FanCode ECS Sweden Stockholm provides an opportunity for ten teams to showcase their skills, contesting 48 games over 12 days. Every game will be live streamed worldwide on the European Cricket Network and on FanCode - a multi-sport aggregator platform, from the house of Dream Sports for the Indian Sub-Continent.
European Cricket Network live broadcasts four T10 matches on Day 1 of the 2021 FanCode ECS Sweden, Stockholm on Monday 19 July.
Pakistanska Forening were one of the most dominant sides at Dream11 European Cricket Series Stockholm 2020 going unbeaten to lift the first ever ECS tournament in Sweden. However, PF may not be as strong as last year as a few of their star players have moved onto pastures new. That said, PF will still be favourites to make the running in Group A.
Stockholm were one of the weakest teams last season, finishing one off the bottom of the group with just a solitary win. Having lured some talented players to the club, STO are certainly one of the teams to watch out for in Group A this season.
Founded only in 2012, Umea has risen up to Elite series level in Sweden in just three years. UME won the Division 3 T20 Final on debut in 2015 and were runners-up in Division 2 T30 and Division 1 T40 in the following years. Umea are on a steep rise and will be confident of a strong showing at their first ever ECS appearance.
Newcomers Forenom were founded in 2015 and finished top of the table in the SCF Division 1 T20 tournament last year. FOR can surprise any calibre of opposition on their day.
Formed in 1999, Botkyrka is one of the oldest clubs in Sweden. The club comprises players from different origins and have a good mix of experienced and young talent, aiming to impress on the grand stage of European Cricket.
Group A
BOT Botkyrka (0-0, NRR+0.000)
FOR Forenom Royals (0-0, NRR+0.000)
PF Pakistanska Forening (0-0, NRR+0.000)
STO Stockholm (0-0, NRR+0.000)
UME Umea (0-0, NRR+0.000)
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MATCH 1 (ECS21.556)
BOTKYRKA (BOT) v PAKISTANSKA FORENING (PF)
0700 GMT | 0900 CET | 1230 IST
BOT Last Five Matches: ON ECS DEBUT
PF Last Five Matches: W W W W W (Avg Score For 100, Avg Score Against 76)
BOTKYRKA (BOT)
Captain: Asad Iqbal
Wicketkeeper: Ali Hassani
Projected Top Four: Ahmed Zulfiqar, Tahir Tarar, Shani Khawaja, Gurpal Randhawa
Projected Opening Bowlers: Osama Qureshi, Asif Khan
Spin Option(s): Ahmed Zulfiqar, Gurpal Randhawa
BOTKYRKA Key Players:
Tahir Tarar, big hitting all-rounder, boasts previous ECS experience playing for Karlskroma Zalmi Cricketforening.
Ahmed Zulfiqar is a classy batsman who will open the innings for BOT, can also bowl decent off-spin.
Asif Khan, fast bowler, will normally take the new ball and look to provide early breakthroughs.
Shani Khawaja is a hard hitting batsman comfortable batting in the top four.
PAKISTANSKA FORENING (PF)
Captain: Bilal Muhammad
Wicketkeeper: Usama Chaudhry
Projected Top Four: Imam Din, Faraan Chaudhry, Sameer Ali Khan, Muhammad Vajjih Ali
Projected Opening Bowlers: Bilal Muhammad, Khalil Jalali
Spin Option(s): Sameer Ali Khan, Waqar Hassan
PAKISTANSKA FORENING Key Players:
Sameer Ali Khan, the right hander racked up 106 runs in five innings in the previous edition and was the joint highest wicket taker for PF with EIGHT scalps.
Bilal Muhammad, captain, medium pacer, leading wicket taker for PF last summer with EIGHT wickets at an economy rate of just 5.75.
Faraan Chaudhry played for Alby Zalmi last term racking up 94 runs from five innings.
Vaince Waqas, right arm medium pacer, scalped SIX wickets from five games last term with a best return of 3-18.
Winners of Dream11 European Cricket Series Stockholm 2020, Pakistanska Forening are yet to taste defeat at ECS and are likely to start on a winning note unless debutants Botkyrka can spring a surprise to start the tournament.
Match Prediction: Pakistanska Forening (PF) to get off to a flying start.
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MATCH 2 (ECS21.557)
FORENOM ROYALS (FOR) v BOTKYRKA (BOT)
0900 GMT | 1100 CET | 1430 IST
FOR Last Five Matches: ON ECS DEBUT
BOT Last Five Matches: ON ECS DEBUT
FORENOM ROYALS (FOR)
Captain: Rohit Juneja
Wicketkeeper: Srinivas Manem
Projected Top Four: Rohit Juneja, Anirudh Ram, Sahil Prashar, Srini Jettiboyina
Projected Opening Bowlers: Rohit Juneja, Sahil Prashar
Spin Option(s): Arpit Tiwari, Ameya Bendre
FORENOM ROYALS Key Players:
Rohit Juneja, captain of FOR, will also lead the way with the bat opening the innings.
Sahil Prashar, the hard hitting right hander has mustered 93 runs in five T10 innings at a strike rate of 202. He also has three wickets to his name.
Arpit Tiwari, bowling all-rounder, is a tidy off-spin bowler with SEVEN T10 wickets to his name in eight matches.
BOTKYRKA (BOT)
Captain: Asad Iqbal
Wicketkeeper: Ali Hassani
Projected Top Four: Ahmed Zulfiqar, Tahir Tarar, Shani Khawaja, Gurpal Randhawa
Projected Opening Bowlers: Osama Qureshi, Asif Khan
Spin Option(s): Ahmed Zulfiqar, Gurpal Randhawa
BOTKYRKA Key Players:
Tahir Tarar, big hitting all-rounder, boasts previous ECS experience playing for Karlskroma Zalmi Cricketforening.
