The Americas Division One tournament starts in Bermuda on Friday, with four of the six countries going into the event possibly with one eye on upcoming World Cricket League (WCL) commitments.

Canada are taking part in the WCL Division One tournament in early July in the Netherlands, while Argentina, Cayman Islands and United States are playing in WCL Division Four in Italy, possibly in August.

Canada have rested captain Ashish Bagai and its Australasian-based contingent from the competition in Bermuda. Bagai is expected to play in Division Four although whether John Davison and Ian Billcliff will make that trip is as yet unknown.

The Cayman Islands have rested their premier batsman, Pearson Best, for this tournament, but coach Theo Cuffy told Cricinfo he will play in WCL Division Four.

There are six changes from the United States squad which won Division Five in Nepal in January. Four of the squad - wicketkeeper Azhar Mehdi and medium-pacers Imtiaz Moazzam, Adrian Gordon and Mohammad Khan - are making their debuts while offspinning allrounder Mohammad Ghous and batsman Azurdeen Mohammed played in the Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand earlier this year. Steve Massiah is again the captain of a USA squad which, as is typical, has no American-born players.

Argentina has a new coach in former Northamptonshire player, Toby Bailey, following the return of Hamish Barton to New Zealand. Match fitness may not be a huge issue for Argentina, this tournament coming not long after the close of their domestic season although the team has not played together as a unit since WCL Division Three in January 2009.

Aside from playing in front of home crowds, the other feature for Bermuda will be the first hit-out under new coach, Australian David Moore, who is thought to be something of a disciplinarian. The captain is the vastly experienced David Hemp.

Bahamas return to Division One and are looking to consolidate their place in the top flight of cricket in the region. For the first time, a three-day Twenty20 event has been added.

In just their second Americas Region competition Bahamas Under-15s proved too powerful for the Cayman Islands and Belize as they ended the Central Division tournament with a perfect 4-0 record.

Cayman Islands captured the silver defeating Belize, the newcomers, twice.

Turan Brown (Bahamas) was declared Player of the Tournament.

Papua New Guinea won their third match in a row, defeating Uganda by 26 runs at Belgrano while Afghanistan beat the hosts, Argentina, on the third day of the World Cricket League. Hong Kong handed Cayman Islands its third straight defeat, too. Click here for the round-up.

The schedule for the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 which takes place in Argentina next month has been announced. The two finalists will progress to the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa in April.

Click here for the complete schedule

Results went according to the script on the second day of the ICC Americas Division 1 tournament as USA, Bermuda and Canada registered comfortable victories

At Brian Piccolo Park another fine innings from Hamish Barton steered Argentina to a respectable 200 for 9 against USA, but that was put into perspective by Sushil Nadkarni, who struck his second century in two days. Nadkarni hit 109 off 116 balls as USA cantered home with 12 overs to spare. Argentina's day didn't improve when Barton picked up an ankle injury and he is in doubt for the next match against Cayman Islands.

"We played well against determined opposition and did the job we set out to do," Imran Khan, the USA manager, said. "While our batting - and especially Sushil - is looking good, we have work to do on being more disciplined in the field, and especially not gifting the opposition with bowling extras."

Canada had a less stressful match than yesterday, when they almost slipped up against Argentina, easing to a 206-run victory against Cayman Islands. At Central Broward Regional Park, they racked up an impressive 298 for 9. Opener Sandeep Jyoti top-scored with a stylish 88 off 129 balls, while further half-centuries came from Zubin Surkari and Qaiser Ali.

Cayman Islands' chase began poorly when they lost a wicket first ball and the innings never recovered, eventually folding for 92 in under 33 overs. Khurram Chohan took 3 for 34 and Zahid Hussain claimed 3 for 11

"We set ourselves goals today and I believe we achieved almost all of them," Canada captain, Umar Bhatti, said. "The team performed tremendously well today, all three departments were up to scratch, and it was a huge improvement from yesterday."

On the main stadium field at Central Broward Regional Park, Bermuda were predictably too strong for Suriname and notched a commanding 224-run win. Lionel Cann's 97-ball 101 led Bermuda to 290 for 3 and he was helped by Stephen Outerbridge's 62, plus a half century from captain Irving Romaine.

