T20 WC teams: SWOT analysis

T20 WC teams: SWOT analysis

INDIA (defending champions)

Strengths:
Confident side under the assured leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The team are experienced and an average age of 25 means vastly improved fielding with the Indian Premier League helping players to learn to keep their cool under pressure.
Weaknesses:
Fatigue after a long season could have left the players jaded. Strike bowler Zaheer Khan is recovering from a shoulder injury while the subdued displays of openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir during the IPL are a concern.


Key Player:
Yuvraj Singh is an explosive left-handed batsman who hit England paceman Stuart Broad for six sixes in one over during India's surprise triumph in the inaugural edition in South Africa two years ago. Now more mature and in excellent batting form, his slow left-arm spin and sharp fielding at point will boost the team.


Odds: 11/4
Squad:
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Gautam Gambhir, Ravindra Jadeja, Praveen Kumar, Irfan Pathan, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Pragyan Ojha, Yusuf Pathan, Ishant Sharma, RP Singh.

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Consistency the key

PAKISTAN (2007 Runners-up)
Strengths:
Skipper Younis Khan needs to do little to motivate a team hungry for success after being starved of international games due to security concerns at home. The 2007 finalists know success will go a long way to revitalise Pakistan cricket and if the batsmen play to their potential, their bowlers led by Sohail Tanvir and Shahid Afridi can come into play.


Weaknesses:
Players missed out on useful practice in the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to political tension between Pakistan and India following the Mumbai attacks last November. The team are also notoriously inconsistent, exiting the last 50-overs World Cup in the first round.


Key Player:
Afridi, whose all-out aggression seemed to have anticipated the demands of Twenty20 cricket, is a vital component. Although unpredictable and without a half-century in 16 Twenty20 internationals, he can be explosive with the bat. His good recent form with his fast leg-spin and sharp fielding will be crucial.


Odds: 6/1
Squad:
Younis Khan (captain), Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Aamir, Salman ****, Shahzaib Hasan, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat, Ahmed Shehzad, Rao Iftikhar, Misbah-ul-Haq, Saeed Ajmal, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik, Umar Gul.

Desperately seeking T20 success





AUSTRALIA

Strengths:
Australia are ranked number one in the world in test cricket, have won the last three World Cups and are the holders of the Champions Trophy. They are one of the few cricketing countries to make money from the sport and they boast a seemingly endless production line of top-quality players.
Weaknesses:
Among the last of the major cricket countries to embrace Twenty20 and have been reluctant to treat it any more seriously than a money-making novelty event. Test cricket remains the priority.


Key Player:
David Warner is the only specialist Twenty20 player in the squad. An explosive left-handed opener, he blasted 89 from 43 balls in his Twenty20 debut against South Africa in January.


Odds: 9/2
Squad:
Ricky Ponting (captain), Nathan Bracken, Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz, Ben Hilfenhaus, James Hopes, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Peter Siddle, Andrew Symonds, David Warner, Shane Watson.

Banking on all-round experience

SOUTH AFRICA

Strengths:
Boast a strong and deep batting lineup. Batsmen of the calibre of Graeme Smith and the in-form JP Duminy and AB de Villiers are all s****ed Twenty20 cricketers while all-rounder Albie Morkel is one of world cricket's most fearsome hitters.


Weaknesses:


Will be concerned about their lack of suitable bowlers in the final overs. Fast bowler Dale Steyn will provide plenty for the opposition to think about from one end but South Africa's choices are limited at the other.


Key Player:
Proteas' captain and opening batsman Smith plays a vital role. He leads from the front and if he can get his team off to good starts, and shrug off the effects of a tennis elbow injury, South Africa will be confident of a successful tournament.


Odds: 9/2


Squad:
Graeme Smith (captain), Yusuf Abdulla, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Justin Ontong, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Roelof van der Merwe.

Variety abounds




NEW ZEALAND

Strengths:
New Zealand habitually punch above their weight in limited-overs cricket, s****ping tenaciously and fielding enthusiastically. Brendon McCullum, one of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket, is ably supported by Jesse Ryder, Ross Taylor and Jacob Oram.


Weaknesses:
One-paced bowling, almost exclusively medium pace.


Key Player:


Captain Daniel Vettori is the best finger spinner around, relying in one-day cricket on variations of flight and pace.


Odds: 9/1


Squad:
Daniel Vettori (captain), Neil Broom, Ian Butler, Brendon Diamanti, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum, Nathan McCullum, Peter McGlashan, Kyle Mills, Iain O'Brien, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor.