By Bharat Sharma

Canada, essentially a mix of expats from India and Pakistan, are eager to prove a point in the cricket World Cup which begins next week with 49 matches being played at 13 venues across India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
They do not want to finish as also-rans but want to create some buzz.
Canada, coming to the sub-continent for their fourth World Cup appearance, have done precious little as compared to the other minnows. They are on an eight-match losing streak in cricket’s mega event, their last win coming against Bangladesh in the 2003 edition.
They are battling poor form as they managed four victories in the last 11. One-day Internationals with the losses coming against teams like Scotland and Afghanistan, who failed to qualify for the marquee event.
The North American side’s preparation has not been ideal either. Players of Pakistan origin -- vice captain Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan and Hamza Tariq -- could not be part of the World Cup preparatory trip to India in November due to visa problems. The trio were granted visas later and had to train with the squad in International Cricket Council’s Global Cricket Academy in Dubai.
Despite the problems surrounding the team, captain Ashish Bagai is confident of a better showing this time around.
“Our realistic goal is to get to the second round,” said Bagai.
“What we need is three good victories in the first round. If we can beat Kenya and Zimbabwe and upset one of the Test-playing nations, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka or Pakistan, we will get there.”
If the team has to enter the quarter-finals, their most experienced players, wicketkeeper/batsman Bagai and flamboyant all-rounder John Davison will need to fire.
Bagai, with 54 ODI caps, has been in splendid form, scoring five fifties in the last 10 matches. The Delhi-born cricketer, playing his third World Cup, has the important task of galvanising a side that has six under-19 players.
Davison’s success is critical to the team’s chances, as he is an attacking batsman. His cracking 111 off 76 balls against West Indies in the 2003 edition is the second fastest century in the Cup’s history. His knock of 52 off 31 balls against New Zealand in 2007 is another testimony to his batting prowess.
Davison has picked 31 wickets in 27 ODIs with his off-spinners and could come handy on the slow wickets in the sub-continent. The lanky player had initially refused to be part of the side, protesting the omission of two players who he thought should have been in the squad, but relented.
Fast bowler Henry Osinde, who played in the Caribbean, and Chohan will share the bowling responsibilities.
The Cricket World Cup is the International Cricket Council flagship one-day cricket event.
Nine editions of the tournament have taken place to date, with the event being won by Australia on four occasions (1987, 1999, 2003, 2007), West Indies twice (1975, 1979), and India (1983), Pakistan (1992) and Sri Lanka (1996) on one occasion.
The tournament has helped create some of the most memorable moments in the history of the sport, including one of the most dramatic games of all time, when Australia and South Africa tied the ICC Cricket World Cup 1999 semi-final, and one of the greatest shocks, when India defeated West Indies in the final of the 1983 event.
The ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 is set to be one of the most exciting events in the history of the event, with the new quarter-final format set to create a fascinating finish to the tournament.
14 teams will take part in the tournament with games set to be broadcast to a global audience in over 180 territories and followed by millions on the internet, mobile and other media.
Considering Team India’s performance has been consistently good over the last couple of years and the fact that they will be playing most of the matches on their home soil, the home team is automatically one of the favourites to lift the World Cup this time. But the abilities and capabilities of teams like Australia, a four-time world champion, England, that has won the last T20 World Cup, as well as South Africa and Sri Lanka promises this edition of the Cricket World Cup to be a spectacular event, said the Times of India.

Canada’s schedule

Canada plays its opening match against Sri Lanka Feb 20 in Hambantota.
Squad: Ashish Bagai (captain/wicketkeeper), Rizwan Cheema (vice captain), Harvir Baidwan, Nitish Kumar, Hiral Patel, Tyson Gordon, Henry Osinde, John Davison, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Parth Desai, Karl Whatham, Khurram Chohan, Jimmy Hansra, Zubin Surkari, Balaji Rao.
Fixtures: Feb 20 vs Sri Lanka (Hambantota), Feb 28 vs Zimbabwe (Nagpur), Mar 3 vs Pakistan (Colombo), Mar 7 vs Kenya (New Delhi), Mar 13 vs New Zealand (Mumbai), Mar 16 vs Australia (Bangalore).

