OUTSIDE THE CIRCLE

Associates in 2019 - Country-by-country review

by Bertus de Jong • Published on

Ryan ten Doeschate returned for Netherlands recently. © Getty

As the broader landscape of cricket outside the Full Member circle was marked by significant structural change overlaid on dispiriting continuity in the past year, so the on-field fortunes of the top Associates in 2019 have told the story of a remarkable and yet in many ways unsurprising reordering of the competitive hierarchy below the Test-playing nations.

Having clawed their back to the top of the Associates pile, climbing back from Division2 to win the final WCL Championship in 2017, theNetherlands played no part in the revamped Associate 50-over competitions that launched this year, having earned their place alongside the Full Members in the 13-team ODI Super League which starts in 2020. Two home ODIs against Zimbabwe early in the northern summer constitutes their only competitive 50-over fixtures this year, the Dutch winning both to become the first Associate to defeat a Full Member in a multi-match series.

The remainder of the international calendar was dedicated to preparations for the T20 World Cup Qualifier, coach Ryan Campbell and new skipper Pieter Seelaar concentrating on building squad depth and blooding young players. The results were initially unpromising, splitting the T20I series against Zimbabwe 1-1 before being whitewashed in a 4-match home series against the UAE. The remainder of the Netherlands' preparation was no more encouraging, finishing bottom of the table below Ireland and Scotland at the hastily-arranged tri-series in Ireland that took the place of the postponed Euro T20 Slam, and managing only a single win over Hong Kong at the pentangular series in Oman immediately ahead of the T20 Qualifier.

The Qualifier itself was a different story, however. With something approaching a full-strength squad, the Netherlands looked a class apart at the tournament, dropping only a single game as they first secured qualification and then the title. The addition of Colin Ackermann and the return of Ryan ten Doeschate in the middle order, coupled with unquestionably the strongest pace attack in the Associates game, the Dutch look well set as they head into 2020 looking to make an impact at the T20 World Cup and perhaps spring an upset or two when they kick off their ODI Super League campaign against Pakistan.

Meanwhile the USA's emergence from decades of maladministration has been one of the more remarkable stories of the year. Under a new board instituted under the supervision of the ICC, and with full professionalisation on the horizon thanks to an unprecedented commercial partnership with American Cricket Enterprises they have been able to uncover or attract some remarkable talent. The new-look USA side claimed ODI status for the first time at the final World Cricket League Division 2 at Windhoek, and a strong showing in the opening rounds of CWC League 2 sees them currently sitting atop the table, next in the pecking order behind the Dutch, a remarkable achievement for a team that rarely threatened to rise above Division 3 in the past.

A disappointing showing at the Americas Regional T20 Final in Bermuda, where the Americans lost twice to the unfancied hosts to finish in third behind Bermuda and Canada and miss out on a berth at the Global Qualifier, remains something of a blot on an otherwise excellent year however. The ill-fated tour followed the unexpected ouster of coach Pubudu Dassanayake, part of a wholesale reorganisation that has since seen the departure of a number of coaching and administrative staff that had been instrumental in the USA's recent turnaround. The changes are reflective of the unusually close cooperation between the board and the Willow TV and Times of India-backed ACE, with USA cricket's commercial partner apparently taking a remarkably hands-on role in administration, extending even to the negotiation of player contracts. Given the parlous state of many Associate boards' finances, the model adopted by ACE and USA Cricket, who are understood to be moving their offices to California to co-locate with ACE, may yet prove a precedent followed by other Associate countries.

After a quite extraordinary 2018, Scotland's fortunes this year have been something of a mixed bag. New coach Shane Burger has not quite been able to replicate the success of his predecessor Grant Bradburn, who departed for Pakistan in March. Though the Scots remain consistent competitors at the top end of the Associates table, an opening loss at home to Oman in their first League 2 fixture in August suggested an erosion of the dominance they had exhibited at Associate level. Further losses to the USA and the UAE in the Emirates in their second tri-series saw them slip behind the Americans in the competition, which they had begun as heavy favourites. At the T20 Qualifier a month before the Scots had struggled somewhat with the heat, barely recovering from a shock opening loss to surprise qualifiers Singapore to scrape through the group stage, eventually securing qualification with a win in an eliminator play-off against the UAE.

