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Peter Della PennaCricket
Allrounders Adil Bhatti and Usman Rafiq have been named in a 15-man USA squad that will play five 50-over matches against Kenya, Nepal and Oman in Abu Dhabi and Oman from December 1-7. Ibrahim Khaleel continues to lead the side after replacing Steven Taylor as captain ahead of the Auty Cup in September.
Fast bowler Ali Khan, who did not make himself available for the selection, is the only player left out from the USA squad that notched a 2-1 series win over Canada in September to reclaim the Auty Cup for the first time since 1991. Khan’s absence means that Timil Patel is the only one of USA’s five CPL players from the 2017 summer left in the USA squad. Former captain Steven Taylor is pursuing a West Indies cap, having signed a first-class contract with Jamaica, while Akeem Dodson and Timroy Allen were both dropped after poor performances at ICC WCL Division Three in Uganda last May.
“We decided to keep the team largely unchanged due to the recent success, both on and off the field, of the current playing group,” USA selection chairman Ricardo Powell said in a press release. “The team performed exceptionally well in Toronto during the Auty Cup and showed true fighting spirit which is a trait that is so important to what we are building in the United States.
“I have no doubt the players will gain a great deal from this tour and continue to build on the most recent success, continuing to understand their roles and responsibilities within the team and country.”
Bhatti, 33, has not played an official match for USA since the 2015 World T20 Qualifier in Ireland. His last one-day match for USA was more than three years ago when he was named Man of the Match for three wickets and an unbeaten 52 in the 5th-place playoff against Bermuda at the 2014 WCL Division Three in Malaysia.
Rafiq, 29, has played in three unofficial warm-up matches for USA against a series of CPL squads in Fort Lauderdale in 2016 and 2017. However, he is yet to play in an official match for the country and this will be his first overseas tour. Though he has shown flashes with the bat at various US trials, Rafiq is viewed primarily as an offspinner and his selection is aimed at filling the like-for-like bowling void left by Taylor. Taylor’s main role for USA was as an opening batsman but nobody in the USA squad bowled more overs than him (127.5 overs) during his 15 matches in charge as captain from 2016-17, doing it at a team best economy rate of 3.59.
USA will arrive in Abu Dhabi on November 28 and will have two days of training before the first match against Nepal on December 1. They will then play Kenya on December 2 before traveling to Oman for three more matches on December 4, 5, and 7 at the Al-Amerat complex on the outskirts of Muscat. It will be USA’s maiden tour of Oman.
For Kenya and Nepal, the matches against USA will serve as preparation ahead of the final round of the WCL Championship matches against Scotland and UAE respectively on December 6 and 8. Meanwhile, for Oman, the three matches serve as early preparation for their February trip to Namibia to take part in the ICC WCL Division Three. Oman will need a top two finish at the six-team tournament to advance to the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe next March.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo