Canada are favorites to win
Group B of the ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier concludes with a day-night match between hosts United Arab Emirates and Canada at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi, with a place in the semi-final play-offs up for grabs for the winner. The match takes place on October 27 and gets under way at 19:30 local time.
Canada looked well set for a play-off place with three wins from their first three games, but their momentum has been halted and their play-off place put in jeopardy by defeats to Hong Kong and Oman. They posted 144/9 against Oman, failing to make a good start count, and were then beaten by eight wickets in just 14.5 overs.
The United Arab Emirates’ form has been up and down too, but they comfortably beat struggling Nigeria last time out to ensure they go into this crucial fixture in good shape. Zawar Farid hit 55 from 35 balls in a five-wicket win, chasing 112 in just 12.3 overs.
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Canada won the toss last time out and batted first. It did not pay off and the United Arab Emirates may look to put the Canadians in first again.
The humidity will ramp up a little in the evening, but conditions are otherwise unchanged – hot, and clear into the evening.
The Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium has certainly produced some well-balanced wickets so far – both batsmen and bowlers have found something in the way of assistance.
Read on for team previews,betting tips, latest odds and match prediction for United Arab Emirates vs Canada, T20 WCQ 2019...
The United Arab Emirates have been hit by scandal. Three players – Shaiman Anwar, Mohammad Naveed and Qadeer Ahmed – were provisionally suspended ahead of the tournament on corruption charges, while Ashfaq Ahmed was added to the list after the second match. Wicket-keeper Ghulam Shabber then fled the UAE to Pakistan for as-yet-unknown reasons. They still had enough depth to make two changes last time out – Zawar Farid and Imran Haider coming into the team. Farid hit a half-century but Haider bowled one expensive over.
Rohan Mustafa: The all-rounder has impressed with bat and especially with ball in this tournament. He has seven wickets, including four against Ireland, and 115 runs across the five matches in total.
Muhammad Usman: Arrived at the tournament in good batting form, hitting 60* in the final warm-up game. He has not capitalised on good starts, however – he scored 27, 29 and 20* in three of his four innings so far.
Zawar Farid: Came into the team last time out and hit 55 from 35 balls, including four fours and three sixes, to show what he can offer at the top of the order.
The UAE’s charge for the play-offs was dented by Jersey, who bowled them out for 112 after setting 148 to win. They needed a response, but the match against struggling Nigeria provided that – they scored 112 again, but this time for five wickets, in 12.3 overs, in a dominant win.
Rohan Mustafa, Zawar Farid, Chirag Suri, Muhammad Usman, Waheed Ahmed, Mohammad Boota (wk), Sultan Ahmed, Darius D’Silva, Junaid Siddique, Ahmed Raza (c), Zahoor Khan
After their first defeat of the tournament, Canada brought T20i debutant Srimantha Wijeyeratne into the team, as well as Romesh Eranga and the returning Nicholas Kirton. Saad bin Zafar, Rodrigo Thomas and Rizwan Cheema all missed out.
Nitish Kumar: Scored half-centuries in each of the three wins – 83, 57* and 53 – and it is no coincidence that his scores have dipped as Canada’s form has dropped. Nevertheless, he still has 234 runs and also took a wicket against Hong Kong.
Dillon Heyliger: Expensive in the last two matches, but he started the tournament with six wickets in the first two games and now has eight in total.
Srimantha Wijeyeratne: Made his T20i debut last time out, having been a key part of Canada’s success in the ICC CWC Challenge League 2 in Malaysia. His ODI form translated into his T20i form as he hammered 56 at the top of the order.
Canada started with three wins, seeing off Jersey, Nigeria and Ireland in their first three games. Their momentum was halted by Hong Kong, however – struggling to 118/9 in reply to 150/7.
Against Oman, Srimantha Wijeyeratne marked his T20i debut by scoring 56 from 36 balls, but Canada failed to take advantage of their good start. They eventually posted 144/9, only for Oman to chase it down for the loss of just two wickets in 14.5 overs.
Srimantha Wijeyeratne, Navneet Dhaliwal (c), Nitish Kumar, Nicholas Kirton, Ravinderpal Singh, Hamza Tariq (wk), Dillon Heyliger, Abraash Khan, Saad bin Zafar, Nikhil Dutta, Jeremy Gordon
This will be the first full white-ball international between the UAE and Canada, despite the position both occupy among the Associate Nations.
Canada’s momentum has halted, but with United Arab Emirates hit by scandal they have never looked consistent and the hosts could still be set for an early exit.
Final Verdict: Back Canada to beat United Arab Emirates
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