CWC Qualifier group A: Dutch miss key players; Nepal, USA pose great threat

The Cricket World Cup Qualifier is one of the most significant events of this year in ODI cricket. This tournament will give the remaining two teams for the World Cup 2023.

The CWC Qualifier is a 10-team event that has two World Cup winners, West Indies and Sri Lanka, also trying to emerge as the top two and enter the World Cup that would take place in India later this year. The 10 teams are divided into two groups of five each. The Top three teams from each group move to the second round called super six. 

Netherlands: Losing leading players to county, Dutch still good enough to fight 

Though the Netherlands have lost most of their cream to county cricket, they are still one of the strongest when it comes to being among the top three in this group. 

Fred Klaasen, Colin Ackermann, Roelef van der Merwe, Tim van der Gugten, Brandon Glover and Paul van Meekeren is the list of the top six players of the Dutch side who will not be available for this tournament. They have preferred to play for their respective counties in the T20 Blast. The counties give them the money that pays their bills. Playing for the national team is not financially gainful for associate nations.

Even as the cream is lost, the Dutch still have the likes of Scott Edwards, Max O’Dowd, Bas de Leede, Wesley Barresi and the up-and-coming Teja Nidamanuru. While Edwards, Barresi, O’Dowd and de Leede bring experience with them, Nidamanuru, Vikramjit Singh and Saqib Zulfiqar bring eternal love and passion for cricket along with their raw talent. 

Men in Orange have included new names like Ryan Klein, Clayton Floyd, Michael Levitt and Shariz Ahmad in the squad. They are homegrown players and the Netherlands would like to have them perform and take the team to super six first and then to the World Cup. 

Netherlands Squad for Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023

Scott Edwards (c), Max O’Dowd, Logan van Beek, Vikram Singh, Aryan Dutt, Viv Kingma, Bas de Leede, Noah Croes, Ryan Klein, Teja Nidamanuru, Wesley Barresi, Shariz Ahmad, Clayton Floyd, Michael Levitt, Saqib Zulfiqar.

Netherlands best playing 11

Max O’Dowd, Vikram Singh, Bas de Leede, Wesley Barresi, Scott Edwards (c) (wk), Teja Nidamanuru, Saqib Zulfiqar, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Ryan Klein, Vivian Kingma

Nepal: In red hot form and ready to cause upsets

Nepal did exceedingly well in the ICC CWC League Two, winning 11 out of their last 12 games to rally to the third spot and secure a straight qualification to the CWC Qualifier. The men from the mountains won only 19 out of the 36 games in CWC League Two. It means that in their first 24 matches, they had won just seven. Nepal pipped Namibia by just one point as both the teams had 19 wins from 36 games, but because the Nepalese had a tie against the USA, they sailed through.

Having secured their place in CWC Qualifier in March, Nepal continued their dominance in ACC Premier Cup in April. It was the qualifying event for Asia Cup 2023. Nepal, determined to play their first-ever Asia Cup, managed to sweep through without losing even a single game. It means that they have come to the Qualifier with 16 wins from their last 17 ODIs. Taking them lightly could be very risky.

Nepal Squad for Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023

Rohit Paudel (c), Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh, Gyanendra Malla, Kushal Malla, Aarif Sheikh, Dipendra Singh Airee, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Sandeep Lamichhane, Bhim Sharki, Lalit Rajbanshi, Pratish JC, Arjun Saud, Kishor Mahato

Nepal best playing 11

Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh (wk), Bhim Sharki, Kushal Malla, Rohit Paudel (c), Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi

USA: Banking on key subcontinent players  

USA finished in the top four in ICC World Cricket League Divison 2 in 2018 and thus gained promotion to ICC CWC League Two 2019-23. After playing 36 games in the league, they ended up fifth in the points table. 

Since only the top three teams in CWC League Two could directly qualify for the CWC Qualifier 2023, the USA along with Namibia, United Arab Emirates and Papua New Guinea eneter Qualifier playoff. It was a six-team event and the top two teams were to get direct entry into the CWC Qualifier. In the event held in Namibia, the USA won four of its five games, losing only to arch-rivals Canada. They made it to the CWC Qualifier by finishing in the top two teams in playoff alongside UAE. 

With players of the pedigree of Ali Khan (most wickets in Qualifier Playoff) and Saurabh Netravalakar (58 wickets in 35 games of League Two) who have played top level cricket in the subcontinent, the USA are sure to threaten the remaining four teams. But can they finish in the top three is something that only time can tell. 

USA Squad for Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2023

Monank Patel (c), Aaron Jones (vc), Abhishek Paradkar, Ali Khan, Gajanand Singh, Jasdeep Singh, Kyle Philip, Nisarg Patel, Nostush Kenjige, Saiteja Mukkamalla, Saurabh Netravalkar, Shayan Jahangir, Steven Taylor, Sushant Modani, Usman Rafiq

USA best playing 11

Steven Taylor, Sushant Modani, Monank Patel (c) (wk), Aaron Jones (vc), Gajanand Singh, Saiteja Mukkamalla, Nostush Kenjige, Nisarg Patel, Jasdeep Singh, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan