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After a gruelling tour of England, where they were swept 6-0 in the limited-overs series, Australia might have hoped that a short trip to Zimbabwe would provide a welcome change of pace and a change of fortunes. But their tri-series opener will be against the No.1 T20I side, and after Pakistan’s clinical drubbing of the hosts in Sunday’s game it seems there will be no let-up in intensity for Australia just yet.”England was a tough tour, losing the one-dayers and the T20 game,” Australia T20 captain Aaron Finch admitted. “But we’re here to win. There’s only a handful of us that have played here before, but we know reasonably well what the conditions are going to be. Half the boys trained this morning, and half were [at Harare Sports Club] to watch today to just try and find out some more info.”What they found out could well trouble them. Australia had struggled to impose themselves on England’s slow bowlers, and conditions are usually more suited to the spinners in Zimbabwe. On Sunday, Pakistan’s spinners claimed a combined 5 for 43 in 8.5 overs, with Mohammad Hafeez celebrating his return to legality as an international bowler by taking 2 for 3 in five balls. Left-armer Mohammad Nawaz had done the early damage, taking a wicket in the first over and immediately putting the brakes on Zimbabwe’s chase. He is likely to perform a very similar role with the new ball against Australia.”For the last couple of seasons I’ve been opening the bowling in T20 cricket,” Nawaz said. “[Against Zimbabwe] I was varying the pace and getting a little help from the track. The slower deliveries were turning a bit, though with the new ball there wasn’t that much.”We’ll go in with the same mindset tomorrow and play our best cricket,” he said. “We’ll keep the same strategy we had today, and probably the same gameplan too.”Pakistan appear to have the firepower in their spin attack to keep Australia in check. But it was Australia who had outgunned Pakistan the last time the two sides met, at the World T20 in Mohali, with James Faulkner taking 5 for 27 to seal a 21-run win that knocked Pakistan out of the tournament. There will be a completely different complexion to both sides this time around, however, with Pakistan enjoying their hottest winning streak in T20Is while Australia are floundering for stability.Pakistan have won their last eight T20I series, and their last eight games. Since that disastrous World T20, they’ve undergone a fundamental personnel change in the format and won 20 of the 23 T20Is they have played. During the same period, Australia’s record reads: played 14, won 9, lost 5.Shadab Khan led Pakistan’s fightback with a flurry of wickets•Getty Images

Yet, Australia are still ranked third, just one point behind India, and if they are able to completely reverse their fortunes and go undefeated through this tri-series, they could leave Zimbabwe as the top-ranked T20I side in the world, usurping Pakistan.”We’re ranked no. 3 in the world behind Pakistan, so this is a really good opportunity to test ourselves again and make sure that we’re measuring up and still improving in this format,” Finch said.”And you can never take anything for granted in T20. We know it’s a game that anyone can win by themselves on a given day,” Finch said, echoing what has already become a familiar refrain in this tri-series.”There is no weaker side in T20 cricket,” Nawaz agreed. “If it’s your day, you’ll dominate, if it’s not, you won’t. Going in to this game, there is an equal chance for both teams.”A short, sharp series means they won’t have much time for Australia to get their combinations right in Zimbabwe, and the situation hasn’t been helped by a couple of delayed flights that have slowed preparations. They are also already missing several frontline players through injury or misadventure.”All the teams are missing a couple of players, but that’s just the nature of sport,” Finch said. “You have some injuries, you have some other issues that pop up every now and then. So we’re still really confident in the players we have coming into this series. Everyone who’s here has a chance to play. When you pick a squad you like to mix and match the guys who can fit in anywhere.”

