by Abhai Sawkar Leading up to this tournament, how have things been going for Team USA? After a very fruitful WT20 Americas Sub-Regional Qualifier, where they finished at the top of the table above the favorites Canada, Team USA were put to a sterner test in more difficult conditions in the Caribbean, during the Super50. USA's group included quite a few formidable opponents: Jamaica, Barbados, Leeward Islands, and Combined Campuses and Colleges, the team that eventually would win the Super50. The Americans did feature in the previous edition of the tournament but this time around, they happened to fare better. During the 2017-18 edition, USA registered a solitary win, but lost all of their other seven games. The new-look USA squad showed better levels of determination, but won two games, lost five, and had one washout. Despite the poor returns, the Super50 has served as a great preparation event; all the American players had an opportunity to play against some well-known West Indian internationals: Carlos Brathwaite, Miguel Cummins, and Rovman Powell, to name a few. Given that the American squad has gone through a major shakeup, all these learning experiences are priceless, especially before a high-stakes tournament. The ICC World Cricket League Division Three Championship will feature six teams: USA, Denmark, Singapore, Kenya, Oman, and Uganda. Kenya and Oman might be having the edge, considering both teams have past experience from World T20s, and for the former, World Cups as well. Given the varying levels of experience among players in the current USA squad, how difficult will the WCL Division 3 Championship be? First of all, it definitely will not be easy. All of the opponents have ensured that they will enter the competition well-prepared, resolute, and ready to deliver. Oman, for example, participated in the 2016 World T20 in India, and they pulled off an astonishing win against Ireland, a team that is now a Full Member. It might have been a close game, but it was a major breakthrough moment for Oman. They have many talented players, and cricket in the Middle East is steadily improving, with frequent competitions happening from time to time. They have all their bases covered, with attacking batsmen like their captain Zeeshan Maqsood and Aqib Ilyas, reliable allrounders like their skipper, Ajay Lalcheta, and Khawar Ali, and even a seamer with a Malinga-style action, Munis Ansari. Finally, they are the hosts, and have the home-venue advantage, in the Al-Amerat turf cricket ground in the capital city of Muscat. The next most formidable opponent would have to be Kenya. Even though their team might be in disarray because of corruption and politics in their governing body, they have managed to put together a strong squad of 13 to deploy. Captain Collins Obuya, the big-hitting batsman Rakep Patel, left arm spinner Shem Ngoche, and opening batsman Alex Obanda all were part of the Kenya squad for the 2011 World Cup. Fast bowler Nelson Odhiambo, batsman Gurdeep Singh, and wicketkeeper Irfan Karim are prominent names in the squad as well; they might not be having experience from a World Cup or a World T20, but they have regularly featured for their side in numerous tournaments involving associate nations, over the years. Team USA also have very unfond memories about fast bowler Emmanuel Bundi, who took a magnificent 5-wicket haul when the Americans last had played them in Abu Dhabi last year. In May 2017, USA had a WCL Division Three tournament in Uganda, and had a chance to play both Uganda and Singapore. Both sides posed a potent threat; Uganda successfully bowled out USA for 145, but that just happened to be enough to register a 13-run win, in a strongly bowler-favored contest. Singapore, on the other hand, delivered a crushing 7-wicket defeat, with Arjun Mutreja and captain Chetan Suryawanshi dominating with the bat. Uganda's captain, Roger Mukasa, has experience in all three forms of the game, and has been an integral part of his side for almost a decade. Both Uganda and Singapore have played plenty of cricket lately, in their respective World T20 Regional Qualifiers, and they should be ready to transition to the 50-over tournament. Expect some close, captivating contests. Out of all the opponents, Denmark would have to be the most underrated. Over the course of August and September, they have taken part in the European Qualifiers and finished at the top of their draw, winning all their games against Germany, Austria, Portugal, France, and Cyprus. In addition, they have the services of 35-year-old Frederik Klokker, one of the highly-rated, consistent, homegrown talents. Klokker has over 15 years of experience playing cricket in many different locations, including county cricket for Derbyshire and Warwickshire. His aggressive batting and nifty wicketkeeping will definitely bolster the confidence of the Scandinavian side. Now that we have a full overview of each opponent, how strong is the American squad? How was the selection process, and how well might the players fare, especially the newcomers? Around two weeks ago, USA Cricket confirmed their squad for the WCL, but