Long-serving CEO Malcolm Cannon stepped down in September to make way for the experienced administrator Gus Mackay, and off the field Scotland's administration continues to look enviably competent. A slate of fixtures announced for 2020 include visits from New Zealand and Australia to complement their League 2 commitments, and despite underwhelming somewhat on the field in the past 12 months, Scottish Cricket would appear to be on firmer footing than even many Full Members.

For Namibia, 2019 has been something close to a perfect year. After securing ODI status for the first time at the final WCL Division 2 in April, Namibia claimed the title by besting Oman in the final to claim their first ever ODI victory in front of a home crowd in Windhoek. The following month they went unbeaten through the Africa Regional T20 Final in Uganda to secure a berth at the Global Qualifier, where they would again impress, bouncing back from consecutive losses to the Netherlands and Papua New Guinea to make a run to the semi-finals, recording wins over Scotland, Kenya and Oman along the way and securing a place at the 2020 T20 World Cup. Their opening League 2 tri-series began with a loss to the United States, but three consecutive victories in the remaining matches keep them in touch with the top of the table and in a good position to challenge for direct progression to the next 50-over World Cup Qualifier and potentially even the League 2 title with its attendant shot at promotion to the Super League next cycle. Individually, skipper Gerhard Erasmus, named player of the tournament at the T20 Qualifier, had an excellent year in both formats, as did seam all-rounder JJ Smit, who has begun to attract attention from T20 franchises.

Off the field Namibia remain under financial pressure, having been forced to pull out of the South African provincial competitions that had provided much of their cricket in the past. Participation in League 2 and the T20 World Cup will go some way to make up for an otherwise thin schedule, however, and good use has been made of the savings, not least the launch of grass-roots initiatives such as a "cricket roadshow" aimed at growing the game beyond its traditional constituencies in Windhoek, Swakopmund and Walvis Bay.

Likewise Oman have had a 2019 to celebrate, similarly claiming ODI status at WCL Division 2 in April and enjoying similar success in the opening matches of CWC League 2, here they are currently level with Namibia in third place with three wins from four matches. A solid showing at the T20 Global Qualifier saw the "Red Brigade" come close to topping their Group, eventually securing qualification through the playoffs. Oman's new purpose-built facilities at Al Amarat have also seen plenty of use, as well as hosting Oman's own home fixtures the ground has become an attractive neutral venue, with the ACC holding their Western Region T20 there in January and the ICC moving the first CWC Challenge League Group B tourney there after political instability in Hong Kong forced a relocation. Given the crowded schedule in the nearby UAE, it may not be too long before Full Members look to Oman as an alternative neutral venue when required.

For the neighbouring United Arab Emiratesthe past year is one they'll doubtless be keen to forget. Despite a remarkable 4-0 series win away in the Netherlands providing a promising lead-in to the Global T20 Qualifier, to which the UAE had been afforded a bye as hosts, the headlines were dominated by a match-fixing scandal that broke immediately before the tournament which would eventually see fully five members of the UAE senior team suspended, including skipper Mohammad Naveed and senior batsman Shaiman Anwar. Despite a brave showing under new captain Ahmed Raza the Emirates would slump to a 7th-place finish at the tournament and missing out on qualification. Their first League 2 fixtures went little better, going winless in their home series against the USA and Scotland until their final match, where they sprung a 7-wicket upset on Scotland. Nonetheless there were some positives to be taken for the Emirates, most notably the emergence of youngsters such as Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind and Basil Hameed. Though the three were called up to the senior squad owing in no small part to force of circumstance, the introduction of three young players who learned their cricket in the Emirates heralds the beginning of a transition in the UAE side towards a greater reliance on domestically-produced talent.

For Papua New Guinea the year has seen starkly contrasting performances in the two white-ball formats. After scraping into the top four on the back of an improbable combination of results in the final round of WCL Division 2 match to reclaim ODI status in April, PNG have gone on a dramatic losing streak in ODIs, losing all of their first eight fixtures in League 2 to slump to the bottom of the table, already all but out of contention after just two series. Conversely, in terms of T20 cricket 2019 has been a banner year for the Barramundis. Continuing their unbeaten streak from the sub-regionals, PNG cruised through the EAP Regional T20 Finals to claim a berth at the global qualifier, where they would lose only two matches - to Scotland in the group stages, where they topped Group A to secure qualification, and to the Netherlands in their return match in the final. Qualification for their first ICC World Cup makes 2019 a year to remember for PNG, regardless of their 50-over travails.

