New Delhi: Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has picked India as the favourites to win the T20 World Cup in UAE and Oman. Inzamam feels the conditions in this region are similar to those in the Indian Subcontinent. “In any tournament, it cannot be said for certain that a particular team will win. It’s all about how much chance do they have of winning. In my opinion, India have a greater chance than any other team, especially in conditions like these. They have experienced T20 players as well,” said Inzamam. He said more than the Indian batters, the bowlers have a lot of experience of playing in such conditions, referring to the recent IPL. Inzamam praised India for the confident manner in which they chased the target against Australia in a warm-up match on Wednesday, without Kohli in the line-up. “India played their warm-up fixture against Australia rather comfortably. On Subcontinent pitches like these, India are the most dangerous T20 side in the world. If we see the 155 runs they chased down, they did not even need Virat Kohli to do so,” he added. Inzamam termed the India-Pakistan clash on Sunday as the ‘final before the final’.
Bangladesh, Scotland advance
Al Amerat: Scotland thumped T20 World Cup co-hosts Oman to storm into the tournament’s Super 12 stage, along with Bangladesh who thrashed Papua New Guinea in Muscat. Scotland’s eight-wicket victory was their third win in three preliminary-round matches as Kyle Coetzer’s side topped Group B ahead of Bangladesh. Josh Davey (3/25) led Scotland’s disciplined bowling as they restricted Oman to 122. Coetzer laid the foundation for Scotland’s victory with a rapid 41 as they completed the chase with three overs to spare. Meanwhile, all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan (46 and 4/9) and skipper Mahmudullah (50) inspired Bangladesh to an 80-run rout of PNG.
On UAE’s tired pitches, pacemen need variety, says Cummins
Dubai: Fast bowlers will need a varied skillset to conquer the “tired” pitches in the UAE, Australia’s Pat Cummins said ahead of their opener against South Africa, to be played on Saturday. The pacers would be a worried lot, looking for ways to master the dry and slow pitches in the UAE, which has split warm-up matches with Oman but hosts the rest of the tournament from Saturday. The UAE also hosted the second leg of the IPL which concluded recently, meaning fast bowlers face the prospect of toiling on worn-out pitches in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. “A couple of wickets have been tired and a couple times you get some really good wickets,” Cummins said. “Bowling with a new ball up front is going to look quite different to how you bowl in the end. So you’ve got to be able to adapt and have two or three different spells within the 20 overs…” Agencies
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