The World Cricket League Division Two Qualifiers begin in Dubai on Friday, and who Bermuda select and how they play will determine the Island’s international fate for the next two years.While a top-two finish would seem unlikely given the inconsistent nature of the team’s performances in the build-up to the tournament, a top-four spot is well within their grasp, and essential if the sport is to survive, let alone flourish, on the Island.Avoiding relegation, which is the punishment for finishing in the bottom two, would allow Bermuda to retain their High Performance status, and with it the $400,000 they receive annually from the International Cricket Council.Given the cut in funding that the Bermuda Cricket Board suffered in the recent Budget, that money is almost as important as promotion to Division One would be.Getting off to a winning start then is essential, and given that Bermuda’s tougher opponents come towards the end of the competition, doubly more so.Up first are Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong, two teams who came through the Division Three tournament in January, and who head coach David Moore has said he would ‘never ever dream about taking lightly’.How that will be reflected in the make-up of the side for the first game is something that will be debated right up until the teams are announced on Friday morning. Moore certainly isn’t giving anything away.If the past is anything to go by, then Bermuda are likely to field six batsmen and five bowlers, and in his year in charge Moore has expressed the view that if you can’t win with six batsmen then there is something wrong.In fact, the Australian has the rare luxury of being able to do almost anything he wants with the line-up. While Monday’s defeat at the hands of Namibia might suggest otherwise, Bermuda can bat right the way down the order.Neither Malachi Jones, Delyone Borden nor Rodney Trott are mugs with the bat, and even Stefan Kelly can hold his own.On the bowling side, Jones, Kelly, Borden and Trott are certain to play, leaving the question of whether to play the extra batsman or a fifth bowler.Given that Irving Romaine, and to a lesser extent, Dion Stovell, can perform as more than part-time bowlers, then including the likes of Kyle Hodsoll, Jim West or Damali Bell could be viewed as overkill.Of the three, Bell appears most likely to be selected, especially as he was left out of Monday’s game as a precaution against aggravating a mild ankle injury.The Cleveland bowler, however, is still very raw and largely untested at this level, making his inclusion something of a risk. He does have genuine pace though, which is always an asset. Meanwhile, any batsman who misses out can count themselves extremely unlucky. The collective failure against Namibia aside, all have shown themselves to be in some sort of form in the past couple of months.If Stovell is passed fit, as is expected, he should open the batting with Hemp, leaving Jason Anderson to potentially come in at three with Romaine and Lionel Cann to follow further down the order.The battle in the batting line-up could well come down to Fiqre Crockwell and Chris Foggo, both of whom offer something in the field as well as with the bat.As with the inclusion of an extra bowler, squeezing seven batsmen into the line-up might seem unnecessary, although given Bermuda’s inability to bat for 50 overs any help the team can get might be a good idea.In the end it is likely to be a game time decision, based on the wicket, and if it’s slow and low as it was on Monday, picking an extra seamer would be unlikely.Whatever happens the 11 that do play will be the strongest team available, because Moore knows the importance of making a winning start, as well as making a statement for the rest of the tournament.