Sarel Burger will lead Namibia in the World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE in March. Raymond van Schoor, was named vice-captain in the 14-man squad announced by Cricket Namibia. The squad will also include four non-travelling reserves.

Among the newer faces in the squad are Gerhard Erasmus, Ian Opperman, Hendrik Geldenhuys and Zhivago Groenewald - these four players have seven List A matches among them.

Sixteen Associate and Affiliate teams will compete in the 72-match qualifying tournament, for two available spots in the World Twenty20, slated to be held in Sri Lanka later this year. Namibia have been drawn in Group B of the qualifiers, along with Ireland, Kenya, Scotland, Uganda, Oman, Italy and USA.

Squad Sarel Burger (capt), Raymond Van Schoor (vice-capt), Ewald Steenkamp, Louis van der Westhuizen, Craig Williams, Gerrie Snyman, Nicholaas Scholtz, Gerhard Erasmus, Ian Opperman, Christi Viljoen, Bernard Scholtz, Louis Klazinga, Hendrik Geldenhuys, Zhivago Groenewald

Reserves Bredell Wessels, Pikkie Ya France, Gj Dippenaar, Christopher Coombe

Namibia, Tanzania or hosts Uganda will go into the final day of the inaugural International Cricket Council Africa Women’s Twenty20 Championship with a chance of the title. But hosts Uganda are the favourites after their easy win over neighbours Kenya.

Opening bowlers Franklyn Najjumba (3 for 6) and Mackenzie Ayato almost settled the match in the eary overs as Kenya slid to 4 for 5, and in the evnt they did well to manage to crawl to 42. Uganda cruised to victory by seven wickets with seven overs to spare.

Uganda’s Net Run Rate is markedly better than second-placed Namibia. Uganda need a commanding win over Nigeria in the last fixture of the tournament to claim the title. If they fail then Namibia could still take the title if they thrash Kenya.

Afghanistan, Namibia and Papua New Guinea won their games on the final day of the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier in Ireland, to book their place in next year's tournament, which will be played in Queensland, Australia. Scotland, Nepal and Ireland, who finished at the top of the points table, had already qualified. These six teams will be joined by the ten Full Members at the World Cup.

Click here for full report

Despite unfounded scaremongering among some sections of the media, the ICC has announced details of the sixth staging of the Intercontinental Cup, running from May 2011 through to December 2012.

As expected, Zimbabwe will not field a side – its participation in the just-completed tournament was of mixed benefit, finishing in farce when they forfeited their final match against Scotland.

The promotion from the World Cricket League into the Intercontinental Cup is a welcome move, allowing a chance for any team to rise through the ranks as Afghanistan have done with such great success.

The one casualty is the Intercontinental Shield, but few outside holders Namibia will mourn its demise. Such was the event’s profile, it is unlikely if most people even knew of its existence.

Namibia 583 for 8 dec (Steenkamp 206, van Schoor 157) beat Bermuda 214 (Hemp 52, Verwey 5-46) and 184 (Hemp 65, Klazinga 5-45) by an innings and 185 runs.

Scorecard

Raymond van Schoor and Ewaid Steenkamp's 374-run opening partnership helped Namibia complete a crushing innings victory over Bermuda in the Intercontinental Shield match in Windhoek.

Namibia take the full 20 points on offer and move second in the table, nine points behind Uganda after winning a match they dominated from the off. Bermuda were bowled out for 214 after winning the toss and opting to bat first with captain David Hemp, the former Warwickshire batsman, the only man to put up any fight. He scrapped his way to 52, but wickets kept tumbling around him as Bermuda collapsed from 173 for 3. Tobias Verwey was the pick of the bowlers, collecting 5-46, his maiden five wicket haul.

What looked a below-par total turned out to be barely credible as van Schoor and Steenkamp set about building Namibia's response. Without taking undue risk the pair marched relentlessly past the Bermuda total, with both openers making centuries on their way to a record stand in Intercontinental Shield cricket. It was Steenkamp's first hundred at first-class level and he cashed in, converting to 206. The partnership finally ended when van Schoor fell to Foggo for 157. The pair had added 374 in 84.5 overs and had almost made the match a formality for Namibia.

Craig Williams, the Namibia captain, made the most of the damaged morale, punishing all the bowlers on his way to a 74-ball 110 not out. In total he hit nine fours and three sixes, sharing a 76-run stand with Verwey to push the score to 583 before declaring 369 ahead.

It was a mountain Bermuda were unlikely to climb and when they lost their openers in quick succession to leave them 25 for 2, there looked no route back. Once again Hemp provided the only resilience, making the most of his first-class experience that stretches back to 1991, to score his second battling half-century of the match, ending with 65 off 86 balls. Louis Klazinga chipped his way through the Bermuda line-up to collect 5 for 45 and deliver his side their first win of the tournament.

Zimbabwe Cricket has invited Namibia to take part in its revamped Twenty20 competition.

Click here for more.

While Kenya’s preparations for a busy 2010 wobble along, UAE return from Namibia with three wins in tour matches under their belt, following victory in the ICC Intercontinental Cup with back-to-back one-day successes.

Both games were close. In the first, a 125-run stand between Nicolaas Scholtz (58) and Raymond van Schoor (90) helped Namibia reach 269, but a good all-round batting performance enabled UAE to chase down the target with two wickets and 27 balls in hand.

