bermuda will be competitive. Knowing the fact that it could take us to the pathway to glory, we are taking this very seriously and will give all we have to qualify for the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
“We are really looking forward for the tournament and are preparing ourselves in the best possible manner with the available resources. Each and every player in the team has come through the domestic system and we have devoted lots of time and effort to climb the ICC rankings; certainly, playing in an ICC Cricket World Cup is our greatest and only dream,” said the all-rounder.
Having won promotion to WCL Division 3 after winning WCL Division 4 undefeated in 2012, Khadka is confident of his side’s capabilities. “We believe that we are good enough to be in the top six Associate countries. So we will push ourselves to the maximum to reach to main qualifier,” he concluded.
The full schedule:
Uganda captain Davis Arinaitwe says his side is motivated by the chance to gain promotion to the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier and play against the top Associate and Affiliate sides.
“Qualifying for the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier brings our dream of playing in a World Cup closer, but also allows us a good opportunity to tussle it out with the top Associates and Affiliates who are more experienced. That allows us play freely with the underdog tag,” he said.
The 26-year-old off-spinner says his side also wants to gain immediate promotion from WCL Division 3, having moved between WCL Divisions 2 and 3 over the past few years: “It’s a massive tournament for us not just as players but as a cricketing nation and we will look to take one game at a time and exploit our massive experience in WCL Division 3.
“As a player, it’s a very defining event that could decide my cricket career direction and I would really be looking to further my career, so I will do anything and everything to keep pursuing my career to an advanced level,” he concluded.
On Sunday 28 April, Italy will face Oman at St. David’s, Uganda will lock horns with host Bermuda at the National Sports Stadium, and Nepal will face USA at Somerset CC.