In reply, left-arm spinner Delyone Borden proved too much the Suriname batsmen, taking 6 for 17 from his 10 overs as the minnows were bundled out for 66, having been skittled for 60 in their opening match.

Bermuda's coach, Gus Logie, was pleased with how his team are progressing. "Today was all about building on yesterday's effort, and we did that strongly," he said. "It was also good to continue building confidence for the tough games ahead. We are constantly looking for self-improvement and today we got that, also our attitude and approach towards the game was very business-like, which was important."

Tony Munro

Pearson Best, the 44-year-old batsman, will lead a new-look Cayman Islands team in the ICC Americas Division One tournament to be played in Florida from November 24 to December 1.

Best replaces Ryan Bovell, who has led the Caymans since 2004, in what their coach, Theo Cuffy, said was a “change of direction”. "He [Best] is a transitional leader who will bring to the front our next couple of guys to take over in the not-too distant future."

The Barbados-born Best has been the Cayman Islands' best batsman since they began playing in ICC competitions from 2000. He has hit one century, 116 not out against Argentina in 2006, and three half-centuries.

Meanwhile, player availability issues mean eight new faces will be blooded in Florida. In the squad are a pair of twins, who could become a commentator's nightmare. Both are allrounders, although Kevin Bazil bowls medium-pacers and Kevon Bazil offspinners. It's not known if they are identical.

Cayman Islands: Pearson Best (capt), Kevin Bazil, Kevon Bazil, Ryan Bovell, Marlon Bryan, Kervin Ebanks. Steve Gordon (vice-capt), Ainsley Hall, Alessandro Morris, Ricardo Roach, Ramon Sealy, Troy Taylor, Michael Wight, Omar Willis. Coach - Theo Cuffy.

The ICC Americas Division One tournament will be staged in Florida from November 24 to December 1, with the new Broward County stadium hosting some of the matches.

Argentina, Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Suriname and USA will take part.

In the last competition in 2006 in Canada, Bermuda beat USA in the final.

The Americas Region Division I is now confirmed to take place in Florida, November 24
December 1. Five matches will be played in the new stadium built for cricket in Broward County.
–
Six countries, Argentina, Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Suriname and the USA will
compete for the title. For Suriname, an affiliate, it will be their first appearance in Division I. The team earned the right to compete having won Division 2.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Although the ICC draws considerable flak on many fronts, it is quietly committed to promoting the game in as many countries as possible, and it does that by means of a myriad of competitions and initiatives. Most do not warrant much media attention, but they are there and they work.

Until now, the gripe of the smaller countries, and especially those bubbling just underneath the top flight, has been about the inequality of the way in which the game is financed. That was never more apparent than when it came to earnings from last year's World Cup.

Ireland got a flat fee of US$125,000 a year for four years for taking part, and on top of that they received another $50,000 for reaching the Super Eights. However, because of the extra costs involved in their progression, not least because their players are not professional cricketers and their absences from their full-time jobs had to be underwritten, Ireland's success actually left the board out of pocket.

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, turned up, tied with Ireland and never threatened to progress after being thumped by Pakistan and West Indies. For those three matches, Zimbabwe Cricket received US$11 million, their share of the pot as a Full Member.

The top six Associates receive no more than US$500,000 a year - some substantially less - to fund their entire operations. Out of that they have to pay all their cricketing and administration costs. Only those with a low cost of living, such as Kenya, can hope to maintain a professional squad on that kind of money.

The gulf between the haves and have-nots is further widened by the limited sums Associates can earn from sponsorship and media contracts. Zimbabwe can exploit home series against, say, India to carve out lucrative TV deals worth millions, and on the back of that, attract shirt- and other corporate sponsorship. As highlighted by Scotland's failure to secure any TV deal for their forthcoming ODI against England, the Associates struggle to get such income streams.

The new deals will provide a substantial increase for Associates, especially for the countries who are pressing for space at the top table. Until now the share has been roughly equal, rewarding Netherlands and Kenya on par with Thailand and Fiji. The new system will see more demarcation between the top Associates and the rest.