In the second match, UAE posted an almost identical total, making 271 thanks largely to a fourth-wicket stand of 122 between Arshad Ali (75) and Abdul Rehman (71). The score should have been higher but UAE lost their way, losing their last seven wickets for 55. Namibia started confidently, van Schoor again top-scoring with 65, but in the end they lacked the depth and fell 20 runs short.

Tony Munro

Namibia will be without opener, Gerhard Randolph and middle-order batsman, Norbert Manyande, for its ICC Intercontinental Shield match against United Arab Emirates starting in Windhoek on Saturday.

Randolph, who has three scores in the 90s in the CSA Provincial 3-day Challenge, and Manyande (two half-centuries) are not residentially qualified to play in the ICC-run tournament and have been replaced by Willem Groenewald and Wian van Vuuren respectively for this match.

The match is the first for both teams in the tournament which is a de facto second division equivalent of the ICC Intercontinental Trophy, from which Namibia were controversially dumped by the ICC.

The teams have had contrasting preparations - Namibia have played five games in the South African amateur three-day provincial competition, where they drew three and lost one while UAE were runners-up in the ACC Twenty20 tournament that they hosted, losing to Afghanistan in the final.

Namibia coach, Johan Randolph, told Cricinfo he was "reasonably happy" with the team's performance in the three-day competition. "We need to establish a culture in Namibia for batsman to occupy the crease and to score hundreds plus, which I believe we have achieved. We had five hundreds and if Gerhard Rudolph converted his three 90s together with Norbert Manyande's 90 we would have had nine hundreds in five matches. Not to bad at all. Already had five hundreds in club cricket so something is working."

The Shield game will be played from December 5 to 8, followed by a 50-over match on December 10 and a Twenty20 game on December 11.

Namibia: - Raymond van Schoor (wk), Willem Groenewald, Sarel Burger, Wian van Vuuren, Craig Williams (capt), Nicholaas Scholtz, LP van der Westhuizen, Wessel Myburgh, Tobie Verwey, Louis Klazinga, Elton Ambambi

UAE: Khuram Khan (capt) Saqib Ali Ahmad Raza, Amjad Javed,Amjad Ali ,Fahad Al Hashimi,Fayaz Ahamed,Arfan Hyder,Mohamed Tauqir ,Mohammed Iqbal,Abdul Rehman (wk), Arshad Ali Qasim Zubair ,Shoaib Sarwar and Mois Shahid

The ICC has announced the remaining fixtures in the inaugural Intercontinental Shield, the second tier first-class competition for Associates.

The one remaining match this year sees Namibia host UAE from December 8, and then UAE have a home tie against Uganda starting on January 20. In April Namibia take on Bermuda, in June Bermuda host UAE and next September Uganda are at home to Namibia in the final round-robin match. The final will be played in Dubai between November 25 and 28, 2010.

However, there is little at stake as the ICC has decided that there will be no promotion between the Intercontinental Shield and the senior Intercontinental Cup.

Tony Munro

Coming into the 2009-10 CSA Provincial Three-Day Challenge, Namibia coach Johan Rudolph's main priority was that the batsmen score hundreds and spend time at the crease. And after just three games, they have exceeded Rudolph's expectations.

"Last season we scored only two hundreds in the competition," said Rudolph. "This season, the players have bettered the statistic in the first three matches, scoring three hundreds (Raymond van Schoor 141, Sarel Burger 125 not out and Craig Williams 123) and one player scoring three nineties (Gerhard Rudolph's 98, 96 & 92)."

There was further excitement for Rudolph as three hundreds were scored in the opening round of the Namibian domestic MTC 50-over Premier League. "Youngsters scored three hundreds last weekend and if we can get this culture going and do away with high risk cricket in our club setup, I believe we will be on the right track," Rudolph said.

Namibia's next game will be against Boland, starting on Thursday at home in Windhoek, and Rudolph believes it will be a tough test. "Boland will have a very strong team with most of their players playing for University of Stellenboch," Rudolph said. "Uwe Birchenstock and Henno Jordaan are two very good batsman."

Namibia will also play a one-day game against Boland on Sunday, and Rudolph said he was keen that the team perfected the key ingredient in the short format. "They just need to apply the basics in batting, bowling and fielding in pressure situations. Players need to know what is their role in the team and then also to play according to the set gameplan. We don't have superstars in the current squad so its vital for the team to perform as a unit."

Uganda will travel to Dubai in February to play the United Arab Emirates and later host Namibia in August in their ICC Intercontinental Shield campaign. Uganda started well with a win in Bermuda, and are early favourites to reach the final.

And Uganda have hired a South African coach, Fayyaaz Mohiudeen, as a temporary replacement for Ebrahim Mohammed who is back home attending a course.

Cricket Namibia has announced a three-year extension to its sponsorship deal with MTC which is believed to be worth around N$2.5 million (US$340,000) a year.

The partnership, which has already been running for six years, “has lifted the standard and profile of the game in Namibia through ever increasing numbers of players participating in cricket throughout the country,” said board president Francois Erasmus.

The sponsorship covers the costs of the national team’s participation in the South African competitions as well as the grass roots cricket, infrastructure development, national leagues, and payments to senior players and management.

Laurie Peters, Namibia’s chief executive, has called the ICC’s decision to restructure the Intercontinental Cup as “disappointing” and said that it will have a negative affect on cricket in the country.

Last month, Namibia finished eighth in the ICC World Cup Qualifiers which should have been enough to secure them a place in the 2009-10 Intercontinental Cup. But at an ICC development committee meeting earlier this week, the competition was restructured and Namibia, who finished runners-up in the 2007-08 event, were demoted to a four-team second division known as the Intercontinental Shield. A further blow was that the ICC ruled out any promotion or relegation between the divisions.