one change was made, four days ago. Opening batsman Sunny Sohal could not recover from a knee injury in time, and Nisarg Patel earned a recall. Batsmen Monank Patel -- Right-hand bat Alex Amsterdam -- Left-hand bat Wicketkeeper-batsman Jaskaran Malhotra (Vice-Captain) -- Right-hand bat All-rounders Nisarg Patel -- Right-hand bat, slow left-arm orthodox Steven Taylor -- Left-hand bat, right-arm offbreak Aaron Jones -- Right-hand bat, right-arm legbreak Roy Silva -- Right-hand bat, right-arm medium Timil Patel -- Right-hand bat, right-arm legbreak Jannisar Khan -- Right-hand bat, right-arm medium-fast Elmore Hutchinson -- Right-hand bat, left-arm fast-medium Bowlers Saurabh Netravalkar (Captain) -- Left-arm fast-medium Ali Khan -- Right-arm fast-medium Nosthush Kenjige -- Slow left-arm orthodox Hayden Walsh, Jr. -- Right-arm legbreak The team currently has a few experienced campaigners, who have been part of the side for a few years; more importantly, if you were to compare this squad to the squad that won the Auty Cup against Canada last year, there definitely has been quite a shakeup. Serious questions are to be asked about the selection process. Players with decent returns and new players who had limited opportunities to showcase their talent have either been dropped or eluded selection. Take Usman Ashraf, the 22-year-old New York-based legspinner. In the Americas Regional Qualifier, he took 8 wickets in 3 games, including a 5-wicket haul against Belize. He also had a chance to play two games in the Super50, and took 4 wickets in 2 games, even though he might have been a little too expensive. Young players who are added to the team deserve more backing from the selectors, and that will help fast-track their development at senior level, slowly but surely. Another example would be 21-year-old opening batsman Sagar Patel. Patel played in the WCL Division Three tournament last year in Uganda and in the Auty Cup, but since then, he is nowhere to be seen in the national squad. It has been almost a year, and even though he didn't produce any eye-catching performances, he gradually learned to acclimatize to tougher situations at hand. Team USA has an ambidextrous spinner in Prashant Nair, who can bowl offbreaks and slow left-arm orthodox, similar to Kamindu Mendis, the young Sri Lankan who recently made his international debut against England. Nair has prodigious talent, and took part in the Oman tour last year as well as in the previous edition of the Super50 in the West Indies. Lately, the team has not been very consistent, and Nair adds plenty of variety to the bowling contingent. Unfortunately, he too seems to have fallen out of favor with the selectors. Going back to the World T20 Regional Qualifiers in September, USA Cricket had originally planned to hold multiple training camps, where a select number of players would be called up. The two most recent selections have effectively reneged this plan. Both Aaron Jones and Hayden Walsh, the two most recent picks, have neither played any cricket in the US, nor have they attended the training camp. Their American citizenships earned them a spot in the squad. This plan seems to have borne fruit in the short term, with Jones scoring a well-composed 66 and taking two wickets in only his second game for USA, en route to a win against Jamaica. Walsh, on the other hand, hasn't played a game in an American shirt, and it is quite risky to throw completely new players in the deep end, especially when there is a lot to play for. Others were just victims of horrible luck. Fast bowler Jessy Singh had torn his ACL last August, and spent over a year on the sidelines. He has recently worked on his batting and earned a chance to play in the Super50. Singh also has experience playing first-class cricket in Sri Lanka, as well as playing for USA and the ICC Americas team in various events in the past. After a few decent outings, he finds himself benched again. David Wakefield, the batting allrounder based in New Zealand, had impressed in the training camp, but hardly got a chance to bat or bowl in the Qualifiers at Raleigh, and then was jettisoned after three mediocre performances in the Caribbean. Wakefield did show glimpses of a solid batting technique, but a dearth of playing opportunities seemed to have undermined his confidence. All players must be thoroughly assessed before world events, no exceptions. Rotating the playing XI is key, so that everyone gets ample opportunities to sell themselves well. Another young batsman, Fahad Babar, had gone to Pakistan and trained intensely in the Zalmi League, where he had a chance to rub shoulders with some of the Pakistani greats such as Younis Khan. His batting had improved considerably, but he somehow eluded the eyes of the selection panel. Babar played in the World T20 Qualifier in Ireland, three years ago, among all the American batsman, he had the best technique and was in reliable form. Quite a few players in the squad have been chosen because of potential, but it is frustrating in the extreme for those who have tirelessly and unreservedly made an effort in past events to be ignored in critical