The leading ten could earn as much as US$1.5 million a year from 2009. There will then be an onus on them to professionalise their administrations, but several of them are already well down that route. They will also be more accountable - the ICC does not want a repeat of the mess that came following a spike in Kenya's funding earlier in the decade.

The second-string Associates will also get more - around US$160,000 as a base figure - but then again the demands on them are less. Even Affiliates will receive US$15,000, with the opportunity for more should they make a good enough case. There will also be more cash in the pot for participating and hosting competitions.

There have never been more opportunities for development outside the Full Member countries, but there remain some nagging worries.

The main one is how to bridge the gap between semi and full-blown professionalism. Almost all the Associates rely on dedicated amateurs, both on and off the field. As the number of ICC competitions has increased - and they have to be welcomed - the pressure has begun to tell. Scotland and Ireland particularly have already found players cannot meet all their commitments, and even the increased income will not allow them to employ a full-time squad.

"So much of putting players on full-time retainers depends on how many fixtures we can command," Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland's chief executive, said. "At the moment, all we can promise the squad in 2009 is a World Cup qualifying campaign, eight FP Trophy matches, an England game, and probably some Intercontinental Cup matches. Of course, we hope to have more, but can't be sure at the moment.

"Our top players are already plying their trade in county cricket, while others have full-time jobs which they may not wish to give up. The actual number of players that the coach will want to put on a full-time contract, or else the number that even want to have one, may not be that many."

The other quandary is how to get them fixtures. Kenya, widely regarded as the leading Associate, have found it almost impossible to get Full Member countries to visit or host them. As a result they invariably play other Associates. Good for the win-loss ratio, not so clever in providing the kind of experience that no amount of money can buy.

These issues will need to be addressed, but for now the future has never looked so promising beyond the Test world.

There are many cricket fans and supporters, both from the Caribbean and the rest of the world, who would have been surprised to learn of the participation of a team from the Americas [Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Bahamas] in the forthcoming International Under-15 Cricket Championships, scheduled for April 16- May 4

In a competition that is virtually regarded as the U-15 World Cup, the cricketing world would have expected teams from only the top cricket nations to be the participants. Indeed, in the last event of this kind, staged in England some eight years ago, the teams included England, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Netherlands, South Africa and the West Indies, who defeated Pakistan by two wickets in a thrilling final at Lord’s.

Four years earlier in 1996, in the inaugural event held in England, all the Test-playing nations of the time, except New Zealand - Australia, England, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies and Zimbabwe - competed in the Championships. Canada and the Netherlands took the numbers up to ten countries. In 2000, the number of teams had dropped to eight, as both Australia and New Zealand were unable to participate.

The ICC has since seen the need to develop cricket programmes in other areas in the world, resulting in the appearance of a team from the Americas at this upcoming U15 Tournament. The little-known truth is that the cricketing tradition in both Canada and Bermuda goes back as far as the 1930s, with keen competition between the two countries since 1958. In more recent times Canada and Bermuda have continued their rivalry in the Americas Region I Cup and the Americas Cricket Championship in which the top three finishers get direct entry into the ICC Trophy competition.

At the U-15 level Bermuda has established an excellent tradition and has won the ICC Americas Regional U15 Championship, involving Canada, the U.S.A., Cayman Islands, Bermuda and Bahamas, in both 2002 and 2004. Involvement of the Americas’ Region teams in WICB TCL U-19 competitions has provided players with valuable experience.

In 2005 the ICC introduced the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifying Series, Division 2 with eight nations competing [Cayman Islands, Fiji, Italy, Kuwait, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Qatar and Zambia] and the winner clinching a place in the ICC Trophy competition. There has also been a resurgence in junior cricket in the USA with cricket academies, schools competitions and leagues springing up in California, New Jersey and New York. This has resulted in a USA team participating in the ICC U-15 Americas Tournament in 2006.

So what are the prospects for the Americas team in the International U-15 Cricket Championships? Well they face Kenya in the first round of the knock-out matches and an unlikely victory would pit them against the home team in the semi-finals. Could the Americas team prove to be giant killers? Only time will tell.

Some of Bermuda's most talented young cricketers will compete for an Americas XI in a mini World Cup to be held in the West Indies next month. Click here to read the story in full.