“It’s disappointing, and I not only see this as a Namibia issue but a development one in its entirety,” Peters told Cricinfo. “The ICC are all excited that there are now ten [Associate] countries competing against eight previously. One has to ask is this an extension of the competition … what competition? The four countries competing in the Shield will have three matches each and not even the incentive of a promotion-relegation match.

“Previously, eight countries participated. Should Zimbabwe decide to compete why not then have six in the Cup, and five in the Shield, with the opportunity at least one more game plus a promotion/relegation match.

“It’s important that the top Associate countries compete against the Full Members to prove that there is improvement and progress. However, the fact [Zimbabwe are] brought in the Intercontinental Cup at the expense of an Associate is very disappointing and sad for development.”

Peters was also worried that much of the development work inside Namibia would be undermined. “This will have its repercussions. The previous Intercontinental Cup raised a great amount of awareness, excitement and interest in our country. The final of the Intercontinental Cup had flashes and updates on four radio stations every five minutes.
Suddenly cricket had a following amongst the local people that was there never before.”

He was also worried that there would be much less cricket for the national team against lower-profile opponents. In 2007-08 Namibia played seven Intercontinental Cup group games plus a final. This time round, they will have three matches against Bermuda, Uganda and UAE, with the possibility that only one will be at home.

“[It does] nothing to raise awareness and interest and serve the development of cricket,” Peters said. “This is a backward step in itself. Our sponsors have been wonderful over the past years but it will have be ‘wait and see’ as to the effect on our sponsorship.”

Zimbabwe Cricket has told Cricinfo that it is working with the ICC on proposals that it enters a team into the 2009-10 Intercontinental Cup. The tournament features the leading eight Associates who play each other in four-day first-class matches spread over more than a year, with the top two playing-off in a final at a neutral venue.

The idea that Zimbabwe, who have been suspended from Test cricket since 2005, participate in the competition was one of the proposals put forward to the ICC to enable their cricketers to prepare for an eventual return to the Test arena. A ZC spokesman said that the board were “in principle agreeable” and it was sorting out the “finer details” with the ICC.

An ICC source said that were Zimbabwe Cricket to agree it could create potential difficulties for it. “It would, in effect, admit that they were at Associate level, and unless they do very well, there would be a compelling argument for them to be stripped of their Full Member status. Imagine the situation where Ireland or Scotland, whose funding from the ICC is a fraction of Zimbabwe’s, beat them. There could be calls for that anomaly to be resolved.”

There are also issues over where games would be played as some countries involved in the competition still have serious political reservations over travelling to, and hosting, Zimbabwe. Those, however, are not believed to be insurmountable.

The other uncertainty which will need to be addressed by the ICC development committee when it meets later this month is whether, if Zimbabwe Cricket agrees to take part, the competition is expanded to nine countries or one of the existing Associates will be dropped to make room for them. However, it seems highly unlikely that an Associate – and Namibia would be the prime candidate as they secured the eighth and final qualifying slot – will be ditched.

Uganda and Sierra Leone booked their places in the Under-19 World Cup qualifying tournament later this year after finishing first and second in the Africa Under-19 Championship in Zambia. They will join Afghanistan, Hong Kong and the top two teams from the Americas, East Asia-Pacific and Europe regions in a play-off, from which the top five teams from that tournament will join the ten ICC Full Members and hosts Kenya in the 2010 Under-19 World Cup.

Uganda and Sierra Leone met in the final round of matches, and it was Uganda who won a rain-affected game despite being bowled out for 91. Chasing a revised target of 83 in 20 overs, Sierra Leone lost too many wickets too quickly and only managed 35 for 8, Geofrey Nyero returning remarkable figures of 6 for 7.

That result meant that Namibia could have overtaken Sierra Leone with an emphatic win over the hugely disappointing Kenyans, but after they had posted 158 for 7, the match was abandoned six overs into Kenya's reply. The one point Namibia earned was not enough.

Hosts Zambia finished fourth thanks to a 63-run win over Tanzania, but again the weather meant the game was decided by Duckworth-Lewis calculations. Zambia made 133 and Tanzania struggled to 42 for 7 before the rain returned.

Nigeria showed why they finished bottom without a win as they were dismissed for 68 by Botswana, who went on to amble to a six-wicket win.

               P   W  NR   L   Pts      NRR 

Uganda         7   6   0   1    12     -0.31

Sierra Leone   7   5   0   2    10      1.18

Namibia        7   4   1   2     9      0.83

Zambia         7   4   0   3     8      0.10

Kenya          7   3   1   3     7     -0.22

Botswana       7   3   0   4     6     -0.44

Tanzania       7   2   0   5     4     -0.43

Nigeria        7   0   0   7     0     -1.36

Sierra Leone continue to surprise opponents and followers of the Africa Under-19 Championship in topping the table. After the fifth day they are joint-first with Namibia on eight points, but with a superior net run-rate, thanks to another win over Zambia by 85 runs. Chasing 177 Zambia were skittled for 91 with Ibrahim Kabia picking up 3 for 8. Elsewhere, Namibia thrashed Nigeria by ten wickets while Kenya – who are in a disappointing fourth position – beat Tanzania by 19 runs. Uganda pulled off a thrilling one-wicket win over Botswana when they rather underestimated their target of 114, losing nine wickets – three of them to Waseem Tajbhai. Their last pair saw them across the line, however, with overs (if not nerves) to spare.

