Imports do the trick!
Playing cricket is always a passion wherever the game is played, by only a selected few that gets the chance to represent their country at the highest level. However these days, it isn’t that difficult because countries that offer dual nationalities can give and take a player from another team. Moreover it was these lucky cricketers that helped their sides defeat the best players in the world but got them into the grand finale as well.
England takes the lead when it comes to using cricketers born anywhere but in England. They reached the final of the one day World Cup in 1987 and 1992 banking on their most famous import; Allan Lamb. West Indian imports Philip DeFreitas and Gladstone Small also represented England in multiple World Cups, twice taking their side to the final. Chris Lewis and Robin Smith were also an important part of the English side in the 90s, and they all were born abroad.
Even at the turn of the new millennium, England continued to give test caps to their best players in county cricket and that included Pakistani’s like: Usman Afzaal, Owais Shah, Adil Rashid and Sajid Mehmood and Dmitri Mascarenhas who is of Sri Lankan Tamil heritage. England’s first Sikh cricketer Monty Panesar had a part to play in many matches before being ditched in favour of the much impressive Graeme Swann who is not only a more attacking bowler but also a better batsman and a fielder, as one would say, “an all rounder”. Even the great English skipper Nasser Hussain was born in Madras, India before being brought up in England, due to his English mother.
However it was the amalgamation of such cosmopolitan cricketers in the 15-member English squad for the Twenty20 World Cup that caught everybody’s eye. As many as six cricketers in the English squad were born outside England or were from non-English parents. Middle-order batsman Ravi Bopara is of Indian descent and was not used much except for a game in the recent ICC event due to the success of the top order, which comprised of South African-born Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb. They were followed in the batting order by another import from South Africa who has been more English than most Englishmen recently, Kevin Pietersen. The burly batsman has been the star for England for the last few years and all his supporters feel he did right by quitting cricket in South Africa and moving over to England.
The former England captain is followed by the most exciting prospect in the English limited overs side, Eoin Morgan, who was in the Irish squad that defeated Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup. Morgan was the wicket keeper in the Ireland XI but ever since he used his parent’s card to qualify for England, he has been outstanding. Another non-English cricketer Ajmal Shahzad has Pakistani parents and was part of the ICC winning squad, and as per the Zimbabwean coach of the England side Andy Flower, Ajmal has loads of talent that England can use.
England spinners are also indebted to their Spin Bowling Coach Mushtaq Ahmed who is also an import from Pakistan yet looked at ease in English colours as well. Must not forget that the opener, English didn’t select for the T20 side - Jonathan Trott - won them the Ashes last year with his debut century, and he is from South Africa.
Australia’s leg spinner Steven Smith could have been another would-have been because his mother is English and dad is Australian and due to the support he received Down Under, he started to go for baggy green, ditching his mom‘s support for the Queen! Then there is Dirk Nannes, the most prolific bowler of the tournament who is in fact a Dutchman in the Australian side. Nannes was part of the Dutch side that defeated England last year, but he could redo his magic in Aussie colours, failing to win the match and stopping England’s ascent.
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