The Caribbean News Network reports with delight on the arrival of the MCC side in the Cayman Islands.

Bragging rights belong to BrightStaff Greenies Too as they moved into the CLICO Cayman 20/20 Division 2 finals, having won their semi final match and looked on as their more illustrious counterparts went down. In an attempt to qualify for both divisions finals, the Greenies crew came out in their numbers but it was not to be.

It was tension at Table Rock or Smith Road Oval as both Division 2 semi finals had nail biting close finishes. BrightStaff Greenies Too overcame a strong challenge from Cayman Brac and rallied to victory by 8 runs. West Bay had a closer victory over youthful UCCI by only 1 run.

In Division 1 ESSO defeated Heineken Greenies 1 by 6 wickets in a low scoring game and By Rite benefiting from at least 4 dropped catches easily defeated Prison.

It’s on to the Grand Finals. Can BrightStaff Greenies Too continue their dream run and hold of 2007 champions West Bay, and will 2007 champions By Rite be strong enough to handle ESSO?

Although there are no million dollar jackpots waiting on the winners, the fun, thrills, excitement and most of all bragging rights are at stake. Cayman Masters will be providing the refreshments.
Don’t miss it!

Taken from the ICC Americas regional newsletter

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

Click here for the full story.

The Cayman Islands Cricket Association’s drive to raise the standard of cricket got to another level when cricket equipment was distributed to eight high schools. CICA President Courtney Myles was pleased with the association’s initiative. He said “Our association is doing its part in providing a proper learning atmosphere for our youngsters.”.

Cricket uniforms will be handed out at a later date to all schools ensuring that the students are properly attired and with the equipment, protected during cricket practice and matches. Representing the CICA in the distribution were National Youth Coach Andy Myles and Technical Director Theo Cuffy.

Courtesy ICC Americas

Canada and Bermuda lived up to their pre-tournament favourites' tag by scoring convincing victories in their Americas Under-19 Qualifiers in Toronto on Tuesday. Canada beat Argentina by nine wickets while Bermuda won their second match in a row by beating Cayman Islands by seven wickets.

Click here for the full report ...

Bermuda and the Cayman Islands notched victories on the opening day of the Americas Under-19 Qualifiers, as Bermuda eased past the Bahamas by 195 runs while the Cayman Islands powered to a ten-wicket win over Argentina.

Click here for the full report ...

Canada face a stiff challenge from Bermuda in their bid to return to the Under-19 World Cup when the five-team round-robin Americas U-19 Qualifier begins at Mapleleaf CC, King City in Toronto on Monday (August 13).

Argentina, Caymans Islands and debutants Bahamas are the other teams taking part in the week-long competition. The winner will join the ICC’s 10 Full Members, hosts Malaysia, Papua New Guinea and Ireland (who recently qualified from the East-Asia Pacific and European Regions respectively) at the 16-team U-19 World Cup to be played in Malaysia next February. Canada missed the 2006 event in Sri Lanka but participated in the 2002 and 2004 tournaments.

Familiar home conditions, an improving infrastructure and more international exposure helps Canada to start as firm favourites and coach Courtney Gonsalves is optimistic that his players are ready for the event. “All the players attended the elite programme we started last October in which we set up talent hunt and training camps throughout Canada,” he said. “Our goal is to qualify for next year’s U-19 World Cup and I am sure that the combination of this elite programme along with exposure in the premier division will help us achieve our target.”

However, Canada are likely to be tested by Bermuda who have been bolstered by the inclusion of allrounders Malachi Jones and Stefan Kelly, who played in the recent full World Cup, while the youngsters' captain Rodney Trott narrowly missed the event. The trio will rejoin the senior Bermuda team for the match against Ireland in the ICC Intercontinental Cup after completing the Toronto assignment.

Bermuda coach Arnold Manders believes his team’s hopes of earning a finals berth are better than ever. “I think our chances of winning are greater than previous years because we have played more matches as a team and the players are confident in their individual roles.”

Bermuda prepared for the tournament by playing eight domestic 50-overs-a-side competition matches between May and June besides participating in the Sir Garfield Sobers Cricket Tournament in Barbados which was also used as a training camp for the Americas U-19 Qualifier.