---- Points table ----
1. Sierra Leone (8 points, NRR: 1.03)
2. Namibia (8, 0.87)
3. Uganda (6, -0.56)
4. Kenya (6, 0.10)
5. Zambia (4, -0.12)
6. Botswana (4, -0.44)
7. Tanzania (2, -0.39)
8. Nigeria (0, -2.02)

As the dust settles on the ICC World Cup Qualifiers – aside from Sunday’s rather pointless play-offs – we highlight what each team comes away from South Africa with.

Qualification for the 2011 World Cup
Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands

ODI status for four years
Afghanistan, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands, Scotland

Intercontinental Cup 2009-10
Afghanistan, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Namibia, Netherlands, Scotland, UAE

ICC World Cricket League Division 1
Afghanistan, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands, Scotland

ICC World Cricket League Division 2
Bermuda, Namibia, Uganda, UAE

ICC World Cricket League Division 3
Denmark, Oman

ICC High Performance Programme grant funding 2009 and 2010
Afghanistan, Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Kenya, Namibia, Netherlands, Scotland, UAE, Uganda

Six weeks before the start of the ICC World Cup Qualifiers, Namibia have been dealt a major blow after two of their leading players declared themselves unavailable for selection.

The tournament not only decides which four Associates will qualify for the 2011 World Cup, but also which six countries will have full ODI status for the next four years. Namibia are considered one of the most likely of those countries without one-day status at the moment to break through in South Africa in April. But they will have to do so without Kola Burger and Stefan Swanepoel.

Swanepoel cited work commitments as his reason for opting out, but the absence of Burger is not as clear, with rumours circulating that he had fallen out with the board. It is reported that he has refused to play since being dropped in January.

Zimbabwe will help out Namibia with much-needed preparation for April’s ICC World Cup Qualifiers by sending their A side there at the end of this month.

Zimbabwe A will play the full Namibia side in three one-day matches between February 28 and March 4 in Windhoek. A single Twenty20 could also be slotted on the whistle-stop tour.

The ICC World Cup Qualifiers get underway on April 1 in South Africa. Apart from giving Namibia a helping hand the Zimbabweans are also looking at exposing their second-string cricketers to increased competitive games in a bid to widen their selection pool.

Namibia have named a 26-man training squad to prepare for the World Cup qualifiers in South Africa next April. The top four sides from the 12-team event will earn a place at the 2011 World Cup in Asia.

Openers Riaan Walters and Stefan Swanepoel, who both last played for Namibia nearly two years ago, are brought back into the fold and exciting youngster Raymond van Schoor, who missed most of last season due to school commitments, is handed an opportunity.

Sean Silver, Pikkie Ya France, Hendrik Marx and Ewald Steenkamp are also tipped to be part of the future.

Squad JB Burger, Raymond van Schoor, ST Ackermann, Stefan Swanepoel, Sarel Burger, Riaan Walters, Louis Burger, Craig Williams, Gerrie Snyman, Bjorn Kotze, Deon Kotze, Tobie Verwey, Nicolaas Scholtz, Bernard Scholtz, Louis Klazinga, Kola Burger, LP van der Westhuizen, Wilbur Slabber, Andrew Louw, Hendrik Marx, Ian van Zyl, Sean Silver, Pikkie Ya France, Ewald Steenkamp, Martin van Niekerk and Pieter Rossouw.

The chief executive of Namibia Cricket, Laurie Pieters, has blamed Namibia's inferior professional setup for their defeat against Ireland in the final of the ICC Intercontinental Cup on Sunday.

"We are obviously disappointed that we did not win the cup because that was our intention," Pieters told Namibia Sport, "but the fact that Namibia is not in the ICC's High Performance programme had a lot to do with it."

The top six Associate member countries each received US$350,000 over the past year under the ICC's High Performance programme. A small sum in the grand scheme of things but, for Associate cricket, this amounts to relative riches. Namibia, on the other hand - who are ranked in the top ten of Associates - only received US$50,000 from the ICC over the past year.

Click here to read the full story

By Tony Munro

Western Province 146 for 3 (Ramoo 46*, Klazinga 2-28)
beat Namibia145 (S Burger 63, Schalkwyk 5-30) by seven wickets

Scorecard

Namibia lost their opening game of the South African Amateur Provincial One-Day Challenge match against Western Province by seven wickets in Windhoek, a day after beating the same opposition by 301 runs in their four-day match.

Namibia were brought crashing down to earth as Western Province eased home to their target of 146 with 13 overs to spare. The home team's innings never really got going once Gurshwin Rabie removed the openers with only eight on the board; Jan-Berrie Burger was dismissed for a duck off the third ball and Louis van der Westhuizen was caught behind for 1.

While Sarel Burger held firm, scoring 63 from 73 balls, including nine fours, all around him floundered. Gerrie Snyman and Tobias Verwey were the innings’ joint second-highest scorers with 18.

Verwey gave the innings a late flourish with four fours in his 15 ball-innings to remain unbeaten when Namibia were bowled with 16 overs unused. Shadley van Schalkwyk did the damage for Western Province taking 5 for 30 from eight overs.

Despite a brief hiccup when Louis Klazinga nabbed two wickets in four overs, Western Province got home comfortably, with South Africa Under-19 batsman Romano Ramoo smashing 46 from 51 balls.

