1 / 12ICC T20 World Cup 2022 kickstarts on October 16 in Australia. First up in action will be eight teams -- Namibia, Netherlands, Sri Lanka and United Arab Emirates Ireland, Scotland, West Indies and Zimbabwe-- who will be featuring in the group stage for qualifying to the main round. While Namibia, Netherlands, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates are in Group A, Group B features Ireland, Scotland, West Indies and Zimbabwe. Two teams from each of these two groups will join the big boys (8 teams that have already qualified for the next round) and get the chance to play in the Super 12 stage of the World Cup. Plenty of world-class talent will be on show in the First Round Qualifier of the T20 World Cup and here are 11 players to watch out for.
2 / 12Wanindu Hasaranga | Team: Sri Lanka | Role: Bowling all-rounder | T20I stats: Matches played: 44 | Wickets: 71 | Best Bowling: 4/9 | Runs scored: 448 | Highest: 71 | ICC T20I Bowling Rank: 3 | ICC T20I All-Rounder Rank: 4 | Hasaranga will be one of the key players for Dasun Shanaka led Sri Lanka. If the Asia Cup champions need to progress to the next round of the World Cup then Hasaranga has to be at his best with his leg spin. Hasaranga is also a handy batsman lower down the order. The 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE was special for Hasaranga as he picked up a hat-trick and also smashed a half-century. Sri Lanka will be hoping that Hasaranga performs well in this World Cup as well. (Image: Reuters)
3 / 12Maheesh Theekshana | Team: Sri Lanka | Role: Off-break spinner| T20I stats: Matches played: 24 | Wickets: 22 | Best Bowling: 3/17 | Bowling Average: 27.27 | Economy: 6.52 | ICC T20I Bowling Rank: 5 | Along with Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana will form the backbone of Sri Lanka's bowling attack. If both the spinners are having a great day in the office then Sri Lanka has the capacity to hold the opposition to low scores. Theekshana's overs are especially crucial as he is made to bowl in the Power Plays. (Image: Reuters)
4 / 12Pathum Nissanka | Team: Sri Lanka | Role: Top-order batsman | T20I stats: Matches played: 29 | Runs scored: 801 | Highest: 75 | 50s/100s: 7/0 | Batting Average: 29.66| Strike Rate: 116.58 | ICC T20I Batting Rankings: 8 | Completing the set of the Sri Lankan players to watch out for in the first round qualifiers is the team's top order batsman Pathum Nissanka. The 24-year-old was in form during Sri Lanka's successful Asia Cup campaign and he stuck vital fifties against India and Pakistan. Nissanka's power-packed knocks at the top order can set the platform for the big hitters lower down the order.
5 / 12Akeal Hosein | Team: West Indies | Role: Slow Left arm Orthodox spinner | T20I stats: Matches played: 29 | Wickets: 23 | Best Bowling: 4/30 | Bowling Average: 28.04| Economy: 6.93| ICC T20I Bowling Rankings: 10 | While Sri Lanka will be the heavyweights in Group A of the first round qualifiers, West Indies are predicted to dominate Group B. The most important bowler for the West Indies in the first-round qualifiers will be left-arm orthodox spinner Akeal Hosein. The 29-year-old spinner is the highest-ranked West Indies bowler in the ICC T20I rankings for bowlers. Hosein considers Ravindra Jadeja as his role model. Hosein is also a supremely talented fielder. (Image: Reuters)
6 / 12David Wiese | Team: Namibia | Role: Allrounder | T20I stats: Matches played: 36 | Wickets: 38 | Best Bowling: 5/23 | Runs scored: 387| Highest: 66*|ICC T20I All-Rounder Rank: 17 | Former Proteas David Wiese now plays for South Africa's neighbours Namibia. Wiese's contribution of 227 runs and 6 wickets in the last year's T20 World cup is one of the reasons why Namibia qualified for this year's T20 World Cup. Wiese had a good outing with St Lucia Kings in the 2022 Caribbean Premier League where he picked 12 wickets. Given Wiese's immense T20 experience of over 300 matches, Namibia will be counting on this towering all-rounder to deliver the goods and take the team to the next round. (Image: Reuters)
