Dubai , 30 March 2008Captain Louis Burger says his team peaking at the right time, delighted with performance against the Netherlands Namibia captain Louis Burger believes his team is well placed to qualify for this November's ICC Intercontinental Cup final after occupying the top position with three of its matches remaining. Namibia leads second-placed Kenya by two points and third-placed defending champions Ireland by 19 points with matches against Scotland , Bermuda and Ireland to come. If an unbeaten Namibia carries its good form into the match against Scotland starting at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek from Friday, it will seal a place in the final with Kenya and Ireland left to battle out for the remaining place. On the other side of the coin, if Scotland produces the same performance it showed in the 2006 tournament match in Aberdeen when it won by an innings and 65 runs, it will join in the race for the final while Namibia will be left to turn its focus on Bermuda which is winless from four matches and reeling at the bottom of the table. Burger believes his team can secure a place in the final in its forthcoming match and, reflecting on the Netherlands win he said: "It is always very important to peak at the right time and I can say with conviction that we are gaining momentum at the right time. "I think we have placed ourselves very nicely to earn a place in the final which was always our first target. I mean, if we manage to collect maximum points from the match against Scotland , we will go to 88 points which will be enough to guarantee us a place in the final. "However, all will not be lost if we draw or lose the match (against Scotland ) as, with all due respect, we have got a game against Bermuda remaining. Ideally, I would like to lock the arrangement next week and take the last two games to prepare ourselves for the big match." Burger said he believed his team will have an edge over Scotland , which last played in this tournament last August against Ireland . " Scotland is a very tough team but it has not played any four-day cricket lately and this time the match will be in our backyard. "I think our performance against the Netherlands would have given a lot of confidence to the players even though it was not entirely flawless; but was enough to keep our momentum going." Namibia , put into bat in overcast conditions, batted beautifully to reach 322-5 after the first day but threw the advantage out of the window when it lost its remaining five wickets for 15 runs on the second morning to be bowled out for 337. Nevertheless, it fought back through Kola Burger (4-44) and Louis Klazinga (3-25) to bowl out the Netherlands for 107 and force the follow-on. Burger, the 26-year-old left-arm fast bowler, overshadowed Ryan ten Doeschate's fine 116 with a career-best 5-27 as the Netherlands was dismissed for 323 in its second innings. Namibia , set a 94-run target, achieved victory in 19.3 overs. Captain Louis Burger said: "I was disappointed to lose the toss because the conditions were superb for bowling. But the batsmen nullified that disadvantage by batting with a lot of patience and by picking the right balls to score runs. "Although we couldn't post a score of over 450 on the second day, that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as our bowlers got an opportunity to exploit the conditions and dismiss the Netherlands for a very small total.
"That helped us exert as much pressure as possible on the Netherlands batsmen when they came out to bat for the second time. "I think Doeschate showed a lot of class in this batting but (Kola) Burger rightly deserved the Man of the Match award for his consistent performance with the ball. He used his natural angle effectively and even though a couple of catches went down, he kept the batsmen in check with his accuracy and his line and length." The ICC Intercontinental Cup has quickly grown in stature and profile since its inception three years ago and now the ICC's premier first-class tournament is an integral part of the Associate Members' cricket schedule. Having previously been designed around a two-group, three-day format, the event has evolved into an eight-team, round-robin and truly global tournament featuring four-day cricket which gives those teams who do not play Test cricket the chance to experience the longer form of the game. Scotland won the first ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2004, beating Canada in the final, while Ireland has been victorious in both events since then, beating Kenya in the 2005 decider and Canada in the 2006-07 event. The final of the ICC Intercontinental Cup 2007-08 will take place in November 2008 in the United Arab Emirates .