By Tony Munro

Namibia 328 for 9 (Snyman 84, LJ Burger 125) and 287 for 8 (AJ Burger 79, T.Verwey 72) beat Western Province 168 (KB Burger 5-69, SF Burger 4-22) and 146 (KB Burger 5-47) by 301 runs

Namibia, boosted by a ten-wicket haul from medium-pacer Kola Burger, have opened their 2008-09 South African Amateur three-day campaign with an emphatic 301-run win over Western Province in Windhoek.

Burger nabbed 5 for 47 in the second innings to complete a haul of 10 for116 in the match as Western Province succumbed for 146 while chasing the target of 447.

After establishing a 160-run lead in the first innings, Namibia scored at 5.12 runs per over on the second day and declared at 287 for 8.

Deon Kotze was bowled off the second ball of Namibia’s second innings before the Burgers, Jan-Barrie and Sarel, added 106 for the second wicket.

Looking to set a target quickly, wicketkeeper Tobias Verwey and captain Louis Burger, put on 69 runs in 10.4 overs for the seventh wicket. Verwey smashed 72 from 58 balls including three sixes and seven fours.

Kola Burger took four top-order Western Province wickets and Martin Walters' 75 was the only innings of substance in his team's 146.

Namibia are due to start their South African Amateur limited-overs season against the same opposition on Sunday. Their next opponents are North West, who they will meet in Potchefstroom for a three-day game on October 23 followed by a one-day game on October 26.

Namibia will then play Ireland in the final of the Intercontinental Cup in Port Elizabeth from October 30 to November 3.

Tony Munro

Namibia will be looking for quick wickets to capitalise on a century from captain Louis Burger when play resumes today in their three-day South African Amateur competition match against Western Province in Windhoek.

Western Province were 82 for 2 replying to Namibia's 328 for 9 declared, at stumps of the first day. The home team recovered from an awkward 57 for 4 before Gerrie Snyman (84) and Burger (125) combined in a fifth-wicket partnership of 136.

Burger said Namibia would need to bowl well as the pitch conditions had become more favourable to the batsmen. "The new ball was doing quite a bit yesterday, but the pitch flattened out nicely."

The only change to the Namibia team which lost their Intercontinental Cup match against Ireland was the inclusion of legspinner Gerrit Randolph for allrounder Bjorn Kotze who is unavailable due to work commitments.

Kotze will play in the one-day match which follows the three-day game.

Namibia play Ireland again in the final of the Intercontinental Cup in Port Elizabeth starting on October 31.

Louis Burger, the Namibia captain, chose to see the brighter side of a dispiriting eight-run defeat to Ireland in their Intercontinental Cup match in Windhoek on Saturday.

Read the full piece on Cricinfo

Tony Munro

This weekend Namibia plays Ireland in the Intercontinental Cup. It’s Namibia's last qualifying match while Ireland has another against Kenya after this. Cricinfo spoke to the captain, Louis Burger.

Well, it’s your last chance to cement a place in the final and your opponents, Ireland, have a game in hand. Nothing like a bit of pressure to bring out the best out of the team, is it?

LB: Yes, we play every game to win and Ireland will be no exception in this regard. They will be coming at us really hard as they also want a place in the final. The pressure is a bit relieved on our side seeing that we are virtually assured of a spot in the final unless Ireland and Kenya finish in an outright tie, which is very unlikely, and we have to gain no points in the Ireland game.

Namibia hadn't hit a ball in anger for about five months prior to the Bermuda match. How did you rate the performance and in which areas would you like to see improvement?

LB: To us it was the beginning of the season and our preparations for the Bermuda game was intense seeing that we wanted the 20 points to relieve the pressure of having to gain points in our last game to go to the final.

Having said that, I was happy with our performance. We didn’t really know what to expect of the wicket and weather but eventually everything worked out, and we managed to get full points even though the wicket turned a lot and had half a day of cricket rained off.

Obviously the World Cup qualifiers next year would be in the back of your mind, but why is winning the Intercontinental Cup important?

LB: It’s all about reaching goals we set ourselves at the beginning of the year. Our first goal was to get into the final, which we are almost sure of at this moment. The next goal is to win the final. Our last goal is to qualify for the next World Cup and with the World Cup Qualifiers just a few months away, I feel that this is already a real confidence booster. To win this competition will give us the confidence to go into any game knowing that we can beat whoever the opposition is.

After this, Namibia start their campaign against the amateur South African provincial teams. How important is playing in this competition and in what areas does it improve your cricket?

The two seasons prior to the previous World Cup qualifiers, we did not play in this competition. Previously we did and it was called the Bowl Competition back then. Even though this is an amateur competition the standard of cricket is high and it gives us the opportunity to play against really tough opposition. To play as much competitive cricket as possible makes you a better team and help you cope in tight situations as you have been there before playing in this kind of competition. The competition consists out of a three day game followed by a limited overs match which gives one the opportunity to play both forms of the game over 4 days.

Ireland won the last meeting between the teams. How much will that enter into team planning?

LB: I don’t think that really bothers us. Quite a few of our players didn’t go on that tour due to working commitments, and also, both teams have a few new players. So yes, we don’t really look at what happened two years ago. We’d rather focus on what lies ahead. We do know that Ireland are a decent team and that they will be coming hard and so will we. Hopefully it will be a great contest.

Andre Botha has scored three centuries in the 07-08 Cup for Ireland , including 150s against Scotland and Holland . Does the team know much about him? Have you got plan in place for him?:

LB:Yes I know Andre very well seeing that we played together in Griqualand West in South Africa . We are good friends and he is a very good cricketer and you can’t take that away from him. Cricket is an interesting game and no one can predict what’s going to happen on the day and hopefully (laughs) he won’t score too many runs against us.

