Canadian cricket enters a crucial phase on Thursday (June 25) as the men\u2019s national team hosts the USA in the Teacher\u2019s Whiskey Auty Cup series. The series begins with a two day game, followed by a 50-over game and two T20 matches. In August, Canada hosts the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Netherlands in ICC Intercontinental Cup and World Cricket League matches. Two T20 internationals are included in the UAE series with November\u2019s ICC World Twenty20 in Dubai looming large on the horizon.
\nCanada\u2019s national coach, Gus Logie, sees these three series as “giving our players much needed competition against quality opposition.”
\nAshish Bagai is set to return to the Canadian side for the first time since the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup in the USA series, as is Harvir Baidwan. Nitish Kumar, who recently captained Canada Under-19`s team to the ICC Americas Division One Championship, is also in the squad.
\nBagai and Baidwan both appeared in the recent CIBC National Cricket League (NCL) where five regional-based teams competed in 50-over and 20-over championships. The regional teams were based on a geographic core of players from each designated region plus an allocation of Canadian high performance players, two Under-19 players and one assigned overseas player. The five overseas players were all from Trinidad and Tobago, with which Canadian cricket has had many links in recent years.
\nThis was the second year of the National Cricket League and the first with CIBC as title sponsor. Bagai captained Eastern Fury, a team based on the provinces of Atlantic Canada, in the NCL. He showed good form, as well as leadership, in scoring 97 not out in a 50-over game against Prairie Fire. Baidwan played for Central Shield, the Ontario-orientated side.
\nTV Coverage of Auty Cup T20s
\nCricket Canada\u2019s sponsorship and arrangements with Rogers results in some eighteen matches being televised through Rogers Community Channel in Toronto with links to broader live coverage through Rogers Community TV within Ontario, Sportsnet and national replays of some games on Sportsnet World. Most of the televised games are T20 matches, with some coverage of Canada\u2019s home World Cricket League games. The commentary team on Rogers Community TV has comprised various Canadian international players from the 1980’s thru to the 2000’s.
\nThe two T20 matches against the USA on Sunday July 28th in the Teacher\u2019s Whiskey Auty Cup series are scheduled to be televised.
\nHowever, the TV arrangements with Rogers resulted in a change of venue for the Auty Cup series against the USA. The grass wickets at Victoria Park, Edmonton, Alberta were originally designated as the venue as part of a move for Canada to play live beyond the Toronto area. The Teacher\u2019s Whiskey Auty Cup series is now being played at the Maple Leaf grounds in King City, Ontario.
\nThe T20 Final of the CIBC National Cricket League (NCL) provided an exciting game for the TV audience as the Alberta-based Western Stallions hung on to beat the Ontario-based Central Shield by one run, thanks to a last ball run out. The Western Stallions also won the 50-over version of the CIBC NCL.
\nA three game T20 Star series followed between the CIBC NCL All Stars and a Canadian Select team. The All Stars won the series by two games to one. Rizwan Cheema and Jimmy Hansra both played important parts for the All Stars in the T20 series. Hansra has been named captain for the 2-day game with the USA, while Cheema will lead Canada in the 50 over and T20 games.
\nCoach Logie seeks “Pride and Consistent High Performance”
\nThis is a very important time for Canadian cricket. The men`s side needs to perform well in the upcoming home series, and gain momentum for the ICC World T20 Qualifiers in November and for next year`s ICC World Cup Qualifier. When news of Bagai\u2019s short-term commitment to the national side was first announced, he had said, “Canadian cricket means a lot to me and I am excited to play a role in helping Canada qualify for both of events once again.”
\nAshish Bagai first played for Canada`s Under-15 team and was involved in an ICC Americas Under-19 side before playing for Canada in ICC Under-19 world cup qualifiers and actual tournaments. He had also said, “It’s going to require a lot of commitment and character from the players and I am confident that the guys will rise to the challenge.”
\nOn the eve of the games against the USA, Canadian coach Logie picked up that theme, “Having the squad play together over the next few weeks will give us the bonding and playing time necessary to try different combinations and approaches that will give us the best chance of success during these games and beyond.”
\nLogie concluded, “I want to challenge all players to take the next few weeks very seriously, focus on the job in hand and keep your eyes on the prize of representing Canada with pride and consistent high performance.”
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\nThe USA and Canada will continue international cricket matches that began at the St George\u2019s Club, New York in September, 1846, but have had some breaks. The K.A. Auty Memorial Trophy or Cup came into being with the restoration of USA-Canada games in 1963, following a long gap that extended back to before World War I. There have been two shorter gaps since the rivalry resumed in 1963.
\nWeather challenges
\nSignificant issues for players and spectators alike could be the weather which has produced extreme combinations of heat and humidity in recent weeks), as well as some significant storms. On some days the heat and humidity mix saw effective temperatures around 40C. The second of the All Star Series matches was washed out on a Friday afternoon, but re-arranged for the Saturday morning. One could feel the mix of heat and humidity as the game progressed.
\nThe first day of the CIBC National Cricket League T20 Championship had been washed out by flooding that followed a major storm on the previous day, and the first three matches of the original ICC Americas Under-19 championships became `No Results`, two with no play. Heavy rain hit during what became an extended lunch interval in opening match between the USA and Bermuda. Those heavy rains caused significant power outages within the City of Toronto.