ICC Intercontinental Cup table (as of 30 March)
Team P WO WI D LI LO T Points
Namibia 4 4 3 - 1 - - 68
Kenya 4 3 4 - - 1 - 66
Ireland 3 2 3 1 - - - 49
Netherlands 4 2 1 - 2 2 - 34
Canada 4 1 2 - 2 3 - 26
Scotland 3 1 1 2 1 - - 26
UAE 6 1 1 1 4 4 - 23
Bermuda 4 0 1 - 3 4 - 6
WO - outright win - 14 points
WI - lead on first innings (also retained if outright loss) - 6 points
LI - behind on first innings - 0 points
LO - outright loss - 0 points
TO - outright tie - 7 points each
TI - tie first innings - 3 pts each
D - draw - 3 pts each
Remaining fixtures:
3-6 Apr - UAE v Netherlands , Sharjah Stadium
4-7 Apr - Namibia v Scotland , Windhoek
4-7 Jul - Canada v Bermuda, Toronto (Maple Leaf)
9-12 Jul - Netherlands v Ireland , Rotterdam (VOC)
10-13 Jul - Bermuda v Scotland , TBC
16-19 Jul - Canada v Scotland , Toronto (Maple Leaf)
6-9 Aug - Ireland v Canada , TBC
7-10 Aug - Scotland v Kenya , Glasgow (Clydesdale CC)
16-19 Aug - Netherlands v Kenya , Amsterdam (VRA CC)
3-6 Sep - Bermuda v Namibia , TBC
5-8 Oct - Namibia v Ireland , TBC
12-15 Oct - Kenya v Ireland , TBC
12-16 Nov – FINAL, UAE
MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dubai , 30 March 2008
Namibia well placed to qualify for ICC Intercontinental Cup final Captain Louis Burger says his team peaking at the right time, delighted with performance against the Netherlands Namibia captain Louis Burger believes his team is well placed to qualify for this November's ICC Intercontinental Cup final after occupying the top position with three of its matches remaining. Namibia leads second-placed Kenya by two points and third-placed defending champions Ireland by 19 points with matches against Scotland , Bermuda and Ireland to come. If an unbeaten Namibia carries its good form into the match against Scotland starting at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek from Friday, it will seal a place in the final with Kenya and Ireland left to battle out for the remaining place. On the other side of the coin, if Scotland produces the same performance it showed in the 2006 tournament match in Aberdeen when it won by an innings and 65 runs, it will join in the race for the final while Namibia will be left to turn its focus on Bermuda which is winless from four matches and reeling at the bottom of the table. Burger believes his team can secure a place in the final in its forthcoming match and, reflecting on the Netherlands win he said: "It is always very important to peak at the right time and I can say with conviction that we are gaining momentum at the right time. "I think we have placed ourselves very nicely to earn a place in the final which was always our first target. I mean, if we manage to collect maximum points from the match against Scotland , we will go to 88 points which will be enough to guarantee us a place in the final. "However, all will not be lost if we draw or lose the match (against Scotland ) as, with all due respect, we have got a game against Bermuda remaining. Ideally, I would like to lock the arrangement next week and take the last two games to prepare ourselves for the big match." Burger said he believed his team will have an edge over Scotland , which last played in this tournament last August against Ireland . " Scotland is a very tough team but it has not played any four-day cricket lately and this time the match will be in our backyard. "I think our performance against the Netherlands would have given a lot of confidence to the players even though it was not entirely flawless; but was enough to keep our momentum going." Namibia , put into bat in overcast conditions, batted beautifully to reach 322-5 after the first day but threw the advantage out of the window when it lost its remaining five wickets for 15 runs on the second morning to be bowled out for 337. Nevertheless, it fought back through Kola Burger (4-44) and Louis Klazinga (3-25) to bowl out the Netherlands for 107 and force the follow-on. Burger, the 26-year-old left-arm fast bowler, overshadowed Ryan ten Doeschate's fine 116 with a career-best 5-27 as the Netherlands was dismissed for 323 in its second innings. Namibia , set a 94-run target, achieved victory in 19.3 overs. Captain Louis Burger said: "I was disappointed to lose the toss because the conditions were superb for bowling. But the batsmen nullified that disadvantage by batting with a lot of patience and by picking the right balls to score runs. "Although we couldn't post a score of over 450 on the second day, that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as our bowlers got an opportunity to exploit the conditions and dismiss the Netherlands for a very small total.
"That helped us exert as much pressure as possible on the Netherlands batsmen when they came out to bat for the second time. "I think Doeschate showed a lot of class in this batting but (Kola) Burger rightly deserved the Man of the Match award for his consistent performance with the ball. He used his natural angle effectively and even though a couple of catches went down, he kept the batsmen in check with his accuracy and his line and length." The ICC Intercontinental Cup has quickly grown in stature and profile since its inception three years ago and now the ICC's premier first-class tournament is an integral part of the Associate Members' cricket schedule. Having previously been designed around a two-group, three-day format, the event has evolved into an eight-team, round-robin and truly global tournament featuring four-day cricket which gives those teams who do not play Test cricket the chance to experience the longer form of the game. Scotland won the first ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2004, beating Canada in the final, while Ireland has been victorious in both events since then, beating Kenya in the 2005 decider and Canada in the 2006-07 event. The final of the ICC Intercontinental Cup 2007-08 will take place in November 2008 in the United Arab Emirates .