“We have worked tirelessly on the team concept, and the individual discipline of the players have really improved. Our team this year is mentally stronger [than previously] and combined with the intense training the players received from the coaches, this should result in a good team combination. The players have the knowledge and now they need to produce.”

For Argentina, it will be their first appearance in this event as an ICC Associate Member. They have previously struggled at the junior level but it would be dangerous to discount them, particularly after the senior team’s heroics in Darwin in June where they earned promotion to the World Cricket League Division 2 by qualifying for the final of the Division 3 tournament.

Middle-order batsman Pedro Bruno, left-arm seam bowler Santiago Irigoyen and allrounders Ignacio Redruello and Tomas Birnie were part of that successful campaign in Darwin, but instead of making big predictions, coach Hamish Barton has set his sights on winning at least once in Toronto. “Basically our main goal is to win one game. We feel this is a realistic goal for the Argentine team considering the team’s past performances and the stage of its development.”

Barton said the sport is still in the embryonic stage in Argentina and the team has prepared as best it can in the tough winter season. “The players are very much in the development stage and we are aiming to do the basics right and achieve our specific goals for each skill area, the experience and exposure to international cricket.

“The team has prepared as best it could as it is winter in Argentina at the moment and training has been extremely difficult at times. But the team has trained well and the development of the players over the last three months has been very pleasing.”

Caymans Islands have always been very competitive at youth level and nobody is expecting them to be far behind this time. Captain Ramon Sealy, along with top-order batsman Darren Cato and bowler Kervin Ebanks, have played in the Caymans Islands domestic Division 1 tournament for the last two years.

Sealy sees batting as his team’s strength. “I think the team has a good chance of winning because we have a strong batting line-up which is not only capable of setting high totals but chasing them as well.”

Bahamas are the only Affiliate Member in the group and are fielding a team for the first time. The senior team will participate in next year’s ICC World Cricket League Division 5 to be played in Jersey in May.

Bahamas captain Gregory Taylor hopes that the Americas U-19 Qualifier will help his country’s bid towards earning ICC’s Associate Membership. He said: “We hope to achieve recognition as an Affiliate power house and to show the ICC and the world that we are ready to become an Associate Member of the ICC. Two years ago we did not have a full U-19 team, but we worked hard under the guidance of coach John Welch to achieve this. Jonathan Barry, Jeremy Jesubatham, Rodrick Mitchel and I came up in the U-15 program from 2001 and have played a lot of cricket with the seniors.”

The United States of America, who took part in their first U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka in 2006 are missing this time as the USA Cricket Association is currently suspended as an ICC Member.

Argentina Juan Tomas Birnie (capt), Alejo Tissera, Augusto Mustafa, Facundo Duggan, Hernan Fennell, Horacio Esperon, Ignacio Fermani, Ignacio Redruello, Juan Pablo Bordacahar, Pablo Siracusa, Pedro Bruno, Ramiro Rodriguez Delgado, Santiago Iritxity Irigoyen, Santiago Paez Nicoletti.

Bahamas Gregory Taylor (capt), Adrian Dean, Ambry Moss, Anwar Sawyer, Corie Frazer, Franz Taylor, Fritz Stubbs, Jeremy Jesubatham, Jermaine Adderley, Jonathan Barry, LaSalle Thompson, Marc Taylor, Rodrick Mitchel, Rudolph Fox.

Bermuda Rodney Trott (capt), Christopher Douglas, Dennico Hollis, Greg Maybury, Hodsoll Kyle, Jordan De Silva, Khiry Furbert, Lamar Richardson, Malachi Jones, Marico Bassett, Stefan Kelly, Steven Bremar Jr, Tamauri Tucker, Terryne Fray.

Canada Abishek Krisnamoorthy (capt), Chris Monohar (vice-captain), Arsalan Qadir, Asif Manjra, Hasan Raza Zaidi, Jaskeerat Singh Kalon, Kevin James, Khushal Gangopadhyay, Majid Usman, Pratik Patel, Riayzkhan Pathan, Rustum Bhatti, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Usman Iqubal.

