ICC U/19 Cricket World Cup Bangladesh 2004
Dhaka, 24 February 2004 - ICC Reports
Ireland qualify for Plate semi-finals
Ireland beat Canada by 155 runs at the M.A. Aziz Stadium in Chittagong
Ireland joined Bangladesh in the semi-finals of the Plate Championship with a match to spare after battering Canada by 155 runs in Chittagong. Ireland have been the most consistent of the ICC Associate Member countries at the ICC U/19 Cricket World Cup and claimed an emphatic victory over a Canada side that has yet to register a win in the tournament.
Ireland batted first after winning the toss and six of their top seven made solid contributions as they steadily scored at five-an-over to build an imposing target. William Porterfield and Eion Morgan both reached 40 while Kevin O'Brien top-scored with 51. Despite a late flurry of wickets as the lower order tried in vain to up the run-rate, Ireland were able to bat out their full 50 overs to reach 265 for 9.
No side in the tournament has been able to successfully chase a target of over 250 and Canada never looked capable of rising to the challenge. Six Irish bowlers picked up wickets as Canada were bowled out for 110 in 34.3 overs. Ireland must now beat Bangladesh on Friday to avoid favourites Australia in the semi-final.
"We want to reach the Plate final," said Ireland coach Adrian Birrell. "We have played very well in our last two matches and we seem to be improving match by match. "We have no specific plan for the Bangladesh match but if we play this well I think we have a chance of winning."
Canada coach Franklyn Dennis is targeting a victory in the final group match. "We have not won any matches yet but the players have learned a lot from the experience of playing against good sides," said Dennis. "I hope that they can use this experience to get a positive result against Uganda in our last match."
Cook skippers England within sight of semi-finals
England beat Zimbabwe by six wickets at the BKSP Sports Ground, Dhaka
England took a big step towards the Super League semi-finals with a workmanlike six wicket victory over Zimbabwe inspired by a second consecutive unbeaten century from their captain Alastair Cook at the BKSP Sports Ground. It was a happy groundhog day for Cook as he produced a carbon copy of his earlier innings against New Zealand to lead his side to victory over Zimbabwe. Incredibly in both matches Cook hit 108 not out from 131 balls, the only difference this time was that he hit 10 instead of 11 boundaries.
Zimbabwe were left to rue missed opportunities after being put into bat by England. All of Zimbabwe's top eight reached double figures but none was able to go on to make a big score. As a result they reached only 218 for 9 from their 50 overs with opener Brendon Taylor top-scoring with 45. Tim Bresnan and David Stiff both picked up three wickets for England.
Cook anchored a measured reply from England. He reached his 50 from 55 balls and didn't panic when Samit Patel was the third man out with the score on 93. Luke Wright joined his captain in the middle and batted sensibly to help steer England towards victory. Wright was out for 79 but Cook held his nerve to carry his bat for the second time in a row as England reached the target with an over to spare.
Cook has already made his first class debut for the English county side Essex and refused to get carried away by his back-to-back centuries. "It is great to score two tons on the bounce but Samit (Patel) also scored a century against New Zealand and today Wrighty took a lot of the pressure off me with his 79 runs. "We came here aiming to get two points today and we're obviously happy to have done that but we didn't play as well as we know we can."
Zimbabwe are now out of the tournament but their captain Tinotenda Mawoyo was full of praise for his team. "All good things must come to an end," said Mawoyo. "We have shown we are not just here to make up the numbers and we should be proud of the way we have performed. "We've had a wonderful time in Bangladesh where the people have been very good to us."
Cook is the second player to make two centuries in the tournament. The other double-centurion is India's Shikhar Dhawan. England's final group match is against Pakistan at the Fatullah District Stadium on 27 February. The match was originally scheduled for BKSP but all tickets purchased for the original venue will still be valid at Fatullah.
Hosts assured of semi-final berth
Bangladesh beat Uganda by four wickets at the Chittagong Divisional Stadium
Bangladesh confirmed its place in the semi-finals of the Plate Championship with a rapid four wicket win against Uganda at the Chittagong Divisional Stadium. The pace of Nazmul Hossain and the spin of Enamul Haque jnr combined effectively to secure a second consecutive four wicket win that puts the hosts into the semi-finals with one match to spare.
After Uganda won the toss and elected to bat, Hossain made early inroads. The right-armer took five of the top six wickets as Uganda were pegged back to 38 for 6. Haque completed his side's domineering bowling performance by taking the four remaining wickets. Uganda were all out for 78 from 33.3 overs with Hossain claiming 5 for 30 and Haque finishing with 4 for 18.
For the second match in a row Bangladesh made hard work of a simple run-chase. This time is was entirely due to the right-arm fast-medium bowling of Uganda's Emmanuel Isaneez who incredibly dismissed all six of the Bangladesh top order. Isaneez finished his 10 over spell with 6 for 37 but it wasn't enough to prevent Bangladesh reaching the target in 19.5 overs.
Despite the defeat Isaneez was named man of the match. His bowling figures were the second best in this tournament behind Zimbabwe's Tishane Panyangara and the third best in the history of the event. "I was very happy with the way that I bowled today," said Isaneez "This is the first time I have ever achieved six wickets in an innings."
Bangladesh coach Richard McInnes knows his side will have to bat better in the group decider against Ireland in two days time. "Our bowlers are doing well but I'm worried about our batsmen," admitted McInnes. "They are playing badly and I'm not happy but if they can rediscover their form from earlier in the tournament I am confident we can reach the Plate Championship final."