A compilation of excerpts, from recent ICC Media Releases about Canada U19s group in the 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
Canada U19s games in Group A are being played in Basseterre, St Kitts (West Indies) and begin with a game UAE U19s on Saturday (15 January). Canada is due to play England U19s on Tuesday (18 January) and completes Group matches against defending Champions Bangladesh next Thursday (20 January). This is a compilation of excerpts from recent ICC Media Releases that outlined each captain’s hopes for and beyond the Group phase of the 2022 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup. Canadian
Mihir Patel Can U19 Captain – Photo Credit: Eddie Norfolk
Captain Mihir Patel’s Hopes for Canada at this 2022 ICC Under-19 CWC:
Excerpt from ICC Media Release dated 12 Jan 2022:
Joining Bangladesh and England in Group A are Canada, who will kick off their tournament against the United Arab Emirates, a team they faced twice in the tournament two years ago. And Mihir Patel, the Canada skipper and only remaining member of the squad from 2020, is
desperate to get off to a flying start against the UAE as they search for more consistency against the best teams.
He said: “It’s one win and one loss for us against the UAE so we’re looking to make it two to one. Winning the first game always gives the boys confidence so that is something we’ve been looking forward to doing.
“I think our strength is the depth of our team, we have a really balanced team. Our batting order bats really low and we have a lot of bowling options so we don’t rely heavily on one or two players. Our players have shown capability that they can get things done, but it’s about doing it for a longer period of time and making sure we make the right decisions at the right time.”
Canada U19s v United Arab Emirates (UAE) U19s
Saturday 15 January 2022 at Conaree Sports Club, Basseterre, St Kitts.
The UAE Captain’s Perspective
Excerpt from ICC Media Release dated 13 Jan 2022
UAE captain Alishan Sharafu has a target in mind and that’s to reach the Super League stage after narrowly missing out in South Africa two years ago.
“I think obviously we want to go match by match but our collective goal would be to at least go through to the Super League which we couldn’t do last time,” he said. “That would be the biggest goal of the tournament. Obviously we go one match at a time and prepare for every game separately and pretty much do well in all of them.
“They’re all very good teams, and we want to focus on one game at a time, not the group as a whole, and prepare for every game differently based on our strengths and not worry about the opposition too much. We just want to back our preparation and go from there.”
Mihir Patel scored 90 when Canada posted 281/8 (50 overs) but lost to the opening group match against UAE at the 2020 U19 CWC’s. In the Plate playoff game to decide 13th place, Canada dismissed the UAE for 174 (44.1 ovs) and won by 4 wickets.
Canada U19s v England U19s
Tuesday 18 January 2022 at Warner Park, Basseterre, St Kitts
The England Captain’s Perspective
Excerpt from ICC Media Release dated 13 Jan 2022
England have not won the tournament since 1998 but have a chance to prove their credentials from the off against defending champions Bangladesh on Sunday. England will also face Canada and United Arab Emirates in Group A and captain Tom Prest is confident they can make a run at the title.
“Obviously, we’ve come over here with the intention of winning the tournament. That’s kind of our ultimate goal as a side,” he said. “We’ve had good run outs against West Indies and Sri Lanka in the summer series in England and then we went out to Sri Lanka before Christmas in December.
“We’ve had good experience against some good quality international sides, so it will be a great experience for us all to play against more opposition, top-class players from all around the world. Hopefully we can come out on top.
“It would be amazing to win. To even be at a global tournament, at a World Cup is a great feeling for all of us. I think to win the tournament as well would be an unbelievable feeling for all of us.”
England U19s beat Canada by a large number of runs at the 2018 U19 CWC.
Canada U19s v Bangladesh U19s
Thursday 20 January 2022 at Conaree Sports Club, Basseterre, St Kitts.
The Bangladesh Captain’s Perspective
Excerpt from ICC Media Release dated 12 Jan 2022
Defending champions Bangladesh were comfortable winners in their most recent warm-up game against Zimbabwe, with their opening Group A game coming against England in St Kitts and Nevis on Sunday. Skipper Rakibul Hasan, who was part of the victorious 2020 squad, revealed that the squad is starting to adjust to the conditions in the Caribbean. He said: “The conditions in St Kitts are not that tough, we have been here for two weeks now, so we have adjusted to the conditions and also playing two practice games is good preparation for us, so we are looking forward to playing England and hopefully we can get off to a good start.
“We are focused on our game, yes we are defending champions, but we are looking forward to our game, so we are focused on that and how well we prepare ourselves for the upcoming game and how we can get to the next stage of the competition
“Our senior team has done well in New Zealand which is inspiration for us, so hopefully we will do well in the tournament.”
The game between Canada U19s and Bangladesh U19s was tied at the 2002 ICC U19 CWC. Bangladesh U19s won the games played at the U19 CWCs in 2004, 2014 and 2018.
Complied by Eddie Norfolk, Toronto 14 Jan, 2022.