Cricket T20 World Cup: Hong Kong heeding Riot Act after coach Simon Willis’ order to get fit, Nizakat Khan says
- Hong Kong preparing for qualifiers in Nepal for next year’s tournament in West Indies and the United States
- City’s captain Nizakat hails improvement since April’s ACC Premier Cup, also in Nepal, which showed ‘our physical level was not there’
Captain Nizakat Khan says a fitter Hong Kong side are in good shape to target T20 World Cup qualification in Nepal this week – after knuckling down to avoid a repeat of their chastening visit to the Himalayan country in April.
Hong Kong begin their bid to reach the global 2024 competition when they face Kuwait on Monday. They play Bahrain the following day and wrap up their Group B fixtures against United Arab Emirates on Thursday.
The top two teams will advance to Friday’s semi-finals, with both finalists to be handed spots in next year’s tournament, being staged in West Indies and the United States.
Hong Kong lost their opening three matches of a warm-up tri-series featuring the hosts and UAE, before batting fireworks from Babar Hayat – who took only 15 balls to pass 50 – and opener Martin Coetzee inspired a pasting of UAE in the closing game.
Nizakat insisted Hong Kong were peaking at an opportune time, and the breathless qualifying schedule would not trouble a team who rethought their approach to conditioning after suffering in the altitude of Nepal during this year’s 50-over ACC Premier Cup.
“Our physical level was not there when we came in April,” Nizakat said. “We did a lot of work on our fitness. The head coach [Simon Willis, appointed in March], said improving fitness was as important as increasing our skill levels.
“Before April, our gym work would focus only on our upper bodies, and the fast bowlers were sustaining lots of lower-body injuries.
“The programme changed – we were in the gym twice a week during the off-season, in addition to net training on three days. Our fast bowlers are fit and strong, and every player is in good shape.”
South Africa-born Coetzee endured a fallow start to his international career in Nepal, scoring only three runs from his opening three matches, but hit his straps with 86 from 55 balls in Wednesday’s 69-run win over UAE.
The irresistible Babar finished unbeaten on 60 from 20 deliveries, as Hong Kong landed a psychological blow on their group opponents.
“UAE are the top team in our pool and that result gave us confidence,” Nizakat said. “Martin felt some pressure on his first tour, but in the last game he played freely and deserves credit.
“And when Babar fires, it makes a massive difference for us. He is in good nick and very relaxed.”
Nizakat and Babar were both part of the Hong Kong teams that played in T20 World Cups in 2014 and 2016, beating hosts Bangladesh in the former.
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“Every global tournament is vital for the associate countries,” Nizakat said. “If we qualify for the World Cup, it would give us lots of cricket, with tours and preparation. More cricket is the only way to improve. And if you plan well, you can beat any team in the T20 format.
“We went to Nepal early to acclimate to the wickets and conditions – we are high above sea level, the ball travels quickly and it is hard to field.”
Hong Kong have hired former Pakistan all-rounder Yasir Arafat as bowling coach, and Nizakat said he was already “using his knowledge as one of the world’s best T20 bowlers to have a positive effect on our attack”.
And he hailed the steadying influence of Englishman Willis, formerly Sri Lanka high-performance manager.
“The biggest thing is his calmness,” Nizakat said. “We used to panic a lot, but the way he talked with us and told us to believe in ourselves has impacted every player.
“If you are calm, you handle pressure well, and we are confident of performing in this tournament.”
