Tim Wigmore analyses the runners and riders for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe
What is the most pressurised, high stakes cricket of the year? The battle royale between Australia and South Africa? Maybe the Indian Premier League. Or perhaps England’s five Test series with India this summer.
Think again... Earlier this month, ten Associate sides met in Namibia for World Cricket League Division Two – to decide who made the World Cup qualifiers. In an interview with The National podcast, Dougie Brown – the former England and Scotland international, and Warwickshire player and coach – described it as the most pressure he had known in his 29-year history of playing and coaching in professional cricket. The reason is simple. The matches didn’t merely decide who made the World Cup qualifiers, but who would be able to hold onto their professional contracts and support their families from their cricket career – and what fixtures their country would get in the years to come.
This story is from the March 02,2018 edition of The Cricket Paper.
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This story is from the March 02,2018 edition of The Cricket Paper.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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