New Zealand’s Anton Devcich has opted out of a domestic contract in favour of playing around the world as a T20 freelancer. The 32-year old batsman is currently part of the Toronto Nationals in Canada and struck an unbeaten 92 off only 44 balls to lead them to a sensational win on Thursday.According to reports, Devcich is also trying to finalise a deal with a Big Bash League team, which may have contributed to his declining a first-round contract handed out by Northern Districts earlier this month. The BBL, which runs from December to February, clashes with New Zealand’s own T20 competition, the Super Smash.”My goal is to represent the Black Caps and to do that I need to improve and gain more experience in pressure situations,” Devcich said in a statement, but added that he will still play for Northern Districts on a match-by-match basis depending on his availability.”Although I will not be contracted I am still extremely dedicated to the association, they have been very supportive of my decision and have always led the way in all aspects of cricket in NZ.”Devcich has experience playing on the worldwide T20 circuit, having previously represented Lahore Qalandars in the Pakistan Super League and Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League. He also top-scored in the Super Smash last year with 343 runs in 10 innings as Northern Districts won the title. His left-arm spin had been quite useful as well, helping him pick up 15 wickets.Meanwhile, an already established T20 freelancer, Mitchell McClenaghan was offered a second-round contract by his current team Auckland. The 32-year old fast bowler had opted out of a deal with New Zealand Cricket in 2017 so that he could play in the various T20 leagues and has been part of a title-winning Mumbai Indians side in the IPL, the Sydney Thunder in the BBL, St Lucia Stars in the CPL and Lancashire in England’s T20 Blast. He was most recently part of a World XI that took on West Indies in a charity T20I at Lord’s.Auckland: Finn Allen, Michael Barry, Graeme Beghin, Jamie Brown, Craig Cachopa, Mark Chapman, Danru Ferns, Michael Guptill-Bunce, Ben Horne, Ben Lister, Mitchell McClenaghan, Matt McEwan, Robbie O’Donnell, Glenn Phillips, Sean Solia, Will SomervilleCanterbury: Chad Bowes, Jack Boyle, Blake Coburn, Leo Carter, Andrew Ellis, Cameron Fletcher, Andrew Hazeldine, Kyle Jamieson, Ken McClure, Cole McConchie, Stephen Murdoch, Ed Nuttall, Fraser Sheat, Henry Shipley, Will Williams, Theo van WoerkomCentral Districts: Doug Bracewell, Tom Bruce, Josh Clarkson, Dane Cleaver, Greg Hay, Christian Leopard, Willem Ludick, Ryan McCone, Ajaz Patel, Navin Patel, Seth Rance, Bevan Small, Ben Smith, Blair Tickner, Ben Wheeler, Will YoungNorthern Districts: James Baker, Peter Bocock, Dean Brownlie, Henry Cooper, Sean Davey, Matthew Fisher, Daniel Flynn, Zak Gibson, Brett Hampton, Nick Kelly, Scott Kuggeleijn, Daryl Mitchell, Bharat Popli, Brett Randell, Tim Seifert, Joe WalkerOtago: Matt Bacon, Warren Barnes, Neil Broom, Mark Craig, Jacob Duffy, Josh Finnie, Shawn Hicks, Josh Tasman-Jones, Anaru Kitchen, Michael Rae, Mitch Renwick, Michael Rippon, Hamish Rutherford, Nathan Smith, Christi Viljoen, Brad WilsonWellington: Hamish Bennett, Tom Blundell, Michael Bracewell, Devon Conway, Andrew Fletcher, Lauchie Johns, Iain McPeake, Jimmy Neesham, Ollie Newton, Malcolm Nofal, Jeetan Patel, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears, Logan van Beek, Luke Woodcock, Peter Younghusband