You must be in charge of one of the most versatile teams at Associate level. Why is it that Namibian cricket produces so many allrounders?

LB:It’s difficult to say why but, yes, it is very nice to be leading a team with so many individually talented cricketers. We probably have four to five individuals who, on their day, can take the game away from the opposition. And to top it all, we blend together as a great team with great team spirit which feels like one big family.

On a lighter note, I suppose that with the great (flat) batting wickets in Namibia, all the bowlers coming here eventually convert themselves into batsmen, which makes them good all-rounders eventually.

What is Ireland's greatest asset as a team?

LB: They have had the opportunity to play competitive cricket over the past 2 years. The World Cup, ODIs and so forth.

Tony Munro

Cricket Namibia has named a squad of 13, with some changes from the team that beat Bermuda by 103 runs earlier this month, for its crucial Intercontinental Cup match against Ireland scheduled for October 3-6 in Windhoek, Namibia.

Offbreak bowler Wilbur Slabber replaces Bernard Scholtz while opening batsman Raymond van Schoor is unavailable due to end of year examinations.

Namibia squad:

JB Burger, Deon Kotze, Sarel Burger, Louis Burger (capt), Gerrie Snyman, Bjorn Kotze, Craig Williams, Tobias Verwey (wk), Nicholaas Scholtz, Kola Burger, Louis Klazinga, LP van der Westhuizen, Wilbur Slabber

Namibia have named their squad to face Bermuda in the Intercontinental Cup on September 3.

The 14-man squad contains a mixture of experience and youth, and they draft in the debutant Bernard Scholtz, who represented his country in February's Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia. Scholtz, the younger brother of Nicholaas and a slow left-arm spinner, took six wickets at 28.33.

Bermuda are propping up the ICC Intercontinental Cup on 26 points and face an in-form Namibia who are second in the competition, trailing Kenya by 14 points with a game in hand.

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.

Associate Member Bermuda picked up two prizes in the ICC Development Program Annual awards, making them the winners in this year’s competition. They were awarded the Best Overall Cricket Development Program and the Photo of the year titled “It’s a Catch”.

A happy Reginald Pearman, president of the Bermuda Cricket Board, said: “I am excited and proud that Bermuda cricket has won these distinguished awards, which confirm that we are making progress in the right direction when it comes to our strategic goals. I am particularly pleased with the growth in our junior membership and the fact that our women’s team participated in the Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Stellenbosch and our youngsters appeared in the Under-19 World Cup in Malaysia makes me even more proud.”

Jos Heggleman won the Volunteer of the Year Award for his outstanding contribution to the game in the Netherlands, while the Hong Kong Cricket Association won the Best Cricket Promotion and Marketing Award for the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes.

Cricket Indonesia’s Tetrapak U-19 Development Program was declared the Best Junior Cricket Initiative program. Deutscher Cricket Bund did well in the Global Awards, picking up the Best Women’s Cricket Initiative prize for their U-19 Women’s Tournament in Oldenburg, Germany. The best Spirit of Cricket Initiative in Partnership with UNAIDS was won by the Mozambique Cricket Federation’s National Commission for School Cricket.

John Wright of Ireland and Laurie Pieters of Namibia won Lifetime Service Awards for their long and dedicated service to cricket development not only in their home countries, but also internationally, given both have served on several ICC committees.

Wright, the honorary secretary of the Irish Cricket Union for 10 years until stepping down this year, said: “I am extremely delighted to receive this award. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in cricket and I must admit that it is very pleasing to be acknowledged and honoured for your services. It’s been a privilege to be part of the ICC Development Program and I wish it best of luck in the future”

Ray Mali, the ICC president, who served as one of the four global judges alongside former ICC presidents Ehsan Mani and Malcolm Gray and MCC chief executive Keith Bradshaw, said: “This whole process has shown once again the outstanding work being done in the development of cricket around the world. It was immensely difficult to select the winners but those lucky enough to be chosen reflect the contributions they have made to our wonderful worldwide sport. Everyone involved, winners and those not chosen, deserve immense credit for their efforts.”
Best Overall Cricket Development Program Bermuda Cricket Board

Best Women's Cricket Initiative Oldenburg U-19 Women’s Tournament (Germany)

Best Junior Cricket Initiative Tetrapak U-19 Development program (Indonesia)

Best Cricket Promotional and Marketing Award – Hong Kong Cricket Sixes (Hong Kong)

Best Spirit of Cricket Award in Partnership with UNAIDS – National Commission for School Cricket (Mozambique)

Photo of the Year Award “It’s a Catch” (Bermuda)

Volunteer of the Year Jos Heggleman (The Netherlands)

Lifetime Service Award John Wright (Ireland) and Laurie Pieters (Namibia)

Each Global award category is allocated US$2000 of equipment to be received by the winning national cricket body.

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.

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As revealed by Cricinfo last month, the 2011 World Cup will be shortened and the main victims of the change will be the Associate countries who will have their numbers cut from six to four.

"It is a move we both feared and expected and it's not great news for the Associates," Warren Deutrom, the chief executive of the Irish Cricket Union, told Cricinfo. "Neither is it a great vote of confidence in the ICC's own High Performance Programme.

Click here to tell us what you think of this? Is it the start of the gradual elimination of smaller countries from the World Cup or a necessary and welcome move?

	Arshad Ali, the former UAE captain, struck 185 in UAE's win over Bermuda last year © Eddie Norfolk

UAE might be languishing at second from bottom in the 2007-08 Intercontinental Cup, but they remain confident of reversing their fortunes ahead of their match against Namibia on Wednesday.