ICC Intercontinental Cup table (as of 30 March)
Team P WO WI D LI LO T Points
Namibia 4 4 3 - 1 - - 68
Kenya 4 3 4 - - 1 - 66
Ireland 3 2 3 1 - - - 49
Netherlands 4 2 1 - 2 2 - 34
Canada 4 1 2 - 2 3 - 26
Scotland 3 1 1 2 1 - - 26
UAE 6 1 1 1 4 4 - 23
Bermuda 4 0 1 - 3 4 - 6
WO - outright win - 14 points
WI - lead on first innings (also retained if outright loss) - 6 points
LI - behind on first innings - 0 points
LO - outright loss - 0 points
TO - outright tie - 7 points each
TI - tie first innings - 3 pts each
D - draw - 3 pts each
Remaining fixtures:
3-6 Apr - UAE v Netherlands , Sharjah Stadium
4-7 Apr - Namibia v Scotland , Windhoek
4-7 Jul - Canada v Bermuda, Toronto (Maple Leaf)
9-12 Jul - Netherlands v Ireland , Rotterdam (VOC)
10-13 Jul - Bermuda v Scotland , TBC
16-19 Jul - Canada v Scotland , Toronto (Maple Leaf)
6-9 Aug - Ireland v Canada , TBC
7-10 Aug - Scotland v Kenya , Glasgow (Clydesdale CC)
16-19 Aug - Netherlands v Kenya , Amsterdam (VRA CC)
3-6 Sep - Bermuda v Namibia , TBC
5-8 Oct - Namibia v Ireland , TBC
12-15 Oct - Kenya v Ireland , TBC
12-16 Nov – FINAL, UAEMEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dubai , 30 March 2008
Namibia well placed to qualify for ICC Intercontinental Cup final Captain Louis Burger says his team peaking at the right time, delighted with performance against the Netherlands Namibia captain Louis Burger believes his team is well placed to qualify for this November's ICC Intercontinental Cup final after occupying the top position with three of its matches remaining. Namibia leads second-placed Kenya by two points and third-placed defending champions Ireland by 19 points with matches against Scotland , Bermuda and Ireland to come. If an unbeaten Namibia carries its good form into the match against Scotland starting at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek from Friday, it will seal a place in the final with Kenya and Ireland left to battle out for the remaining place. On the other side of the coin, if Scotland produces the same performance it showed in the 2006 tournament match in Aberdeen when it won by an innings and 65 runs, it will join in the race for the final while Namibia will be left to turn its focus on Bermuda which is winless from four matches and reeling at the bottom of the table. Burger believes his team can secure a place in the final in its forthcoming match and, reflecting on the Netherlands win he said: "It is always very important to peak at the right time and I can say with conviction that we are gaining momentum at the right time. "I think we have placed ourselves very nicely to earn a place in the final which was always our first target. I mean, if we manage to collect maximum points from the match against Scotland , we will go to 88 points which will be enough to guarantee us a place in the final. "However, all will not be lost if we draw or lose the match (against Scotland ) as, with all due respect, we have got a game against Bermuda remaining. Ideally, I would like to lock the arrangement next week and take the last two games to prepare ourselves for the big match." Burger said he believed his team will have an edge over Scotland , which last played in this tournament last August against Ireland . " Scotland is a very tough team but it has not played any four-day cricket lately and this time the match will be in our backyard. "I think our performance against the Netherlands would have given a lot of confidence to the players even though it was not entirely flawless; but was enough to keep our momentum going." Namibia , put into bat in overcast conditions, batted beautifully to reach 322-5 after the first day but threw the advantage out of the window when it lost its remaining five wickets for 15 runs on the second morning to be bowled out for 337. Nevertheless, it fought back through Kola Burger (4-44) and Louis Klazinga (3-25) to bowl out the Netherlands for 107 and force the follow-on. Burger, the 26-year-old left-arm fast bowler, overshadowed Ryan ten Doeschate's fine 116 with a career-best 5-27 as the Netherlands was dismissed for 323 in its second innings. Namibia , set a 94-run target, achieved victory in 19.3 overs. Captain Louis Burger said: "I was disappointed to lose the toss because the conditions were superb for bowling. But the batsmen nullified that disadvantage by batting with a lot of patience and by picking the right balls to score runs. "Although we couldn't post a score of over 450 on the second day, that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as our bowlers got an opportunity to exploit the conditions and dismiss the Netherlands for a very small total.