Lasith Malinga’s heroics for the Montreal Tigers in the Global T20 League in Toronto haven’t been enough to secure a first international call-up since September last year. The fast bowler was ignored as Sri Lanka announced a 15-man T20I squad for the one-off game against South Africa on August 14. Malinga, who still harbours hopes of playing for his country, was the third-highest wicket-taker in Canada, and had the best average (11.84) and economy rate (6.41) among all bowlers in the tournament with more than five wickets.Left-arm fast bowler Binura Fernando could be in line to play his first match in over three years after being called up. The 23-year old played two T20Is in 2015 against Pakistan, but hasn’t played any international cricket since.Dhananjaya de Silva has been called up to the T20I squad, having last played an international in that format in January 2017. A string of impressive performances against South Africa have been rewarded after the 26-year old has stood out as one of the best performers of the tour.Angelo Mathews returns to the T20I side having missed the home tri-series, that also included Bangladesh and India, because of injury. It ended in disappointment for Sri Lanka, after they were dramatically knocked out before the final at the hands of Bangladesh in the final over.Squad: Angelo Mathews (capt), Dinesh Chandimal, Akila Dananjaya, Dhananjaya de Silva, Binura Fernando, Shehan Jayasuriya, Lahiru Kumara, Shehan Madushanka, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera (wk), Thisara Perera, Lakshan Sandakan, Dasun Shanaka, Upul Tharanga, Jeffrey VandersayStandbys: Dimuth Karunaratne, Isuru Udana, Niroshan Dickwella, Kasun Rajitha

Big Picture

The Asia Cup began with Sri Lanka playing Bangladesh – a newly kindled rivalry on the back of dances and shattered glass doors. It then had India taking on Pakistan, a rivalry that needs no kindling, dead rubber or not. But possibly none of these two have had quite the needle that India versus Bangladesh does in recent times.It began with a no-ball in the 2015 World Cup quarter-final, and spilled over to India’s tour of Bangladesh later in the year, and peaked in the 2016 World T20 where India’s dramatic one-run win against Bangladesh was followed by Mushfiqur Rahim celebrating on social media after West Indies beat India in the semi-final.However, tempers have cooled since. Bangladesh will be acutely aware that they haven’t beaten India across formats since June 2015, when Mustafizur Rahman befuddled India on debut. But despite Tamim Iqbal’s injury, the team is viewed differently than it was even in 2015. Wins by Bangladesh, especially in Asia, are no longer upsets, at least not major ones.Bangladesh’s bowlers were superb against Sri Lanka in the tournament opener, but they’ll have a bigger challenge against India. India are without Virat Kohli, and with rather more players injured than they had wanted, but their top order continues to be imposing.With no points carried forward from the league stage, neither team can afford to rest players in the Super Fours. The extreme heat in the UAE will mean there is the temptation to do that, but the teams do not have the luxury to give in. This is particularly harsh on Bangladesh, who played against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi on Thursday and will have to front up in Dubai on Friday. India showed that playing back-to-back matches even in these conditions was doable, but at least they didn’t have to travel to a neighbouring city.

Form guide

India WWLLW (completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh LWLWL

In the spotlight

In both matches so far, Rohit Sharma has shown ominous signs. He has looked good, sublime even, before getting out. In his short captaincy career at the international level so far, Rohit has shown that the added responsibility brings out the best in him as a batsman. In the IPL, of course, he has been among the more celebrated captains, with a lot of silverware to show. That Rohit can be destructive as an opener is stating the obvious, but without Kohli in the side, he is also the team’s lynchpin. Moreover, his batting position is even more critical in these conditions. The slower bowlers have reigned supreme so far, which means the openers have to make it count against the new ball. So far, Rohit has done that, but hasn’t carried on. If he does go deep into the innings, he has the skill to take the pitch and the weather out of the equation.Mohammad Mithun and Mushfiqur Rahim shared a century-plus stand•Getty Images

The history between Mushfiqur Rahim and India is colourful already. But as he has shown in the past, and as recently as the first match of the tournament, he can pack a fair wallop with bat in hand. His century against Sri Lanka was a masterclass, not just because of the quality of strokeplay, but also because of how he shepherded the lower order, including a one-handed Tamim. How Bangladesh fare while batting will rest largely on Mushfiqur’s shoulders. He already has a century against India in ODIs, and averages nearly five points more against them than his career average, 38.53 to 33.82.