Cayman Islands Ramon Sealy (capt), Corey Cato, Dale Parker, Darado Thompson, Darren Cato, Earl Hart, Kervin Ebanks, Patrick McConvey, Robert Hewitt, Sacha DeAlwis, Shane Cato, Vincent Ebanks, Zachary McLaughlin.

Argentina and Papua New Guinea (PNG) complete the semi-final line-up of the World Cricket League Division 3 after recording impressive victories on the last day of the group matches in Darwin. Argentina take on Cayman Islands in the semi-finals tomorrow, while PNG meet Uganda.

Group A

Argentina routed Fiji for 44 inside 22 overs before knocking off the target in 30 balls. Esteban Nino, bowling with impressive pace, took 4 for 16 while Gary Savage and Diego Lord shared the remaining six. At one stage, Fiji were 9 for 7; that they reached the lofty heights of 44 owed much to Vuiyasawa Mateiwaqa's 16 and 15 extras. Lucas Paterlini and Grant Dugmore knocked off the required runs in the fifth over.

PNG beat Italy by eight wickets, but it was their superior net run-rate which edged them into the semi-finals, after both teams were tied following two wins each. PNG, who suffered a shock five-wicket defeat against Argentina on Tuesday, had to beat the Italians by a convincing margin to earn a berth in the last four. They did just that, dismissing Italy for 134 before cruising to their target in the 34th over. Arua Uda top-scored with 58 from 92 balls.

Group B

Poor shot selection from the Cayman Islands condemned them to a 26-run defeat to Uganda. Both teams had already qualified for the semis on Tuesday but Uganda put in an excellent allround performance, dismissing Cayman Islands for 127 in the 47th over with Charles Waiswa picking up 2 for 21. Uganda's 153 was led by Arthur Kyobe, the 18-year-old, who struck 37 from 64 balls.

Tanzania tasted its first win of the tournament, overpowering Hong Kong by five wickets. Hong Kong made 161, with Rahul Sharma notching 43 while Bhavesh Govind took 3 for 31. Tanzania cruised home with Abhik Patwa and Rishen Patel putting on 77 for the opening stand, edging over the line in the 47th over.

Hussain Butt is bowled not playing a shot by Franklyn Hinds © Travis Pittman

Uganda and Cayman Islands booked their places in the semi-finals of the World Cricket League Division Three as ball dominated bat on the second day of the tournament in Darwin. Both teams made short work of their opponents, comfortably winning low-scoring games in the first session.

The wins gave Uganda and Cayman Islands maximum points from two games in Group B and left Tanzania and Hong Kong winless with just one match remaining. Despite Italy's second successive win, Group B remains wide open as PNG and Argentina have one win from two games. After Tuesday's rest day, PNG will meet Italy at Nightcliff while Argentina meet Fiji at Kahlin Oval in the last group matches.

Group A

Uganda defeated Tanzania by four wickets at Power Park with Charles Waiswa taking 3 for 7 as the Tanzanians were dismissed for 64. Although Benson Mwita made Uganda work hard for their victory by taking 4 for 23, his efforts were not enough to stop Uganda stumbling to a four-wicket win. Cayman Islands' experience of playing in the Stanford Twenty20 tournament and the Intercontinental Cup was on display for the second successive day when they recorded a straightforward eight-wicket victory over Hong Kong at Nightcliff. Franklin Hinds was the star for Cayman Islands when he took 4 for 22 as Hong Kong were skittled for 67.

Group B

Argentina bounced back from a thrilling one-wicket defeat to Italy on the opening day by recording a five-wicket victory over pre-tournament favourites Papua New Guinea at Gardens. Skipper Estaban MacDermott inspired the Argentineans with a match-winning spell of 4 for 22 as PNG were bowled out for 91. Argentina achieved the target for the loss of five wickets with Donald Forrester remaining unbeaten on 44. MacDermott described the victory as the biggest in Argentina's cricket history. "All the effort that was put in is now paying off," he said. "By defeating PNG, we have shown that we can compete at this level." Italy recorded their second victory in the competition by overpowering Fiji by 37 runs. Batting first, Italy scored 186 for 9 with Nicholas Northcote top scoring with 37. Fiji were bowled out for 149.

Eight of cricket’s emerging nations will be hoping to take one step towards qualification for the 2011 World Cup when the World Cricket League Division 3 gets underway this Sunday (May 27) in Darwin.

