Inter-Continental Cup Expanded to 2 Divisions, Zim Included

[maehara]

http://icc-cricket.yahoo.net/media-rele ... 19-17.html

"A team from Zimbabwe' suggests a Zimbabwe representative side, and not necessarily the full national side.

The 2009-10 edition of the ICC Intercontinental Cup will be expanded to two divisions and include as many as 11 teams, it was announced today.

The multi-day tournament that features the leading Associate teams will also see prize money awarded for the first time.

These decisions were made by the ICC Development Committee, which has been meeting this week in Dubai.

The line-ups for the fifth staging of the event that began in 2004 will see Ireland, Canada, Kenya, the Netherlands, Afghanistan and Scotland – the six Associates with ODI status – in the top division in the battle for the ICC Intercontinental Cup.

A team from Zimbabwe will line up alongside them, subject to agreement between Zimbabwe Cricket and the ICC. This follows on from a recommendation made by the task team set up to examine cricket in Zimbabwe that reported to the ICC Board in April.

The United Arab Emirates, Namibia, Bermuda and Uganda – the four other Associate teams that are part of the Gatorade ICC High Performance Programme – will play each other for the ICC Intercontinental Shield.

For Afghanistan and Uganda it will be their first exposure to multi-day action after impressing in the one-day format.

There will be a total of US$250,000 in prize money for the Associate teams with US$100,000 for the winners of the ICC Intercontinental Cup and US$40,000 for the runners-up.

The winners of the ICC Intercontinental Shield will collect US$25,000 with the runners-up pocketing US$10,000 and matches in both divisions will have the prize of US$3,000 for an outright win.

ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: “I’m delighted the Development Committee has been so positive and expansive in its approach to the ICC Intercontinental Cup, the flagship multi-day event for teams below Test level.

“This new format will allow the top six Associate teams to maintain a high standard of even competitiveness.

“And by creating an additional division we have been able to offer all our Gatorade ICC High Performance Programme countries multi-day cricket which helps them develop the skills needed to perform at a higher level.

“Following the task team recommendations, we are in discussions with Zimbabwe Cricket for it to field a team in the competition and if it does so then I believe that will benefit all concerned.

“It will see the top six Associate teams come up against good quality, professional opposition and provide the Zimbabwean players with additional opportunities to play multi-day cricket, something essential for them to chart a course back to the Test arena.

“I am also delighted that, for the first time, the event has prize money for the Associate teams. It will assist in their ongoing process to professionalise their operations and that, in turn, will help them continue to raise their playing standards.”

The 2009-10 ICC Intercontinental Cup and ICC Intercontinental Shield will not feature promotion and relegation.

Fixtures for the tournament will be announced in due course.

Ireland is the defending champions having won the previous three editions of the ICC Intercontinental Cup, in 2005, 2007 and 2009. The other team to have lifted the trophy was Scotland, which won the inaugural event in 2004.

All 10 Associate teams set to take part in the ICC Intercontinental Cup and ICC Intercontinental Shield form part of the Gatorade ICC High Performance Programme (HPP).

The HPP was launched in 2001 to assist the leading Associate Member countries prepare for the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup. The Programme played a similar role in assisting the six Associate qualifiers in the lead-up to the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup, and there are now 10 HPP countries.

The ICC High Performance Manager, Richard Done, assists the HPP countries to produce their own high performance programmes, player development pathways and administrative structures, all of which are directed at improving the on-field performances of their national teams at senior and junior levels.

The HPP countries also receive an annual grant of US$350,000 from the ICC to assist in the implementation of these plans.

[brmtaylor.com admin]

As revealed by Cricinfo earlier this month, Zimbabwe will also feature in the tournament, although this is still subject to ratification by Zimbabwe Cricket.

Before I say anything else, I just want to on behalf of all of us here thank Martin Williamson and the crew at Cricinfo "revealing that Zimbabwe will also feature in the tournament". I am just so grateful that they had access to that ICC report which the rest of the world didn't. Where would we be without Cricinfo's up-to-the-month coverage of Zimbabwe? Tommorow's headline: "Zimbabwe will not take part in 2009 World Twenty20".

With that out of the way... It will be Zimbabwe A according to the Chawaguta interview. A good decision by ZC, no doubt some of the national team players will take part and it will also give the up-and-comers like Manyumwa and Maruma a chance to test themselves against top associates. Also, Zimbabwe A losing (heaven forbid) wouldn't be the same sort of PR disaster as if it were the national team. Can you imagine if Vermeulen and Coventry were unleashed against the associates!

[Detective RDS]

Link: http://content.cricinfo.com/ci-icc/cont ... 04998.html

Intercontinental Cup 2009-10

ICC introduces two-division Intercontinental Cup

Martin Williamson

May 19, 2009

The ICC has announced changes to the Intercontinental Cup which will see the introduction of two divisions featuring as many as 11 teams.

As revealed by Cricinfo earlier this month, Zimbabwe will also feature in the tournament, although this is still subject to ratification by Zimbabwe Cricket. Given that the country's participation in the tournament was one of the requirements in its attempts to return to the Test fold, it seems highly unlikely the board will reject the idea.

The decision, made by the ICC's development committee, means that Zimbabwe will join Ireland, Canada, Kenya, the Netherlands, Afghanistan and Scotland in a seven-team top division. The United Arab Emirates, Namibia, Bermuda and Uganda will play each other for the ICC Intercontinental Shield.