"That helped us exert as much pressure as possible on the Netherlands batsmen when they came out to bat for the second time. "I think Doeschate showed a lot of class in this batting but (Kola) Burger rightly deserved the Man of the Match award for his consistent performance with the ball. He used his natural angle effectively and even though a couple of catches went down, he kept the batsmen in check with his accuracy and his line and length." The ICC Intercontinental Cup has quickly grown in stature and profile since its inception three years ago and now the ICC's premier first-class tournament is an integral part of the Associate Members' cricket schedule. Having previously been designed around a two-group, three-day format, the event has evolved into an eight-team, round-robin and truly global tournament featuring four-day cricket which gives those teams who do not play Test cricket the chance to experience the longer form of the game. Scotland won the first ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2004, beating Canada in the final, while Ireland has been victorious in both events since then, beating Kenya in the 2005 decider and Canada in the 2006-07 event. The final of the ICC Intercontinental Cup 2007-08 will take place in November 2008 in the United Arab Emirates .
ICC Intercontinental Cup table (as of 30 March)
Team P WO WI D LI LO T Points
Namibia 4 4 3 - 1 - - 68
Kenya 4 3 4 - - 1 - 66
Ireland 3 2 3 1 - - - 49
Netherlands 4 2 1 - 2 2 - 34
Canada 4 1 2 - 2 3 - 26
Scotland 3 1 1 2 1 - - 26
UAE 6 1 1 1 4 4 - 23
Bermuda 4 0 1 - 3 4 - 6
WO - outright win - 14 points
WI - lead on first innings (also retained if outright loss) - 6 points
LI - behind on first innings - 0 points
LO - outright loss - 0 points
TO - outright tie - 7 points each
TI - tie first innings - 3 pts each
D - draw - 3 pts each
Remaining fixtures:
3-6 Apr - UAE v Netherlands , Sharjah Stadium
4-7 Apr - Namibia v Scotland , Windhoek
4-7 Jul - Canada v Bermuda, Toronto (Maple Leaf)
9-12 Jul - Netherlands v Ireland , Rotterdam (VOC)
10-13 Jul - Bermuda v Scotland , TBC
16-19 Jul - Canada v Scotland , Toronto (Maple Leaf)
6-9 Aug - Ireland v Canada , TBC
7-10 Aug - Scotland v Kenya , Glasgow (Clydesdale CC)
16-19 Aug - Netherlands v Kenya , Amsterdam (VRA CC)
3-6 Sep - Bermuda v Namibia , TBC
5-8 Oct - Namibia v Ireland , TBC
12-15 Oct - Kenya v Ireland , TBC
12-16 Nov – FINAL, UAE
MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dubai , 30 March 2008
Namibia well placed to qualify for ICC Intercontinental Cup final Captain Louis Burger says his team peaking at the right time, delighted with performance against the Netherlands Namibia captain Louis Burger believes his team is well placed to qualify for this November's ICC Intercontinental Cup final after occupying the top position with three of its matches remaining. Namibia leads second-placed Kenya by two points and third-placed defending champions Ireland by 19 points with matches against Scotland , Bermuda and Ireland to come. If an unbeaten Namibia carries its good form into the match against Scotland starting at the Wanderers Cricket Ground in Windhoek from Friday, it will seal a place in the final with Kenya and Ireland left to battle out for the remaining place. On the other side of the coin, if Scotland produces the same performance it showed in the 2006 tournament match in Aberdeen when it won by an innings and 65 runs, it will join in the race for the final while Namibia will be left to turn its focus on Bermuda which is winless from four matches and reeling at the bottom of the table. Burger believes his team can secure a place in the final in its forthcoming match and, reflecting on the Netherlands win he said: "It is always very important to peak at the right time and I can say with conviction that we are gaining momentum at the right time. "I think we have placed ourselves very nicely to earn a place in the final which was always our first target. I mean, if we manage to collect maximum points from the match against Scotland , we will go to 88 points which will be enough to guarantee us a place in the final. "However, all will not be lost if we draw or lose the