The top two teams from this event will join UAE, Namibia, Denmark and Oman
in Windhoek, Namibia at the ICC World Cricket League Division 2 November. The top four teams from the event in Namibia will automatically qualify for the ICC World Cup Qualifier in the UAE in 2009, while the two remaining teams will have a second chance to qualify for the UAE tournament at the World Cricket League Division 3 in early 2009.

Click here for the full team-by-team preview.

It won't get many column inches in the mainstream cricket press, but the World Cricket League, which started in Nairobi yesterday and continues into next week, features the best of the rest, the six sides just under the ten Test-playing countries. For the two finalists, the rewards are bountiful - a place among the big boys in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September, along with $250,000. For countries used to surviving on annual handouts from the ICC of less than $200,000, that's big money.

With the exception of Bermuda, cricket is not a mainstream sport in any of the participants. And yet it survives, and in some instances thrives, despite the lack of attention and a relatively small number of enthusiasts.

The ICC, who do sterling work in supporting the game's second and third tiers, will rightly use the event to highlight that cricket is not just about the Indians and Australias of the world.

But there remains a nagging worry. The ICC boasts that the game is spreading across the world. But is that right? Is it taking root or is it surviving because more people from its hotbed - south-east Asia - are emigrating and keeping it alive for the duration of their careers?

In last year's Wisden Almanack, Matthew Engel raised this very issue. "Overwhelmingly, the game in non-traditional countries is played by expatriates, mostly South Asian. Journalists were kidded into believing that cricket was about to burst on China, on the basis of some warm comments by civil servants and a couple of coaching courses. I have seen not one shred of evidence to back this up. Are the kids playing with tapeballs on the streets of Shanghai? Are they heck!"

Take Canada. Of the squad in Nairobi at the moment, only three were born in the country, and two of those are over 35. Of the rest, five come from the Caribbean, four from India and each from Pakistan and Uganda. Whereas other Associates have a smattering of expats, Canada are utterly reliant on them.

Engel's comment attracted fierce criticism from those who either argued that England had more than their share of "imports" or that the game only spread in Asia, Africa, Australasia and the Caribbean through expats playing it in the first place.

The worry in some countries is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants

With regards to England, yes there have been quite a few non English-born players who have been picked for the side, but the game still has a massive stronghold in the country. The selection has been more about improving a solid side. And as for the ex-pats argument? Well, yes, but that's the crucial point. In the regions flagged the game was brought in but it was then embraced by the indigenous population and taken on as their own. This is exemplified no better than in CLR James's seminal work, Beyond A Boundary.

The worry in some countries - and again I come back to Canada - is that rather the game is not being continued by the second and third generations but is only being maintained by a steady flow of new immigrants. Canada's cricket heritage is rich but there is little sign that it has been built on. This is best underlined by the selection of former West Indies international Anderson Cummins. Forty years old and without a major match to his name since 1995-96, he made his debut in Mombasa last week. What message does that send out about the strength in depth of cricket in Canada?

It's not just Canada. Look at the USA, whose 2004 Champions Trophy side was a collection of ageing expats whose performances verged on the disgraceful. And the UAE, which is almost entirely dependant on its ex-pat workforce to keep the game alive.

Cricket's expansion should not be about filling teams with expats and expecting the locals to get excited about it. The only way cricket can gain a foothold in emerging countries is by actually getting the indigenous population to embrace the game, and two excellent examples where this is happening are Nepal and Uganda.

Anderson Cummins of Barbados, West Inbies ... and now Canada © Eddie Norfolk

Does it matter? Yes, because as the ICC looks to develop the game in as many places as possible, that means the financial cake has to be cut in ever thinner slices. The ICC needs to concentrate on a smaller number of countries where the chances of the game taking off. It is invidious that Uganda gets the same basic allowance as Belgium.

Cricket is in trouble in its traditional homes in Africa - Zimbabwe are hell-bent on destruction and South Africa seems to be falling out of love with the game. So efforts should be made in Uganda . And in Asia, which everyone accepts is the game's stronghold, a side like Nepal should really be given the leg up. It's about targeting rather than a scattergun approach.