Team news

The loss of Shardul Thakur and Axar Patel is unlikely to affect India much, in the sense that neither would have been part of a first-choice XI in any case. Hardik Pandya’s absence will leave a bit of a hole, and it remains to be seen whom India will turn towards to fill it. Deepak Chahar is his replacement, but Ravindra Jadeja has greater batting pedigree. It will have to be someone who can turn his arm over, though, because otherwise, India will have only four frontline bowlers and Kedar Jadhav, which would leave Rohit with too few options. The omission of KL Rahul from both league matches remains intriguing, and you would think that in the Super Fours, he would be back in the starting XI.India (possible): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 KL Rahul, 4 Ambati Rayudu, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 Deepak Chahar/Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 10 Yuzvendra ChahalBangladesh sensibly rested their key players for their inconsequential league game against Afghanistan, so they will at least have Mushfiqur and Mustafizur fresh and ready for battle. The only spot they will be unsure of is the one vacated by Tamim.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Liton Das, 2 Mominul Haque, 3 Shakib Al Hasan, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Mohammad Mithun, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mosaddek Hossain, 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 10 Rubel Hossain, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions

The temperature in Dubai is forecast as ‘very warm’ throughout the day. It will feel like 43 degrees in the afternoon, so you’d imagine the side winning the toss will consider batting first, regardless of what the pitch looks like. If there is some grass, it could create a dilemma for the captain winning the toss, since it is likely that under lights, the ball will come on to the bat better. The possibility of dew is also there, which might again help the side batting second.

Stats and trivia

• India are on a nine-match winning run against Bangladesh across formats, going back three years. That includes one Test, two ODIs and six T20Is.

Quotes

“I don’t bowl much at the nets. I feel if I try and become a bowler, I will lose whatever I have. So I stay within limits.”
“Even a mad person would be upset. Basically what has happened is that we were made the second team in Group B even before we played the last game. It is frustrating.”
on the scheduling of the Asia Cup

