The ICC T20 World Cup 2024 is the biggest edition of the tournament to date in terms of number of participants. As many as 20 cricketing nations will face off for the coveted trophy as the tournament reaches the shores of the Caribbean and the United States.
Uganda, Canada, Papua New Guinea and Oman are all among the teams preparing to take on the conventional powerhouses of the game. These associate members of the ICC, as they are called officially, can become kingmakers by setting up upsets that may ultimately decide the outcome of the group stages. There is a fair share of note-worthy performances by the associate countries, despite the scant opportunities given to them.
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As the ninth edition of the World Cup heads closer, let us look at some memorable performances by the associate teams at ICC T20 World Cups.
1. The Netherlands defeat England, 2009
In the match held at the Lord’s Cricket Ground, London, on June 5, 2009, the Netherlands beat England by 4 wickets. The high hopes of the English giants for a good start to the T20 World Cup at home were bashed by the underdogs in orange.
Peter Borren dives to make his ground as Ravi Bopara fumbles | AP
Openers Ravi Bopara (46 of 39) and Luke Wright (71 off 49) gave the English a brilliant start but things started to go downhill for England with the dismissal of Bopara by Ryan ten Doeschate. Wright’s dismissal and low scores by others caused England to halt at 162.
Although the Dutch lost its top three inside 66 runs, Tom de Grooth (49 off 30), who was later named the Man of the Match changed the game with his partnership with Peter Borren. After Grooth’s dismissal, Borren (30 off 25) and ten Doeschate (22 not out of 17) took control of the chase. Things went down to the wire as the Netherlands needed just 7 off the final over bowled by Stuart Broad.
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Two needed off the final ball, England fumbled and Edgar Schiferli (5 not out off 7), took advantage of an overthrow to win the game for Holland.
2. Scotland beat Bangladesh, 2021
Mark Watt is pumped after getting rid of Afif Hossain | ICC
In the second game of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021, the Scottish team defeated Bangladesh on October 17 at the Al Amerat Cricket Stadium, Oman.
Being an associate member of the ICC since 1994, Bangladesh were clear favourites over the European side. Batting first, Scotland lost their top six before 12 overs. However, rookie Chris Greaves, who was playing his only second international match, saved Scotland from the weak position of 53/6 with a rapid 45 off 28 balls. Teaming up with Mark Watt, he added 51 runs to the seventh wicket, setting up a score of 140 for Bangladesh to chase.
Bangladesh’s batting received a huge setback when the crucial wickets of Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim fell not long after the openers. Scotland’s relentless bowling attack paid off as the Tigers only managed 134/7 in their 20 overs. Greaves, who returned with the ball after his marvellous knock to claim two crucial wickets, was announced as the Man of the Match.
3. Netherlands win over South Africa, 2022
RSA's Quinton de Kock walks off the field after getting dismissed against Holland | AFP
On November 6, 2022, at the Adelaide Oval, Australia, the South African team was defeated by the Dutch by 13 runs. Batting first, the Dutch scored 158/4 with notable contributions from their top four batters. Colin Ackermann, who made an unbeaten 41 off 26 balls, was the most menacing of the lot.
While Keshav Maharaj managed a good spell (4-0-27-2), the Proteas batters could not deliver what was expected of them. South African batters failed to play long innings as the Dutch used varied paces to unsettle them.
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David Miller’s departure after a run-a-ball 17 turned the game's momentum in the Netherlands’ favour. They soon recorded a famous win as South Africa finished 145/8 in their 20. Fred Klaasen and Bas de Leede picked two wickets each for the 'Oranje.'
4. Hong Kong beat Bangladesh, 2014
Hong Kong's Jamie Atkinson is elated to dismissed Bangladesh's Rubel Hossain | AP
The hosts, Bangladesh, suffered a shocking defeat against novice Hong Kong when they met at the 10th match of the tournament on March 20, 2014, at the Zahur Ahmed Chaudhary Stadium, Chittagong.
Hong Kong‘s choice to bowl gave the team proved right as they managed to dismiss Bangladesh for just 108 runs in 16.3 overs. The Hong Kong bowling lineup led by Nadeem Ahmed (3.3-0-21-4) and Nizakat Khan (4-0-19-3) had a dream outing before the batters managed to fend off a superior bowling attack. Chasing the lowly target, they lost eight wickets before Haseeb Amjad ended the game with a dashing sixer with two balls to spare.
5. Ireland’s loss to Namibia, 2021
On October 22, 2021, Namibia defeated the Irishmen with eight wickets to spare at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Openers Paul Stirling (38) and Kevin O'Brien (24), along with Andy Balbirnie (21) at number three, were the only batters to cross the two-digit mark as the European side was restricted to 125. Jan Frylinck (4-0-21-3) and the vastly experienced David Wiese (4-0-22-2) headed a collective effort by Namibia, which looked inferior to opponents on paper ahead of the game.
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Ireland's Craig Young and Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus after the epic T20 World Cup match |AFP
In return, captain Gerhard Erasmus’ half-century helped Namibia to chase down the target with nine balls to spare at Sharjah's flat wicket. Namibia only lost the wickets of their openers as Erasmus remained unbeaten on 53 from 49 balls. This eight-wicket win secured Namibia a position in the Super 12s and earned them a spot in the next edition of the T20 World Cup held in Australia.