\nBy some quirk of fate, the revised ICC Americas Under-19 schedule saw cricket`s oldest international rivals, Canada and the USA meet on the same day the Ashes series began in Nottingham between England and Australia.
\nUS re-selects Auty Series Captain
\nThis week the USA Cricket Association named Timil Patel as captain and Karan Ganesh as vice-captain for the Teacher\u2019s Auty Cup series. Originally Steven Taylor had been named as captain, but lost this role for disciplinary reasons.
\nUSA coach Robin Singh expects “the USA team to be very competitive and give a really good account of ourselves duering the Auty Cup. I am hopeful of some great performances from our captain, Timil Patel, and our vice-captain, as well as Daniel Ahmed, Tim Surajbally and all the seamers in the team”.
\nCoach Singh added, “They (Canada) aren\u2019t going to be easy to beat in Toronto. We are going to be the \u2018underdog\u2019, but if we can implement the game plan and stick to it when the pressure is on, I am confident that we can win.”<\/p>\n
Canadian men must perform well!
\nIn the big picture of Canadian cricket the cricketing bottom line is a need for the men\u2019s team to perform well in the coming weeks and into the fall and in next year\u2019s men\u2019s ICC World Cup qualifier. Canada certainly needs to retain a place among the leading ICC Associate Countries, and hang on to the related ICC funding. Indeed, Bagai\u2019s short-term return to serious playing reflects his interest and concern for the long-term progress of cricket in Canada.
\nIn a country of Canada\u2019s resources and financial strength – as well as some of the interest in cricket generated through the Indian Premier League (IPL) – Canadian cricket ought to be able to obtain and retain significant sponsorship funding from major domestic companies. But significantly more tends to be known about the IPL games than about the Canadian National Cricket League or Canada\u2019s international matches.
\nIf this short-to-medium term cricketing bottom line of success on the field is not met, then, as Ashish Bagai indicated when he signed-up for his short-term contract with Cricket Canada, the financial side of Canadian cricket could be seriously impacted. Something that could hit the overall health of cricket across the country. It\u2019s up to the coaches and players, along with sensible thinking and player selections, to keep Canada in the ICC\u2019s High Performance upper stream.
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\n2013 Teacher`s Whiskey Auty Cup Series
\nCanadian squad: Amarbir (Jimmy) Hansra (captain in 2-day game), Rizwan Cheema (captain in 50 and 20 over games), Ashish Bagai, Harvir Baidwan, Damodar Daesrath, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Nitish Kumar, Usman Limbada, Salman Nazar, Henry Osinde, Cecil Pervez and Junaid Siddiqui. Coach: Gus Logie
\nUSA squad: Timil Patel (captain), Karan Ganesh (vice-captain), Akeem Dodson, Nicholas Standford, Timothy Surajbally, Ravi Timbawala, Ryan Corns, Abhimanyu Rajp, Daniel Ahmed, Steven Taylor, Mital Patel, Adrian Gordon, Usman Rehman and Naseer Jamali. Coach: Robin Singh.
\nTeacher’s Auty Cup 2013 – Scheduled matches<\/p>\n
July 25 and 26\tCanada v USA 2-day game (2 innings per side) – 11 am start
\nJuly 27\t Canada v USA 50-over international – 11 am start
\nJuly 28\t Canada v USA T20 matches at 11am and 3.30pm
\nAll matches in the Teacher\u2019s Auty Cup series are due to be played at the Maple Leaf Cricket Club, King City, Ontario (intersection of 15th Sideroad and Dufferin Street).
\nOther Upcoming Canada Home International Series 2013
\nUAE in Canada – August 2013
\nAugust 1-4 Canada v UAE ICC Intercontinental Cup (Maple Leaf CC)
\nAugust 6 Canada v UAE* ICC World Cricket League (Maple Leaf CC)
\nAugust 8 Canada v UAE* ICC World Cricket League (Maple Leaf CC)
\nAugust 10 Canada v UAE T20 (Toronto Cricket Club)
\nAugust 11 Canada v UAE T20 (Toronto Cricket Club)
\n* 50 overs per side but does not have ODI status.
\nThe Netherlands in Canada – August 2013
\nAugust 22-25 Canada v The Netherlands ICC Intercontinental Cup (Maple Leaf CC)
\nAugust 27 Canada v The Netherlands ICC World Cricket League (Maple Leaf CC)
\nAugust 29 Canada v The Netherlands ICC World Cricket League (Maple Leaf CC)
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\nEddie Norfolk
\n(Canadian Auty Cup squad, game schedules, and Gus Logie comments from Cricket Canada newswires; USA captaincy appointment, Auty Cup Squad and Robin Singh comments from USACA media release.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Canadian cricket enters a crucial phase on Thursday (June 25) as the men\u2019s national team hosts the USA in the Teacher\u2019s Whiskey Auty Cup series. The series begins with a two day game, followed by a 50-over game and two T20 matches. In August, Canada hosts the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Netherlands in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4769"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4769"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4769\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4770,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4769\/revisions\/4770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.canadacricket.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}