Rumbling along for more than 18 months, Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) attempt at a global, franchise-based Twenty20 tournament has become one of the costliest and most convoluted issues in the organisation’s history. From the original launch, through a player draft for a league that never happened, expensive payouts, boardroom fallouts and reshuffles, legal wrangles and a second attempt, we’ve plotted a timeline to help make sense of how CSA’s bold play at moving into the T20 big leagues went awry.January 2017
CSA seeks ICC approval for the launch of the T20 Global League, a tournament designed to replicate the success of leagues like IPL and BBL.February 2017
CSA announces the league, and a worldwide tender for franchise owners with a deadline of March 3.March 9 2017
CSA reports over 150 expressions of interest in owning teams, with more than a third coming from India.June 19 2017
CSA officially launches the league at the Bulgari hotel in London. Eight franchises unveiled, with two IPL and two PSL owners on board. Faf du Plessis says the new league is the “best way” to keep players from leaving South Africa.August 14 2017
Brimstone Investment Corporation Ltd pulls out as owner of the Stellenbosch Monarchs franchise, leaving no local owners for any franchise.August 26 2017
Draft held in Cape Town. Kieron Pollard, Chris Gayle, Kevin Pietersen, Dwayne Bravo and Eoin Morgan are among the marquee players.September 8 2017
Indian movie star and Kings XI co-owner Preity Zinta takes over Stellenbosch Monarchs, taking the number of IPL owners to three.September 13 2017
CSA CEO Haroon Lorgat hints that SuperSport, Africa’s biggest sports broadcaster, may be the only viable broadcast partner as concerns over a TV deal mount.September 28 2017
Lorgat parts ways with CSA over “untenable differences” in the handling of the league. CSA President Chris Nenzani suggests that the issues between Lorgat and the CSA board began in January, and came to a head at a board meeting on May 13.October 6 2017
CSA acting CEO Thabang Moroe says a loss of USD 25 million is likely from the inaugural edition, more than half of CSA’s cash reserves, but promises it will go ahead.October 10 2017
With no broadcast deal or title sponsor secured three weeks before the scheduled start, CSA announces the postponement of the tournament. The South African Cricketers Association calls for an “independent review”, and later South African players are paid out 60% of their contract value and foreign players 50%.November-December 2017
South Africa’s domestic T20 competition is moved into the window left vacant by the postponement, with SuperSport – who already hold rights to all cricket played in South Africa – in place as the broadcaster.March 2018
Hiren Bhanu, a UK-based businessman and owner of Pretoria Mavericks, proposes to pay CSA USD 70 million to own and run the T20 league for 11 years. CSA turn down the offer.March 13 2018
CSA holds a teleconference with franchise owners, where it is decided that CSA will go back to SuperSport to discuss either a proposal on the original model, an alternative model, or one involving a league co-owned by CSA, owners and the broadcaster.June 8 2018
CSA announces a new tournament to take place in November and December. The tournament is not named, but CSA will be the majority shareholder and SuperSport part-owners. Details around the number of teams, matches and allowances for overseas players are thin, but it becomes clear that none of the eight team owners from the GLT20 will be involved.June 20 2018
CSA begin giving back the deposits paid by the GLT20 team to reimburse them for expenses incurred in planning for the tournament, but Qalandars CEO Sameen Rana weighs up legal options, saying: “We simply need CSA to respect the agreements around the awarding of the franchise to us, which they themselves have given to us in perpetuity. I do not agree to this refund as condition to give up my rights so we will challenge CSA via legal [proceedings].”June 26 2018
Moroe says CSA believes it is “in a partnership” with the former franchise owners and “would ideally like to retain the relationship in case there’s an opportunity in selling equity in teams” but the threat of a messy legal battle builds.July 17 2018
Moroe admits there are “issues of trust” with previous team owners, says that CSA has “signed an equity model” with SuperSport, giving the broadcaster a 49% share while scrapping the privately-owned franchise model.July 31 2018
CSA announces that the revived T20 league will have only six teams, making it impossible to hold on to all the former owners. Moroe does not elaborate on how CSA plans to solve this new dilemma.August 13 2018
CSA representatives fly to Dubai and Mumbai for four days of heated meetings with franchise owners, who demand the 49% share held by SuperSport be handed over to them. Seven of the eight owners – all except Cape Town Knight Riders who excused themselves from the meetings – want first option to buy into a new league, given their involvement in the previous one. Hiren Bhanu intends to stop any new league from going ahead without the original franchise owners.August 17 2018
South Africa’s stadiums are asked to submit bids to host a team in the new T20 tournament. The six venues will correspond to the six teams.August 20 2018
South African sports minister Tokozile Xasa is asked to consider issuing a moratorium which would prevent CSA from issuing any announcements on a new T20 tournament until plans for the event have been scrutinised by a parliamentary committee.August 20 2018
SuperSport pull out of their equity deal with CSA, leaving the organisation without an outside shareholder while seemingly reopening the option for the franchises to be privately owned. SuperSport remain interested in broadcasting the event.August 24 2018
CSA sets a deadline of mid-September for a decision on whether or not the league will be staged in the 2018-19 season. The board suggests the tournament could be owned and run completely in-house.September 8 2018
CSA’s members’ council votes unanimously to launch a T20 league this year. It will include six teams, consist of a 30-match league phase, an eliminator match and a final, and will be played from November 9 to December 16. Sponsors and a broadcaster are not named, though it is expected that SuperSport will broadcast the games.September 25, 2018
CSA relaunches T20 tournament – calling it the “T20 Cricket League” – in partnership with South Africa’s state-owned broadcaster SABC.