circumstances. The senior experienced players will be under strict scrutiny as the tournament progresses. Allrounders Roy Silva and Jannisar Khan both didn't enjoy a very productive Super50, but did make the cut for the WCL. They're both 37 years old, and much will be expected from both. Silva has over a decade of experience playing all formats of domestic cricket in his native Sri Lanka, and so does Khan, in Pakistan. Team USA has a track record of recruiting many talented expatriates over the course of the past several years, but now it's high time for the team to gel together well and maintain a strong winning streak. Yes, there are quite a few negatives in the selections, but how about the positives? Mistakes might have been made in the handling of certain players, but there are those who deserved a comeback, and rightfully earned it. Alex Amsterdam, the stylish left-hander, has been reinstated, in the hopes that USA can resolve their shortcomings with the bat. He has played top-flight List A and T20 cricket for USA since 2015, and even though there might be concerns about his strike-rate, he has been trusted to provide the much-needed middle-order glue. Steven Taylor, the most experienced homegrown American cricketer, and it is very relieving to see that he is back in national plans as a fully committed players. He had a period of disillusionment with cricket in the US, and he had signed a contract with Jamaica, to play first-class cricket. He has formerly captained USA, and he will be an important member of a relatively new think tank. Apart from his bruising batting style, he is a very capable offspinner, and can also keep wickets if necessary. The change in captaincy is, without a doubt, a blessing in disguise. Ibrahim Khaleel, the previous captain, has had a streak of poor returns with the bat, and his captaincy skills have been pretty questionable lately. For example, during the WT20 Qualifiers, he made a strange decision not to let Timil Patel, the vastly accomplished leg-spinner, bowl his full allocation of overs. Instead, he gave Timil a chance to bowl towards the back end of the innings, usually when spinners are hit for more runs. Khaleel might have been an influential leader last year, but there has to be continuity, otherwise, it is time to consider alternate options. Saurabh Netravalkar, the brisk left-arm pacer, has been appointed full-time captain. He used to play for India's U19 side, and later came to the US for higher studies. He is a qualified software engineer, and he should be very disciplined and methodical when it comes to leadership. Apart from his bowling, his batting seems to have improved and he's more than capable of giving it a clean strike down the order. Not only is this a test of his leadership skills, but it is also a wake-up call for the team to improve in all skills. Yes, USA definitely had a great tournament in Raleigh, but more often than not, the fielding was problematic. Dropped catches galore and numerous misfields did not help their cause, and the Super50 experience should hasten the fine tuning of all departments. How should the problems of USA Cricket be fixed, in order to better the team and win more frequently? For more than a decade, the American cricket team has been heavily reliant on expatriates that have had plenty of exposure to high-level domestic cricket, or even international cricket. And on many occasion, the recruitment of several expats at a time hasn't exactly paid dividends. The best course of action to take would have to be grassroots appeal, as well as nurturing homegrown talent. The most recent USA U19 squad has a vast majority of players who were born and raised in America, and they all have been playing club cricket since a very young age. It is about time the selection panel realizes that there is a sizable pool of domestic talent, where more future international cricketers can be chosen from. In California, cricket clubs are starting to form in universities: UC Berkeley and UC San Diego both have a full-fledged team, with several players eager for competition. If there is no well-established domestic structure, then it will be a very arduous effort to find more USA players. The aforementioned players who have been ignored have put in their blood, sweat, and tears, and deserve more backing, relative to a richly experienced foreign-born cricketer who played first-class cricket many years ago. Many of the young league cricketers in the US have either lost the passion for the sport or moved elsewhere to pursue their cricketing ambition. For example, Ryan Corns, a member of the 2010 U19 squad, spent a short time in the senior national squad, but soon left for Australia, where he has been playing grade cricket ever since. At the same time, the implementation of this major change should be gradual. Sudden changes seldom yield favorable results, and promoting cricket in an associate nation requires a great deal of willpower and perseverance. Passion and focus drive learning and bring about success. The world is our oyster, and the sky is the limit.
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