‘Of course we can beat Canada, but we know we have to be perfect’
Bermuda Cricket Board president Arnold Manders has challenged the men’s national team to seize a golden opportunity to fulfil their aspiration of qualifying for the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup on home soil.
The team drew plaudits for their performance in the Americas Sub-Regional Qualifier in Buenos Aires this month, breezing through the tournament with a flawless record to ensure progress into the final ICC T20 World Cup qualifiers in Bermuda in September.
While nothing but navigation through the first stage of qualification was expected, Manders praised the squad before calling on the players to switch focus to achieving the ultimate goal of a place at next year’s World Cup in West Indies and United States.
“The performance out in Argentina was extremely pleasing, the players did what they were expected to do and, in some circumstances, better than we thought,” said Manders, who is adamant the impressive foundations laid by the team in South America can still be built upon.
“However, it is important that we all now move on and work towards the next phase of qualification. We equipped ourselves really well but there are definitely a number of areas that we need to build on going forward, including our opening batters finding ways of scoring centuries more regularly and also being perfect in the field.
“We are well aware that this is a fantastic opportunity to qualify for a World Cup and it is up to the players to make sure they go out there, take that opportunity fully and get the job done.”
Despite being ranked second behind Canada, Manders is confident that home advantage can prove pivotal in Bermuda clinching the last World Cup qualifying spot, with United States qualifying as jhosts.
“Of course we can beat Canada on home soil, but we know we will have to be perfect in all aspects of our game because you can’t afford to give a team like that any chances,” he added.
“Being in Bermuda gives us a massive chance to beat Canada, especially with the support of the public, who we hope will come out and be our twelfth man.”
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