match (against Scotland ) as, with all due respect, we have got a game against Bermuda remaining. Ideally, I would like to lock the arrangement next week and take the last two games to prepare ourselves for the big match." Burger said he believed his team will have an edge over Scotland , which last played in this tournament last August against Ireland . " Scotland is a very tough team but it has not played any four-day cricket lately and this time the match will be in our backyard. "I think our performance against the Netherlands would have given a lot of confidence to the players even though it was not entirely flawless; but was enough to keep our momentum going." Namibia , put into bat in overcast conditions, batted beautifully to reach 322-5 after the first day but threw the advantage out of the window when it lost its remaining five wickets for 15 runs on the second morning to be bowled out for 337. Nevertheless, it fought back through Kola Burger (4-44) and Louis Klazinga (3-25) to bowl out the Netherlands for 107 and force the follow-on. Burger, the 26-year-old left-arm fast bowler, overshadowed Ryan ten Doeschate's fine 116 with a career-best 5-27 as the Netherlands was dismissed for 323 in its second innings. Namibia , set a 94-run target, achieved victory in 19.3 overs. Captain Louis Burger said: "I was disappointed to lose the toss because the conditions were superb for bowling. But the batsmen nullified that disadvantage by batting with a lot of patience and by picking the right balls to score runs. "Although we couldn't post a score of over 450 on the second day, that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as our bowlers got an opportunity to exploit the conditions and dismiss the Netherlands for a very small total.
"That helped us exert as much pressure as possible on the Netherlands batsmen when they came out to bat for the second time. "I think Doeschate showed a lot of class in this batting but (Kola) Burger rightly deserved the Man of the Match award for his consistent performance with the ball. He used his natural angle effectively and even though a couple of catches went down, he kept the batsmen in check with his accuracy and his line and length." The ICC Intercontinental Cup has quickly grown in stature and profile since its inception three years ago and now the ICC's premier first-class tournament is an integral part of the Associate Members' cricket schedule. Having previously been designed around a two-group, three-day format, the event has evolved into an eight-team, round-robin and truly global tournament featuring four-day cricket which gives those teams who do not play Test cricket the chance to experience the longer form of the game. Scotland won the first ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2004, beating Canada in the final, while Ireland has been victorious in both events since then, beating Kenya in the 2005 decider and Canada in the 2006-07 event. The final of the ICC Intercontinental Cup 2007-08 will take place in November 2008 in the United Arab Emirates .
ICC Intercontinental Cup table (as of 30 March)
Team P WO WI D LI LO T Points
Namibia 4 4 3 - 1 - - 68
Kenya 4 3 4 - - 1 - 66
Ireland 3 2 3 1 - - - 49
Netherlands 4 2 1 - 2 2 - 34
Canada 4 1 2 - 2 3 - 26
Scotland 3 1 1 2 1 - - 26
UAE 6 1 1 1 4 4 - 23
Bermuda 4 0 1 - 3 4 - 6
WO - outright win - 14 points
WI - lead on first innings (also retained if outright loss) - 6 points
LI - behind on first innings - 0 points
LO - outright loss - 0 points
TO - outright tie - 7 points each
TI - tie first innings - 3 pts each
D - draw - 3 pts each
Remaining fixtures:
3-6 Apr - UAE v Netherlands , Sharjah Stadium
4-7 Apr - Namibia v Scotland , Windhoek
4-7 Jul - Canada v Bermuda, Toronto (Maple Leaf)
9-12 Jul - Netherlands v Ireland , Rotterdam (VOC)
10-13 Jul - Bermuda v Scotland , TBC
16-19 Jul - Canada v Scotland , Toronto (Maple Leaf)
6-9 Aug - Ireland v Canada , TBC
7-10 Aug - Scotland v Kenya , Glasgow (Clydesdale CC)
16-19 Aug - Netherlands v Kenya , Amsterdam (VRA CC)
3-6 Sep - Bermuda v Namibia , TBC
5-8 Oct - Namibia v Ireland , TBC
12-15 Oct - Kenya v Ireland , TBC
12-16 Nov – FINAL, UAE
ICC MEDIA RELEASE