The European Cricket Network live broadcasts the 2020 European Cricket Series Rome encounter between Bergamo United and Bologna.
Tune in to the live action Thursday from 9:15am CET * 8:15am UK/GMT * 1:45pm IST from the Roma Cricket Ground in Rome, Italy.
Team Preview for Bergamo United
Bergamo United CC are probably the favourites in Group B. They were T20 championship winners as recently as 2018 and they had promising results this season although they fell at the quarter final stage to a strong Jinnah Brescia side. They will want to get their series off to a good start on Thursday and set themselves up for a spot in the semis on Super Sunday.
Captain: Azmat Ali
Main Wicketkeeper: Mubashir Amin
Key Players:
Mubashir Amin is a big-hitting wicketkeeper-batsman. Likely to bat in the pivotal number three position, he possesses the ability to change a game with his array of attacking strokes. In good domestic form, I expect him to be a factor in Rome this week.
Ahtasham Javaid will open the batting. This player loves to pounce on anything short as he’s very strong square of the wicket. He won’t be afraid to go aerial in the first couple of overs!
Ravi Paul is an opening bowler who can swing the new ball at a good pace. He will be after an early wicket or two to stifle the opposition innings.
Team Preview for Bologna
Bologna CC are a young team although the club has been around for quite a while, having been established in 1986. This team is a nice blend of youth and experience who will be itching to show what they are capable of on the big stage.
Captain: Ankush Kumar
Main Wicketkeeper: Zain Iftikhar
Key Players:
Muhammad Adnan is the “go-to” man for Bologna. He picked up a five-wicket haul in the quarter finals of the T20 competition this year and even though it wasn’t enough for them to progress in that tournament, he has shown he is a big game player. With the bat, he can come in at three or four and give the ball a thump too.
Haseeb Khan is an opening batsman who can also bowl some sharp left-armers. I like him as an option to take the new ball for this Bologna team as he can cause some early headaches.
Akash Deep is probably Bologna’s fastest bowler. They often use him in the middle overs as an alternative to using him first up with the new ball, as he seems to be a bit more effective bowling later in the innings.
Mr Maximo’s tip: BERGAMO UNITED
The precautionary tale of Kingsgrove Milan reminds us of how the favourites can fall, as they were my favourites for Group A but could not win even one of their group matches! But I feel Bergamo United will handle the situation well and I expect them to account for Bologna in the first match of Thursday’s action.
Tune into the European Cricket Network on Thursday for all the Group B action from the ECS Rome, available on FanCode in the Indian subcontinent and on exclusive on Sports Flick if you’re tuning in from anywhere else around the world. The European Cricket Series provides heart-stopping entertainment with four T10 matches every day this week!
