Champions League T20 – Qualifiers - Preview - Part 1
With cricket’s most lucrative competition, the Champions League T20, just around the corner, Bettor.com previews the six teams which will be taking part in the qualifying round of the fourth edition, played in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757.
They have been divided in two Pools, with only two making it to the tournament proper, which starts from October 13.
Pool 1 – http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Auckland-c766 Aces (New Zealand)
This will be the first time a team from Pakistan will take part in the competition, following the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754.
The big names for http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Abdur-Rehman-c41691, after he was found guilty of using banned substance by the ECB.
The team further suffered a 23-run defeat at the hands of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Yorkshire-c867, the other English side, in the only warm-up game.
Their first match will be against Auckland Aces, who are making their second appearance in the competition. The management will be hoping to improve on their performances from last season, where they failed to qualify from their pool, following two consecutive losses.
Their skipper, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/GJ-Hopkins-c1490, feels that the team has prepared well this time around, and is confident of avoiding an early exit. "As a team, we are representing New Zealand domestic cricket out here and we have a responsibility to do well for the rest and showcase our strength as a nation," Hopkins, Auckland's captain said. "We're putting a lot more emphasis on preparation."
They have sufficient fire-power in their ranks, which include locals in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Azhar-Mahmood-c1116, the former Pakistani all-rounder, and his presence will help them get additional insight on their opponents.
Their preparations could be gauged from the fact that they arrived almost two weeks before the start of the tournament, and further trained at Pretoria's High Performance Centre, which is rated among the best sporting centres in the world. They further beat Trinidad & Tobago by an easy eight wicket-margin in the only warm-up ahead of the CL qualifiers.
The third team in the group, Hampshire, are the reigning England domestic T20 champions. After struggling in the County Championship, the Royals compensated their fans by becoming the best limited-overs side in the country, lifting a precious double, the Friends Life T20 and Clydesdale Bank 40.
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