CRICKET WORLD CUP 2011 SCHEDULE

Venues:
INDIA (29 MATCHES) - MUMBAI, MOHALI, AHMEDABAD, NAGPUR, KOLKATA, BANGALORE, CHENNAI, NEW DELHI
SRI LANKA (12 MATCHES) - COLOMBO (R PREMADASA STADIUM), HAMBANTOTA, PALLEKELE
BANGLADESH (8 MATCHES) - MIRPUR, CHITTAGONG

GROUP STAGES
GROUP A: AUSTRALIA, PAKISTAN, NEW ZEALAND, SRI LANKA, ZIMBABWE, CANADA, KENYA.

FEBRUARY
20 NEW ZEALAND V KENYA, CHENNAI PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
20 SRI LANKA V CANADA, HAMBANTOTA (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
21 AUSTRALIA V ZIMBABWE, AHMEDABAD (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
23 PAKISTAN V KENYA, HAMBANTOTA (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
25 AUSTRALIA V NEW ZEALAND, NAGPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
26 PAKISTAN V SRI LANKA, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
28 ZIMBABWE V CANADA, NAGPUR PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT

MARCH
1 SRI LANKA V KENYA, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
3 PAKISTAN V CANADA, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
4 NEW ZEALAND V ZIMBABWE, AHMEDABAD PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
5 AUSTRALIA V SRI LANKA, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
7 CANADA V KENYA, NEW DELHI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
8 PAKISTAN V NEW ZEALAND, PALLEKELE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
10 SRI LANKA V ZIMBABWE, PALLEKELE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
13 NEW ZEALAND V CANADA, MUMBAI PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
13 AUSTRALIA V KENYA, BANGALORE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
14 PAKISTAN V ZIMBABWE, PALLEKELE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
16 AUSTRALIA V CANADA, BANGALORE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
18 NEW ZEALAND V SRI LANKA, MUMBAI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
19 AUSTRALIA V PAKISTAN, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
20 ZIMBABWE V KENYA, KOLKATA PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
(FOUR TEAMS FROM EACH GROUP WILL QUALIFY FOR THE QUARTER-FINALS)

 GROUP B: INDIA, SOUTH AFRICA, ENGLAND, WEST INDIES, BANGLADESH, IRELAND, NETHERLANDS.

FEBRUARY
19 INDIA V BANGLADESH, MIRPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
22 ENGLAND V NETHERLANDS, NAGPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
24 SOUTH AFRICA V WEST INDIES, NEW DELHI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
25 BANGLADESH V IRELAND, MIRPUR PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
27 INDIA V ENGLAND, BANGALORE (D/N) - PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
28 WEST INDIES V NETHERLANDS, NEW DELHI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT

MARCH
2 ENGLAND V IRELAND, BANGALORE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
3 SOUTH AFRICA V NETHERLANDS, MOHALI PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
4 BANGLADESH V WEST INDIES, MIRPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
6 SOUTH AFRICA V ENGLAND, CHENNAI PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
6 INDIA V IRELAND, BANGALORE (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
9 INDIA V NETHERLANDS, NEW DELHI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
11 WEST INDIES V IRELAND, MOHALI PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
11 BANGLADESH V ENGLAND, CHITTAGONG (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
12 SOUTH AFRICA V IRELAND, NAGPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
14 BANGLADESH V NETHERLANDS, CHITTAGONG PLAY STARTS 0330 GMT
15 IRELAND V SOUTH AFRICA, KOLKATA (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
17 ENGLAND V WEST INDIES, CHENNAI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
18 NETHERLANDS V IRELAND, KOLKATA PLAY STARTS 0400 GMT
19 BANGLADESH V SOUTH AFRICA, MIRPUR PLAY STARTS 0330 GMT
20 INDIA V WEST INDIES, CHENNAI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
(FOUR TEAMS FROM EACH GROUP WILL QUALIFY FOR THE QUARTER-FINALS)

KNOCK-OUT PHASE

MARCH
23 FIRST QUARTER-FINAL, MIRPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
24 SECOND QUARTER-FINAL, AHMEDABAD (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
25 THIRD QUARTER-FINAL, MIRPUR (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0830 GMT
26 FOURTH QUARTER-FINAL, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 0900 GMT
29 FIRST SEMI-FINAL, COLOMBO (D/N) PLAY STARTS 1000 BST
30 SECOND SEMI-FINAL, MOHALI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 1000 BST