Bangladesh ODI captain Mashrafe Mortaza is set to contest the country’s 11th parliamentary election, after he received confirmation of his nomination from the ruling Awami League. He will be contesting in the Narail-2 constituency, his home district, with the polls scheduled to be held on December 30.Mashrafe wrote in Facebook post about how he has always felt strongly about politics, suggesting that the 2019 World Cup would be his last international tournament.”I always had the impulse for politics,” Mashrafe wrote in the post. “I always believed that development in our country is not possible strongly without politics… now I have the opportunity to do something for my country. I don’t know what is awaiting me after the 2019 World Cup. I value my time and I am paying attention to it. I believe that everything has to be done at the right time.”Mashrafe also told the Bengali daily that he will only begin campaigning in Narail after the three-match ODI series against West Indies, which ends on December 14.There have been murmurs of Mashrafe’s transition into politics since 2017, when he established the Narail Express Foundation, a non-profit social welfare venture.The foundation had helped Narail residents get scholarships as well as medical discounts in a Dhaka-based university, and has set up drinking water jars around Narail town, mainly for rickshaw-pullers.It’s quite rare for active international cricketers to enter politics, with Sanath Jayasuriya being one of them in recent times to have done so when he ran for public office in the 2010 Sri Lanka general elections.

West Indies allrounder Andre Russell will not be part of the T20I series against India, after it emerged on the eve of the first match in Kolkata that he was injured and had not yet arrived in the country.ESPNcricinfo understands Russell has been hampered once again by the knee injury that has affected him ever since he made a return to cricket earlier this year after his year-long anti-doping ban. Russell will have another fitness Test ahead of T10 tournament in the UAE that begins on November 21, following which the West Indies selectors are hopeful he can play on the tour of Bangladesh.Currently Russell is busy with rehab, doing strength workouts as well as getting treated on his knee. Part of treatment involves being injected with platelet-rich plasma (PRP). The PRP includes having a portion of the patient’s own blood that has a platelet concentration above baseline, to promote healing of injured tendons, ligaments, muscles and joints, and it can be applied to various musculoskeletal problems.Russell was one of seven players supposed to join the T20I squad over the last three days, but his absence during the training sessions at Eden Gardens – his home ground in the IPL – was conspicuous. He recently played the CPL for Jamaica Tallawahs, and then went to the Afghanistan Premier League where he played one game for Nangarhar Leopards on October 9, a day after he had been picked in West Indies’ T20I squad. Three days later, on October 12, Russell said on Instagram that he was leaving the APL early because of injury.The West Indies T20I squad is already depleted by the absence of Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis at the top of the order, with both players pulling out due to personal reasons.

Temba Bavuma, the South Africa batsman, has been signed by Northamptonshire on a three-month contract for the 2019 season.Bavuma, 28, made headlines in January 2016 when he became the first black African cricketer to score a Test century for South Africa – hitting an unbeaten 102 against England at Newlands in Cape Town, his native city.In the course of 31 Test appearances for South Africa, Bavuma has scored 1,488 runs at 33.81, and has also represented his country in the ODI format. In all first-class cricket he’s made nearly 7,000 runs with a dozen hundreds. He was appointed captain of the Highveld Lions franchise for the current season.He will join Northamptonshire between May and July 2019, boosting the County’s batting line-up for eight Specsavers County Championship matches.”Signing a player of Temba’s international stature underlines our ambitions as a club,” said Northamptonshire’s chief executive Ray Payne.”We are keen to return to the Championship’s top division and hopefully his runs will help us achieve that. His Test experience will bring an added dimension to the team and we’re all looking forward to welcoming a cricketer who is admired and respected around the cricketing world.”