In three matches, they have only won one match - an excellent 138-run win over Bermuda last November. And it was this win which inspired UAE, and their captain, Saqib Ali, to believe in themselves. UAE were dismissed for a lowly 143, conceding a first-innings deficit of 168, but fought back brilliantly on days three and four to win by 138 runs.

"It was an unbelievable win for us," Saqib said. "That victory really gave us the belief that we can do well in this competition. I think we have what it takes. We have plenty of experience with people like Khurram Khan and Arshad Ali and there is a good feeling in the squad."

In spite of their bullishness, UAE's preparations for Wednesday's match have been far from ideal, with heavy rains sweeping the region. "Also it is a new pitch at Sharjah Stadium," Saqib said, "so we don't really know how it is going to play."

Saqib took over the reins from Arshadfor the Bermuda match, and the new-found freedom paid immediate dividends for Arshad whose mammoth 185 set-up UAE's matchwinning 449.

"I decided that I wanted to play as just an ordinary player, not captain," Arshad said. "It is easier for me that way and since I gave up the captaincy I have been doing very well, scoring runs and taking wickets."

Namibia, meanwhile, come into the match following an impressive eight-wicket win over Canada in October. Their win was set-up by a fine 163 from Bjorn Kotze, but neither his brother, Deon, or Louis Klazinga, who took 6 for 82 in the match, have made the trip. UAE, though, will not be underestimating Namibia.

"We are wary of Namibia. We know they have a good side with plenty of experience and lots of batting," Saqib said. "It will be very interesting. I am looking forward to it."

Concern is growing that the civil unrest in Kenya might put the Intercontinental Cup tie against Namibia at the end of the month in doubt. It has already delayed Kenya's preparations for the match against UAE in Sharjah.

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UAE underlined their ambition to take part in the 2011 World Cup by winning the World Cricket League Division Two tournament in Namibia, defeating Oman in the final. Denmark and Namibia also booked their place in the 2009 Qualifer, but Uganda and Argentina finished in the bottom two and were relegated back to Division Three.

Click here for Cricinfo’s full coverage of the tournament.

Tony Cozier is, rightly, one of the most respected journalists in the game. His work to cover and promote cricket in the Caribbean has been unstinting for almost four decades. And yet even the best writers have off days, and his attack on the way that the ICC funds the Intercontinental Cup, the first-class competition for the Associates, is one of those.

Cozier's outburst in his Caribbean-syndicated column at the weekend in effect concluded that rather than waste money on Associate tournaments it would be better spent on aiding West Indies, a “well-established member with a great tradition presently fallen on hard times”.

Cozier attacked the ICC for doling out "heaven knows how much cash every year" to run the Intercontinental Cup. The overall annual cost of the tournament is actually around $400,000 on top of which the participants contribute another $120,000 between them. For that, the leading eight Associate countries get to play in a prestigious (for them) competition, to meet a variety of opponents across the world and to improve.

Yes, it has its faults and there are mismatches, but the same could be said for any competition or series involving the Full Members. When was the last time Bangladesh or Zimbabwe or, dare it be said, West Indies played in a gripping contest as opposed to occasional one-off successes. As seen at the World Cup, the gulf between the have and have-nots on the field may be large but it is nothing like as vast as the chasm between their respective funding.

The leading Associates survive on grants of under half a million dollars a year; some, such as Kenya and Scotland, earn more through winning tournaments such as the World Cricket League which entitles them to ICC World Twenty20 participation money. The Full Members receive twenty times more. Zimbabwe, for example, coined in almost $11 million from the World Cup, and yet they struggle to hold their own with several Associates. What is more, the Full Members almost all have bloated payrolls; the Associates rely almost entirely on goodwill of hard-working administrators who often end up digging deep into their own pockets to keep things ticking over.

What Cozier seems to overlook is that the ICC should not be about looking after the big boys and forget the rest, although as the major boards become more money-obsessed by the month it may go that way. It has a responsibility to nurture and support the game in areas away from the traditional bedrocks. That is done through a myriad of tournaments, coaching clinics and advice. The total sum spent on Associates is under 25% of the ICC's overall budget. To scrap that would be akin to pulling up the drawbridge, hoping that the game survives among the existing ten Full Members, and hang the rest. No other sport would consider such a short-sighted policy, and neither should cricket.

Then there is the additional income that Full Members can earn through the very fact they play each other so often. Sponsorship and TV deals bring in tens of millions on top of the ICC funding. Although the WICB has never revealed the value of the original deal with Digicel, it is believed to be worth more than $20 million for five years. The England board's four-year TV deal with BSkyB was worth in excess of $400 million, the Indian board's own deals even more. They should be awash with cash.

Associates cannot attract funding worth even 5% of that as they play precious few big matches, a fact not helped by the continuing reluctance of most Full Members to play them. The big boys prefer to pack their schedules with ever longer one-day series against the same old - more lucrative - opposition. Television and sponsorship deals for Associates, if they ever get them, are for peanuts.

Cozier also argues that the Intercontinental Cup is not worthwhile as sides cannot always field their full sides as players cannot get time off work. It is a problem, and one everyone is aware of. But that ignores the fact that the bulk of players are prepared to make remarkable sacrifices to represent their countries. With more funding, and not with less, those players can be rewarded for their cricket skills and so availability will improve. As an aside, it is worth remembering West Indies couldn't find 15 players to represent their A team in Zimbabwe last July.