APRIL 2 FINAL, MUMBAI (D/N) PLAY STARTS 1000 BST

Where the games will be played

EDEN GARDENS - KOLKATA
Established in 1864, the world-famous ground is the country’s biggest cricket venue and had initially a seating capacity of 120,000 before renovations reduced it to its current capacity of 90,000. It hosted its first Test in 1934 between India and England, and the first ODI was played here between India and Pakistan in 1987. The ground is famous for its passionate and vocal crowd and has previously hosted the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1987 and 1996. The venue was witness to some famous individual feats including Harbhajan Singh becoming the first-ever Indian bowler to capture a Test hat-trick against Australia in March 2001 and Kapil Dev’s ODI hat-trick against Sri Lanka in January 1991.

Feroz Shah Kotla - Delhi
Established in 1883, the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, formerly known as Willingdon Pavilion, is run by Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) and is named after Feroz Shah Tughlaq of the Tughlaq dynasty from the 14th century. It held its first official match on November 10, 1948 between India and West Indies. The stadium with a seating capacity of 48,000 has also hosted the 1987 and 1996 ICC Cricket World Cups. Anil Kumble famously took his 10 Test wickets in an innings on this ground in 1999 against Pakistan. In 1983-84, Sunil Gavaskar scored his 29th century to equal Don Bradman’s long standing record for the highest number of hundreds in Test cricket. In 2005-06, Sachin Tendulkar broke Gavaskar’s record of most centuries with his 35th Test century in this venue.

Wankhede Stadium - Mumbai
Established in 1974, the stadium is located less than a mile away from Brabourne Stadium. Its seaside proximity assists swing bowlers during the early part of each day. It is currently being rebuilt ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. The first Test in the ground was played in January 1975 between India and West Indies. The venue has played host to ICC Cricket World Cup 1987 and 1996.

M. A.Chidambaram Stadium - Chennai
The venue, better known as Chepauk Stadium, was established in 1916, and has a capacity of 50,000. The first Test was played here in February 1934 between India and England and the stadium has also hosted the 1987 and 1996 ICC Cricket World Cups. The first-ever Ranji Trophy match between Mysore and Tamil Nadu was also played here. Pakistan’s Saeed Anwar scored his famous knock of 194 against India in the Independence Cup match in 1997 at the same venue. India’s Virender Sehwag produced his classic triple-hundred at this venue in the 2008 Test between India and South Africa. The stadium is also recognised for the sporting behaviour of its crowd, which is reputed to be one of the most knowledgeable and appreciative in the country.

Punjab Cricket Association Stadium - Mohali
The 30,000-seat venue was established in 1993, and was transformed from a swamp with deep ravines into one of India’s top sporting venues in the space of just two years. The first official match played here was an ODI between India and South Africa in November 1993. It was the venue for the thrilling ICC CWC 1996 semi-final in 1996 when Australia beat the West Indies by five runs. The pitch initially assisted pace bowlers, especially in Test matches, but it has subsequently settled down to become a batsman’s paradise. West Indies’ Jimmy Adams has fond memories of the ground , in 1994, he scored 174 not and 78 not out, leading his side to victory by 243 runs. The venue is considered to be one of the best in the country, with world-class facilities for practice, spectators as well the media.

Vidharba Cricket Association Stadium - Nagpur
This stadium, with a seating capacity of 45,000, was established in 2008 and boasts some of the best facilities in the country for players, spectators and media. Built over 35-acres of land, the venue is located 20 kilometres from the city center. The first official match played here was the fourth Test between India and Australia in November 2008. The Vidarbha Cricket Association subsequently installed floodlights in the stadium for the day and night ODI series against Australia in 2009-10. The ground also hosted the second ODI between India and Sri Lanka in December 2009 when the venue was shifted from Vishakhapatnam due to security reasons.

Sardar Patel Stadium - Ahmedabad
Also known as Motera, the stadium was established in 1982 and is built on the banks of the Sabarmati River on the outskirts of Ahmedabad. Located on a 50-acre site, it took only nine months to construct the 48,000-seater stadium. The first match played here was the third Test between India and West Indies in November 1983. The venue also hosted the first match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 1996 between India and Zimbabwe in October 1987. The venue has witnessed some memorable Indian feats including Sunil Gavaskar achieving 10,000 Test runs against Pakistan in 1986-87, and Kapil Dev claiming his 432nd victim to break Richard Hadlee’s record as leading Test wicket-taker.

