Jamaican veteran all-rounder Orlando Baker says he’s ready for the opportunity to captain a young USA side at the 2013 ICC Americas Division One Twenty20 tournament, which begins next Monday in Lauderhill, Florida at the Central Broward Regional Park.
USA kicks off the tournament against Suriname at 10am on March 18 and Baker says he’s ready to take on more responsibility, not just as a captain but by bringing his talents to the fore with bat and ball as well.
“As you know, Twenty20 cricket is not a game that you have too much time,” Baker said. “I think new guys who are coming in, they have to learn pretty fast. There’s a few senior players myself, fellow Jamaican born teammates Elmore Hutchinson and Barrington Bartley come back into the team – and then you have South African born Ryan Corns there, and Indian born Japen Patel, guys who have been around. I think myself and those guys have to really carry the bulk of the work in this tournament. A lot is goanna depend on me as a senior player and the captain but maybe one or two guys will rise to the occasion.”
With several first choice players missing out on this tournament in order to have enough time off work for 2013 ICC World Cricket League Division Three next month in Bermuda, USA’s Twenty20 squad includes a few fresh faces competing in an ICC tourney for the first time and one in which their endurance and conditioning will be severely tested. The top two teams out of Bahamas, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Suriname and USA will advance to the 2013 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE. Only six out of this 14-man squad were part of the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier squad that played a grueling nine matches in 11 days in the UAE.
The fast bowling department looks particularly thin for USA without Allen and Usman Shuja. With only 14 caps, Hutchinson is the senior fast bowler in the squad and as a result, fellow left-arm seamer Naseer Jamali is expected to get plenty of opportunities after debuting in The Auty Cup last November. However, there are no specialist pacemen besides them in a spin heavy bowling unit.
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