7 / 12Johannes Jonathan Smit | Team: Namibia | Role: Allrounder | T20I stats: Matches played: 29 | Wickets: 31 | Best Bowling: 6/10 | Runs scored: 525 | Highest: 71 |ICC T20I All-Rounder Rank: 7 | David Wiese will not be alone in his efforts to take Namibia through to the next stage of this World Cup. Wiese will find good support in another all-rounder Johannes Jonathan Smit or J.J.Smit. Smit has an ICC T20I ranking for all-rounders of 7 that puts him ahead of Australia's Glenn Maxwell. Smit's bowling and batting will come in handy for Namibia this time around. (Image: ICC)
8 / 12Sikandar Raza | Team: Zimbabwe | Role: Allrounder | T20I stats: Matches played: 58 | Wickets: 28 | Best Bowling: 4/8 | Runs scored: 1040| Highest: 87 |ICC T20I All-Rounder Rank: 11 | Sticking with Africa as the next player on the list is from Zimbabwe. 36-year-old Sikandar Raza is in superb form at the moment albeit in ODI cricket. The all-rounder has hit three centuries in his previous nine ODI games. His T20I form hasn't been bad either. This year he has notched four T20I fifties and picked 15 wickets. If Zimbabwe have to increase their chances of qualifying for the next round then Raza has to bring his A game to the fore. (Image: AP)
9 / 12Muhammad Waseem | Team: UAE | Role: Opening batsman | T20I stats: Matches played: 29 | Runs scored: 801 | Highest: 112 | 50s/100s: 7/0 | Batting Average: 29.66| Strike Rate: 116.58 | ICC T20I Batting Rankings: 9 | UAE's opening batsman Muhammad Waseem is one of the team's star player. This year Waseem has struck four fifties and one hundred. Waseem again proved how good an opening batsman he is as he smashed an unbeaten 69 in UAE's T20 World Cup warm-up match against West Indies. Waseem is ahead of of the likes of KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Quinton de Kock in the ICC T20I rankings for batsmen. (Image: ICC)
10 / 12Richie Berrington | Team: Scotland | Role: Allrounder T20I stats: Matches played: 76 | Wickets: 28 | Best Bowling: 3/17| Runs scored: 1718 | Highest: 100 | ICC T20I All-Rounder Rank: 18 | With a T20I a-rounder rank of 18, Scotland's Richie Berrington is the only Scot among the top-20 players of the batsmen, bowlers and the all-rounders. In Scotland's T20 World Cup warmup match against the Netherlands, Berrington hit a brisk 41. Berrington has hit seven fifties and a hundred in his international career. The Scotland skipper will be leading his team's charge in the first-round qualifiers. (Image: ICC)
11 / 12Scott Edwards | Team: Netherlands| Role: Wicketkeeper batsman | T20I stats: Matches played: 43 | Runs scored: 523 | Highest: 42* | 50s/100s: -/- | Batting Average: 22.73 | Strike Rate: 129.77 | ICC T20I Batting Rankings: - | Leading into this World Cup Netherlands will have a new captain as wicketkeeper batsman Scott Edwards has taken over the leadership role from Pieter Seelaar. This World Cup will be special for Edwards as not only will he be leading the Dutch side but also making a return to the country of his birth. Edwards grew up in Melbourne but is now a fully committed Dutch cricketer. In August Edwards hit an unbeaten half-century in an ODI match against Pakistan. This World Cup will be a big step up for Edwards as his Dutch side will look to leave a mark. (Image: Reuters)
12 / 12Paul Stirling| Team: Ireland | Role: Opening batsman| T20I stats: Matches played: 114| Runs scored: 3011 | 50s/100s: 20/1 | Highest: 115*| Batting Average: 28.67 | Strike Rate: 134.84 | ICC T20I Batting Rankings: 27| Round off the list of 11 players to watch out for in the First Round Qualifiers of the T20 World Cup is Ireland's opening batsman Paul Stirling. The 32-year-old is one of the fiercest hitter of the cricket ball in this format. Stirling knows to bat only one way and that is to hit the ball clean and hard. If he gets a quick start then he renders the bowling attack meaningless. Ireland will count on Stirling to draw favourable results in the World Cup. (Image: Reuters