For Nepal2019 has been a year of retrenchment and transition. Despite a positive start, besting the UAE away in back-to-back ODI and T20I series before sweeping a two-T20I warm up series against Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, Nepal would fall at the second hurdle in their T20 World Cup qualification campaign, finishing third behind hosts Singapore and Qatar at the Asia Regional Final in July and missing out on a place at the Global Qualifier. Iconic skipper Paras Khadka stepped down after what was intended to be a warm-up for the tournament at the Oman pentangular series, with Gyanendra Malla taking over the reins. Yet off the field the normalisation of Nepal's status within the ICC is cause for optimism, with the Cricket Association of Nepal's three-year suspension finally being lifted in October.

Below the current crop of ODI sides in League 2, the next 12 ranked sides met in the opening two tourneys of the CWC Challenge League. In Group A Canada, facing a long road back to the top flight after a fifth place finish at Division2 in April put paid to their hopes of reclaiming ODI status, are facing a strong challenge from at the top of the group from Singapore, who have had a quite remarkable 2019. Besides qualifying for their first top-level Associate event by winning the Asian T20 Regional final, Singapore recorded their first ever win over a Full Member when they shocked Zimbabwe in a preparatory T20I at home ahead of the tournament, before besting Scotland in their opening group game. They were unable to maintain their run through the rest of the tournament, but it's clear that Canada will not face an easy task to win the sole promotion spot from Challenge League Group A, the two sides currently level on 4 wins from five after the first round, held at Kuala Lumpur in September. Two points behind are Qatar, who only broke into the WCL in it's final cycle but have had an impressive year, only narrowly missed out on a place at the T20 qualifier finishing in second above Nepal at the Asia regional final. Denmark's disappointment at the European T20 final, where they finished third behind Jersey and Germany was compounded in Kuala Lumpur when they managed only two wins from five games, whilst Vanuatu and Malaysiafinish the year in the relegation zone, six points adrift on one win each.

Meanwhile in Group B Uganda completed a perfect run in the first of the three round robins, held at Muscat owing to ongoing political instability in Hong Kong. Despite missing out on qualification for the T20 qualifier, Uganda are emerging as Namibia's chief rival as the leading African Associate as Kenya's long decline continues. Whilst former ODI side Hong Kong remain in touch with the top of the table despite a rough year that saw them lose three players to suspension, three more to a walk-out and skipper and star bat Anshuman Rath to India. Uganda's strong start means the two European sides in the mid-table, Italyand Jersey, would need to stage an improbable comeback over the next two tourneys to challenge for promotion, five and six points behind respectively. Jersey nonetheless can be pleased with their year, winning through a tough European regional T20 final to make the Global Qualifier, where they recorded wins over two ODI status sides in Oman and hosts UAE. It is something of a testament to the changing order of Associates cricket that two former World Cup sides in Bermuda and Kenya, currently lingering at the bottom of Group B, are on track for relegation to the Challenge Play-off and at risk of slipping out of ICC 50-over competition altogether.

For the teams now excluded from the league system, the route back looks both challenging and above all obscure. There is currently no competitive international 50-over cricket for teams outside of the top 32, and it is understood (though not yet confirmed) that qualification for the lowest rung on the ladder - the once-per-cycle Challenge Playoff to be held in 2023 - will be decided on T20I rankings rather than any revived regional one-day competitions. The lack of cross-regional fixtures in the lower echelons of international cricket mean that said rankings are unlikely to ever truly reflect the relative strengths of lower-ranked sides even in the shorter format, and will inevitably remain manifestly unfit for purpose when it comes to finding which teams might be able to compete in 50-over cricket in future.

Much as the demise of the Intercontinental Cup has placed a seemingly insurmountable obstacle in the way of the Test ambitions of such countries as Scotland or Nepal, for Associates down the table with 50-over ambitions - such as Germany, who missed the T20 Global qualifier by the very narrowest of margins, or the likes of Nigeriaor even Japan, two countries of extraordinary potential that will be sending teams to the under-19 World Cup for the first time next year - the end of the World Cricket League looks a lot like a ladder being pulled up.

© Cricbuzz