In fairness to the ICC, they have a tough time and a lot of countries scrambling for a share of the spoils. It's about weeding out the weak and really looking to grow the game in areas where it has the best chance of taking root. It's an almost impossible ask. Look at the repeated failure of American Football to crack Europe ... and if football itself still battles for acceptance outside expats and schools in the USA, then the size of the ICC's task becomes clear.

Of course expats have a key role to play in expansion. But if the game is basically played by them, is it the game spreading or is it more about diehards clinging to the traditions of their homelands? In the UK there are baseball and American football sides, but they are almost all expat Americans and so few would seriously claim the games have taken hold. However, basketball and ice hockey are widely played by locals, boosted by some imported players and expats, and, crucially, the national side can stand on its own two feet. That's the difference.

Bermuda won the World Cricket League Americas Division 1 Championship for the first time. Canada has two previous wins and the USA won once. Bermuda took the title thank's to Canada's ten-wicket win over the USA last Saturday. The Cayman Islands beat Argentina on Saturday and this ensured they qualify for the Global Division 3 section of the World Cricket League in 2007.

Bermuda and Canada had already qualified for the Global World Cricket League (WCL) Division 1 as a result of their rankings in the 2005 ICC Trophy in Ireland. WCL Division 1 is in Kenya in January 2007. The USA will be in WCL Global Division 3.

Bermuda ended the Americas championship with three wins and one no-result for a total of 14 points. USA were second (two wins, one loss, one no result for 10 points). Canada came third edging out Cayman Islands on net run-rate (difference betwen rate of a team scoring runs when batting, and conceding runs when bowling). Both teams had two wins and two losses. Argentina came last with five losses.

The player of the tournament was US captain Steve Massiah, who also won the batting award for his 283 runs in 4 matches. Ronald Ebanks (Cayman) took the bowling award for 10 wickets. Bermuda took the fielding prizes with Stephen Outerbridge (fielder) and Kwame Tucker (wicketkeeper) getting the honours. Regular Bermuda wicketkeeper Dean Minors had to return home due to an illness in the family.

	Bermuda's Lionel Cann slams one of his five sixes during his undefeated 139 © Eddie Norfolk

Cayman Islands pulled off a shock seven-wicket victory over Canada at Maple Leaf Cricket Club in the World Cricket League Americas Division 1 Championship (click here for scorecard), while Bermuda beat Argentina by 109 runs

Canada were bowled out for 187 runs. The main feature of the innings was a stand of 93 for the ninth wicket between George Codrington and Steve Welsh.

Canada reached 25 before Sundeep Jyoti was out. Wickets then tumbled and half the side was out before 50 runs were on the board.

One of the Cayman Islands camp had been overheard during the morning session saying he hoped Canada would be restricted to 120 runs or less. However, Steve Gordon and Perason Best lead the way to victory.

Canada’s coach Andy Pick said that " the selectors had stressed at the start of the week that winning the Americas tournament was a secondary consideration and that they wanted to look at certain players."

There were plenty of runs in the other Americas match played at Maple Leaf CC on Tuesday. Bermuda beat Argentina by 109 runs. Bermuda scored 371 runs for the loss of three wickets. The major feature was an unbroken stand of 202 runs for the fourth wicket between Kwame Tucker, who scored 100 not out, and Lionel Cann, who scored 139 nor out. Cann has showed his hitting power in matches against Canada this season, but really flowered in the final over against Argentina. He hit five sixes and a two, making 32 runs off that over.

Janeiro Tucker made 79 in a stand of 128 runs for the second wicket with Kwame Tucker. Kwame Tucker hit 10x4 and 1x6. Cann scored his runs off 88 balls.

Argentina had a spirited reply of 262 runs for 5 in their 50 overs. Opening batsman Lucas Pateruni was their top scorer with 70.

Eddie Norfolk

Cricket in the Caribbean was given a tremendous boost in October with the announcement of the Stanford 2020 challenge. And now the competition's representatives, almost all former West Indies internationals, are spreading the word across the region's less high-profile outposts. One has been assigned to each of the participants.

Visits have been made to Antigua, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, St Kitts and the Virgin Islands, and in many places Stanford's investment has been matched by local governments.