M. Chinnaswamy Stadium - Bangalore
Established in 1969, the venue was originally named as Karnataka State Cricket Association Stadium and eventually renamed after M Chinnaswamy, who was the president of the Indian board from 1977 until 1980. The stadium was given Test status in 1974-75 and hosted West Indies in the opening match, although the stadium was only half-built. That match was also the debut of two West Indian greats, Gordon Greenidge and Viv Richards. The venue, with a capacity of 50,000, has also hosted ICC CWC matches in 1987 and 1996 including the fierce CWC quarterfinal between India and Pakistan in March 1996.

R. Premadasa Stadium - Colombo
Established in 1986, the venue, named after former Sri Lanka president Ranasinghe Premadasa, was earlier named Khettarama Stadium. It is the biggest stadium in the country and was built on swampland previously used by monks ferrying across to the Khettarama temple adjacent to the stadium. The 35,000-seater venue hosted its first official match with the ODI between Sri Lanka and New Zealand played on April 1986. The first Test was played between Sri Lanka and Australia in September 1992. A new training centre was developed behind the stadium with 16 practice pitches and dormitories for the Academy which started in 2003.

Pallekele Cricket Stadium - Kandy
The venue is being built exclusively for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and will host three CWC matches.Pallakele was acquired by SLC in 2006 for developing it into an international venue with lights so that international cricket matches can be hosted. The venue has already hosted an U19 match between Pakistan and Bangladesh, during the tri-series in late 2009.
The project, to be built at an estimated cost of $3.93 million, will have a capacity of 25,000 and would also be beneficial for schools around the area.

Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium, Sooriyawewa, Hambantota
Established in 2009, the venue is being built exclusively for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and will host two CWC matches. Sri Lanka Cricket considered building new venues when existing grounds like Galle, SSC and P Sara Oval, did not qualify for having capacity crowds of less than 20,000. The project to build an international cricket stadium in Hambantota with lights was approved in 2006 by Sri Lanka Cricket. The entire cost of the stadium is estimated to be US$7.86 million and is expected to be ready by August 2010.

Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium - Chittagong
The venue is also known as Chittagong Divsional Stadium and previously known as Bir Shrestha Shahid Ruhul Amin Stadium. Situated about half-an-hour outside the city centre, the stadium was one of the five purpose-built cricket grounds established in the run-up to the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2004. Spectators can enjoy both cricket and breathtaking beauty of the Bay of Bengal simultaneously for the wonderful location of the stadium. It was granted full international status in January 2006, ahead of Sri Lanka’s visit to the country.

Sher-e-Bangla Cricket Stadium - Dhaka
Established in 2006, the venue was named after AK Fazlul Haque - the country’s renowned leader and has a seating capacity of 25,000. The stadium will host the opening ceremony of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. The first official match played here was the ODI between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe in December 2008 and the ground was granted as Test venue status in 2007.

Sandy cricket sculpture

AS THE COUNTDOWN FOR THE 2011 WORLD CUP BEGINS, ACCLAIMED SAND ARTIST SUDARSAN PATTNAIK HAS CREATED A 125-FT-LONG CRICKET BAT OF SAND IN ORISSA IN AN ATTEMPT TO SET A NEW WORLD RECORD.
Pattnaik has created the sand sculpture on the beach in his hometown of Puri, 56 km from here, with the help of 15 students of the Golden Sand Art Institute run by him.
“We have also created a ball and a stadium by using a total of 50 tonnes of sand,” Pattnaik told IANS, adding that hundreds of tourists and cricket fans visited the site Saturday and signed on the sand to convey their best wishes to team India for the World Cup starting Feb 19.
The artist said he created the sculpture last week after informing officials of the Limca Book of Records.
“The bat I created on sand is the longest one on earth. It is likely to be listed as a world record in the Limca Book of Records,” said Pattnaik, who has won several global competitions.
Pattnaik has earlier figured in the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 editions of the Limca Book of Records.