Ahmed Zulfiqar is a classy batsman who will open the innings for BOT, can also bowl decent off-spin.
Asif Khan, fast bowler, will normally take the new ball and look to provide early breakthroughs.
Shani Khawaja is a hard hitting batsman comfortable taking his place in the top four.
These two debutants Forenom Royals and Botkyrka lock horns in search of their first ever ECS victory. Having played a game before, BOT will be familiar with the conditions and might have the advantage going into this game.
Match Prediction: Botkyrka (BOT) to secure their maiden ECS win.
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MATCH 3 (ECS21.558)
PAKISTANSKA FORENING (PF) v STOCKHOLM (STO)
1100 GMT | 1300 CET | 1630 IST
PF Last Five Matches: W W W W W (Avg Score For 100, Avg Score Against 76)
STO Last Five Matches: L NR W L L (Avg Score For 67, Avg Score Against 95)
PAKISTANSKA FORENING (PF)
Captain: Bilal Muhammad
Wicketkeeper: Usama Chaudhry
Projected Top Four: Imam Din, Faraan Chaudhry, Sameer Ali Khan, Muhammad Vajjih Ali
Projected Opening Bowlers: Bilal Muhammad, Khalil Jalali
Spin Option(s): Sameer Ali Khan, Waqar Hassan
PAKISTANSKA FORENING Key Players:
Sameer Ali Khan, the right hander racked up 106 runs in five innings in the previous edition and was the joint highest wicket taker for PF with EIGHT scalps.
Bilal Muhammad, captain, medium pacer, leading wicket taker for PF last summer with EIGHT wickets at an economy rate of just 5.75.
Faraan Chaudhry played for Alby Zalmi last term racking up 94 runs from five innings.
Vaince Waqas, right arm medium pacer, scalped SIX wickets from five games last term with a best return of 3-18.
STOCKHOLM (STO)
Captain: Chenna Nali
Wicketkeeper: Chenna Nali
Projected Top Four: Ankit Tiwari, Abhishek Mathur, Vinod Chalindra, Archan Vaidya
Projected Opening Bowlers: Avinash Upadhaya, Lagan Sandhu, Jagan Sandhu, Manoj Tomar
Spin Option(s): Rakesh Kumar, Archan Vaidya
STOCKHOLM Key Players:
Archan Vaidya is a quality all-rounder and a gun fielder. He will be looking to make an impact in all three departments in his debut ECS season.
Karthik Jayachandran is the all-time leading run scorer for Stockholm. He is a hard-hitting batsman who loves to make use of the powerplay. The man to watch out for this season.
Avinash Upadhaya, the left arm quick has been a consistent bowler picking up 29 wickets over the last two years.
Sridhar Pokala, one of the fastest bowlers on the circuit. His bowling performances this year have been as exemplary as ever with best figures of 4-1-8-4.
Stockholm take on previous winners Pakistanska Forening in their season opener. These are the only two teams with previous ECS experience in Group A. The two sides were on the opposite halves of the table last time around but are evenly matched this season and this game could be a humdinger.
Last time they met: MATCH ABANDONED (16 Jun 2020)
Match Prediction: Pakistanska Forening (PF) to win a thrilling encounter.
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MATCH 4 (ECS21.559)
FORENOM ROYALS (FOR) v STOCKHOLM (STO)
1300 GMT | 1500 CET | 1830 IST
FOR Last Five Matches: ON ECS DEBUT
STO Last Five Matches: L NR W L L (Avg Score For 67, Avg Score Against 95)
FORENOM ROYALS (FOR)
Captain: Rohit Juneja
Wicketkeeper: Srinivas Manem
Projected Top Four: Rohit Juneja, Anirudh Ram, Sahil Prashar, Srini Jettiboyina
Projected Opening Bowlers: Rohit Juneja, Sahil Prashar
Spin Option(s): Arpit Tiwari, Ameya Bendre
FORENOM ROYALS Key Players:
Rohit Juneja, captain of FOR, will also lead the way with the bat opening the innings.
Sahil Prashar, the hard hitting right hander has mustered 93 runs in five T10 innings at a strike rate of 202. He also has three wickets to his name.
Arpit Tiwari, bowling all-rounder, is a tidy off-spin bowler with SEVEN T10 wickets to his name in eight matches.
STOCKHOLM (STO)
Captain: Chenna Nali
Wicketkeeper: Chenna Nali
Projected Top Four: Ankit Tiwari, Abhishek Mathur, Vinod Chalindra, Archan Vaidya
Projected Opening Bowlers: Avinash Upadhaya, Lagan Sandhu, Jagan Sandhu, Manoj Tomar
Spin Option(s): Rakesh Kumar, Archan Vaidya
STOCKHOLM Key Players:
Archan Vaidya is a quality all-rounder and a gun fielder. He will be looking to make an impact in all three departments in his debut ECS season.
Karthik Jayachandran is the all-time leading run scorer for Stockholm. He is a hard-hitting batsman who loves to make use of the powerplay. The man to watch out for this season.
Avinash Upadhaya, the left arm quick has been a consistent bowler picking up 29 wickets over the last two years.
Sridhar Pokala, one of the fastest bowlers on the circuit. His bowling performances this year have been as exemplary as ever with best figures of 4-1-8-4.
Both these sides are playing their second match of the day and will be well versed with the pitch and playing conditions and will try to make use of the knowledge gathered to the best of their abilities. That said, STO are a better team on paper and will start favourites.
Match Prediction: Stockholm (STO) to win comfortably.
Tune into the live action from Stockholm from Monday to Saturday from 0700 GMT * 0900 CEST * 1230 IST *