There will be a total of US$250,000 in prize money for the Associate teams with US$100,000 for the winners of the ICC Intercontinental Cup and US$40,000 for the runners-up. The winners of the ICC Intercontinental Shield will collect US$25,000 with the runners-up pocketing US$10,000 and matches in both divisions will have the prize of US$3,000 for an outright win.

While there was some speculation that the competition would be expanded to include one division of as many as ten sides, it is believed that this would have required too much of a commitment from what are essentially amateur players. It would also have had a significant budgetary on both the participants and the ICC.

By splitting the competition, it allows more countries to participate while ensuring that the commitment of them all remains manageable. The structure means that countries in the top division will play one less match than before.

'I'm delighted the Development Committee has been so positive and expansive in its approach to the ICC Intercontinental Cup, the flagship multi-day event for teams below Test level," said ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat. "This new format will allow the top six Associate teams to maintain a high standard of even competitiveness.

"Following the task team recommendations, we are in discussions with Zimbabwe Cricket for it to field a team in the competition and if it does so then I believe that will benefit all concerned. It will see the top six Associate teams come up against good quality, professional opposition and provide the Zimbabwean players with additional opportunities to play multi-day cricket, something essential for them to chart a course back to the Test arena.

"I am also delighted that, for the first time, the event has prize money for the Associate teams. It will assist in their ongoing process to professionalise their operations and that, in turn, will help them continue to raise their playing standards."

However, there will be no relegation and promotion between the divisions, and it is unclear whether matches in the Shield will be first-class, although the expectations are that they will be.

Martin Williamson is executive editor of Cricinfo and managing editor of ESPN Digital Media in Europe, the Middle East and Africa

© Cricinfo

[Detective RDS]

Link: http://content.cricinfo.com/zimbabwe/co ... 05227.html

Intercontinental Cup 2009-10

Zimbabwe to field A team in Intercontinental Cup

Cricinfo staff

May 20, 2009

Zimbabwe Cricket has confirmed that it is keen to participate in the 2009-10 intercontinental Cup and it is just finalising certain logistical and financial details before officially agreeing to take part.

Speaking to Cricinfo, Ozias Bvute, the board's chief executive, explained that a Zimbabwe A side would be entered rather than the full Zimbabwe team. He said that the thinking behind this was that it was a chance to give up-and-coming and fringe players exposure to four-day cricket which they would otherwise not get.

With the senior side committed to participating in India's domestic competitions, it was felt the Intercontinental Cup presented Zimbabwe's selectors with an excellent opportunity to assess a wider pool of cricketers than they would be able to were they to commit to fielding the full national team.

© Cricinfo

[maehara]

Formal confirmation now that ZC have entered their 'A' side in the competition. No fixtures yet, as the ICC are apparently checking with the other nations in their division re: any likely problems with Zim visiting / their sides touring Zim. I suspect there may need to be one or two matches on neutral ground...

http://www.cricinfo.com/icccont2010/con ... 09532.html

Zimbabwe Cricket has confirmed that it will enter an A side into the 2009-10 Intercontinental Cup, in accordance with the recommendations of the ICC's task force.

The initial fixtures for the seven-team competition have been announced but, so far, no fixtures including either Zimbabwe or Afghanistan have been included.

The ICC is believed to have contacted the other five participants and asked if their governments position on them sending teams to the two countries or even playing against them.

If there are problems, they are likely to come from the three European countries - Ireland, Netherlands and Scotland - as the European Union has blocks on certain senior ZC officials and issuing visas for Zimbabwe teams could prove problematical.
It is expected that Afghanistan's home matches will be staged in the UAE.

[zimfan1]

I reckon it will be Ireland and Scotland who we have the problem with as Canada let us tour there last year when our government was in an even worse position that it is now

Ireland should be ok as they played us in Kenya and South Africa over the last two years so i reckon the main problem will be Scotland

[Kopje]

I reckon it will be Ireland and Scotland who we have the problem with as Canada let us tour there last year when our government was in an even worse position that it is now

Ireland should be ok as they played us in Kenya and South Africa over the last two years so i reckon the main problem will be Scotland

Yea Scotland they said a neutral venue would be fine by them, i suppose South Africa might be another place they could meet. Maybe UAE i wud thhink.

[Train Driver]

I found a couple of reports regarding the Intercontinental Cup, the first suggests a venue for the Scotland game

http://sport.scotsman.com/sport/Cricket ... 5675430.jp

while the second includes comments from Tatenda Taibu

http://www.webnewswire.com/node/464658

[Detective RDS]

Link: http://blogs.cricinfo.com/btw/archives/ ... to_fac.php

Scotland to face Zimbabwe in Dubai?

Posted 2 hours, 36 minutes ago in ICC Intercontinental Cup

The has reported that Scotland’s ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Zimbabwe A is likely to be played in Dubai. If so, that would avoid the politically difficult situation of Scotland playing in Harare and the even more troublesome prospect of hosting the game in Scotland given the government’s hardline towards allowing teams from Zimbabwe into the UK. Peter Chingoka, the Zimbabwe Cricket chairman, and Ozias Bvute, the chief executive, are both barred from entering the European Union because of their links to the Mugabe regime.

[zimfan1]

another steel by cricinfo from zimcricketnews.com without the credit going to the source me thinks