Durham have named James Franklin head coach for the next two years.The club has confirmed the former New Zealand allrounder’s appointment to the role of Lead High Performance Coach, as reported by ESPNCricinfo two weeks ago.Franklin, who captained Middlesex to the County Championship title in 2016, said he was delighted by the opportunity to work towards returning Durham to the upper echelons of domestic cricket.”There is no doubt that it has been a challenging couple of years for Durham but now it is about moving forward, making progress both on and off the field and once again striving to make Durham one of the powers of the English domestic competition,” Franklin said.”I really hope we can make all our loyal, passionate supporters proud of us as a club as we work incredibly hard to achieve our goals for 2019 and beyond.”Durham director of cricket Marcus North said: “Following an extensive recruitment process it became clear that James was by far the best fit for Durham. I am extremely excited for James’s arrival and look forward to working with him during this new chapter for Durham Cricket.”Franklin, a coaching consultant with BBL side Brisbane Heat who played 31 Tests and 110 ODIs for New Zealand, will arrive next month for Durham’s pre-season preparations.He replaces Jon Lewis, who left Durham in December amid the club’s planned coaching restructure and subsequently became Sri Lanka’s batting coach. Lewis had led Durham to the County Championship title in 2013, the Royal London Cup in 2014 and to T20 Finals Day in 2016.Durham were relegated from the County Championship top flight and penalised for the 2017 season as part of a financial bailout package agreed with the ECB. The club finished the 2018 season eighth in the 10-team Division Two.Neil Killeen has been named as Durham’s Assistant Lead and Bowling High Performance Coach, while fellow Durham stalwart Alan Walker will become High Performance Assistant Coach with a focus on second team cricket. The club plans to appoint a high-performance batting consultant soon.

I haven’t seen much top-level cricket lately, not even the current West Indies tour, because where I live in Atlanta, there aren’t many satellite dishes available. I’ve been living in USA permanently since 1999, when I retired from international cricket after the South Africa tour.I’m looking forward to the Champions Trophy, but I guess I don’t have as much of a buzz as the other guys, because I’ve done it all before with West Indies. Still, there’s no doubt that representative cricket lifts the spirits, and it’s sure to be one of my biggest challenges. I’m looking forward to giving something back to a game that’s been very good to me.Cricket in the USA is mostly played at league level, and occasionally there’s the chance to play regional cricket, which is the highest form of the game over here. So all in all, it’s a bit less of a challenge, and it’s nice to get out and do some serious stuff from time to time.During my international career, I earned a reputation as a hard hitter of a cricket ball, although I was also capable of nice long innings as well. Admittedly, in our three-day Intercontinental Cup games, I’ve fared pretty badly, although that’s largely been down to the indifferent wickets – they haven’t been up to the standard that I’m used to.The bowlers have dominated in the Intercontinental Cup, but in the one-day game I’ve done better. American audiences are used to more hustle and bustle in their sports – if a fan wants to see a baseball game, he’ll give over one afternoon to do so – but three-day cricket is too time-consuming for this audience.I was a bit stunned that USA missed out on hosting any matches in the World Cup – if cricket hopes to make inroads over here, it has to stick its neck out and have a feel of the market. There’s not even any real need for the game to compete with the established sports, such as baseball and football, because there’s a place for everything in America. There are a lot of dollars over here.Besides, cricket is a very Commonwealth-orientated sport, so there is a huge immigrant population in the USA who are all yearning for the sport. League cricket is really exploding at the moment – last year in Atlanta, seven or eight new teams were formed, and you’d be astonished just how popular the game is in New York at present. All the more reason why the World Cup should be coming here.There was a good atmosphere down in Florida for our Intercontinental Cup match against Canada last month, although sadly the pitch left a bit to be desired, and it wasn’t a fair assessment of our skills. The Champions Trophy next month will a more relevant assessment of where we have reached as a team.Basically, we are just a bunch of league players – amateurs taking on professionals – so we are going to be up against it in the competition. But we are sure to learn a hell of a lot while we are here. And next year, we’ll be competing in a World-Cup qualifying tournament in Ireland, where the conditions are likely to be similar. So for us it is a win-win situation.