To argue that the woes of the West Indies could be cured by diverting cash from Associates to the Caribbean simply doesn't add up. Those who have witnessed the antics of a succession of West Indies boards might counter that to pour money into the region would be akin to chucking it onto a bonfire. In the last decade the WICB has run up debts running into tens of millions of dollars. It has failed to handle sponsors or players remotely adequately and needed the income from a (poorly run) World Cup to bail it out. That the game in the Caribbean is in need of help is beyond question. But it is in even more need of some broad-minded and competent leadership. Julian Hunte, the new WICB chairman, might be such a man but he has a daunting job ahead of him.

This is not a call for more money to be poured into Associate cricket, but there has to be some kind of reality check before those looking to establish and build the game are asked to tighten their belts even more because a Full Member is down to its last few dozen administrators.

Tony Cozier, the veteran Caribbean journalist and broadcaster, has launched a scathing attack on the way the ICC funds global cricket outside the Test-playing countries.

Writing in his column which is syndicated throughout the Caribbean, Cozier was angry at the way that established regions, such as West Indies, were not allocated more money instead of so much being spent by the ICC on Associate competitions.

“Certainly there is no ICC venture more illogical or costly than the one dubbed the Inter-Continental Cup,” he wrote. “It is an annual tournament, described by the ICC as its ‘flagship first-class competition’, comprising round-robin, four-day matches between its second tier members, those one below Test status. These are countries where the game has always been based on amateur, weekend, one-day club cricket. They play no four-day domestic matches and almost certainly never will.

“Yet the ICC doles out heaven knows how much cash every year to fly them, and their own entourage of officials, across the world and to house and feed them at venues as scattered as Aberdeen, Dublin, Namibia, Toronto, Sharjah and Windhoek.

“Canada were unable to raise their strongest team for the African tour because many of their best players simply could not get time off from their jobs. The same problem affects others, rendering the tournament even less relevant.”

The ICC maintains that the competition enables players from Associate countries to gain more experience in the longer form of the game.

Namibia have beaten Canada by eight wickets in their Intercontinental Cup match at Windhoek. Click here for the bulletin and leave your thoughts in the comments below.

The ICC has said that there are no plans to extend the number of Associate members who will gain ODI status.

On a visit to Uganda, Cassim Suliman, the CEO of the African Cricket Association, was reported as saying that he would push for more countries to be added to the six Associates that currently have one-day status. But an ICC spokesman told Cricinfo: "There is no intention at this stage to increase the number of teams playing ODIs.

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Botswana produced the shock of the Africa Under-19 World Cup Qualifiers when they Uganda by 27 runs to reach the semi-finals in Benoni on Monday.

Botswana's unexpected victory eliminated Tanzania from the semi-final on net run-rate after the duo along with Uganda ended up at four points each from three matches. In Wednesday's semi-finals, Uganda meets Namibia while Kenya faces Botswana. Kenya topped Pool One after conjuring up a four-wicket victory over Zambia while Namibia finished second after defeating Ghana by 172 runs, courtesy of an unbeaten century by Sean Silver.

In the Botswana-Uganda match, Botswana scored 192 for 8 after being put into bat with contributions from Karan Kapoor (54) and Nadeem Tajbhay (36) while Emmanuel Nakaana bagged 3 for 45. In turn, Uganda was dismissed for 165 in 44 overs after losing their last seven wickets for 54.

Tanzania, in their last match, carved out a 153-run victory over Nigeria. Athumani Kakonzi (70) and Seif Abdul (68) put on 123 for the second wicket to set the platform for Tanzania's 296 in 49.5 overs. Nigeria, in its target chase, were bowled out for 143.

Silver scored 101 to inspire Namibia to a 172-run victory over Ghana and featured in a 117-run second wicket partnership with Tiaan Louw (62) as Namibia scored 287 for 6. Ghana were dismissed for 115 with Elandre Oosthuizen taking 4 for 39 and Louis Petrus van der Westhuizen claiming 3 for 13.

Spinners Rakep Patel and Rohit Vekaria shared six wickets to help Kenya beat Zamibia by four wickets. Patel took 3 for 16 and Vekaria bagged 3 for 17 as Zambia were spun out for 152. Kenya achieved victory in 34.1 overs for the loss of six wickets.

The winner of the Africa Under-19 Qualifiers join Papua New Guinea (from the East Asia-Pacific Region), Ireland (from the Europe Region) and Bermuda (from the Americas Region), the ICC's 10 Full Members and hosts Malaysia at the 16-team U-19 World Cup from February 17 to March 2 2008 in Malaysia.

The fixtures for the first half of the 2007-08 Intercontinental Cup have been released by the ICC.

The tournament undergoes a change of format once again, with the group stages scrapped and a round-robin system introduced. This will mean that the eight participants play seven matches after the two-year span of the competition.

The event kicks off on June 28 when Canada, who meet Ireland in the final of the 2006-07 tournament at Leicester between May 22 and 25, meet Netherlands in Toronto.

Scotland play back-to-back matches against Ireland and Netherlands at the start of August, while Bermuda will be in Europe to take on the same opponents at the end of the month.

The schedule shows that Bermuda are the busiest country in 2007 with four matches, all away from home. In addition to their European trip, they play Kenya in Nairobi at the start of November and from there go straight to the meet UAE.

Namibia, on the other hand, have only one game inked in, while Kenya have two.

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.

Namibia might have failed to qualify for the 2007 World Cup, but the Under-19 side's preparations for their own version of the tournament, which takes place in Sri Lanka in February, are well underway.