20/20 World Cricket Championship series to kick off today

Africa, Tuesday, 11 September: One may not be familiar with the “20/20 cricket series” but the cricket enthusiasts around the world are all set to wel ..........
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South Africa, Tuesday, 11 September: One may not be familiar with the “20/20 cricket series” but the cricket enthusiasts around the world are all set to welcome the wonder game .This is the first time in the cricket history that two world cups will be organized in a year especially in just 05 months duration. All the participating nations especially the top eight test playing countries are expecting to capture the cup, which became disappointed in the 50-50-world cup. On the other hand Australia is eyeing to grab all the top honors to prove its superiority to others.
20-20 cricket was first introduced at county level by the England and Wales Cricket Board in 2003


In this format of cricket each team bats for a maximum of only 20 overs a side, with each innings lasting for 75 minutes.
20-20 World Cup Rules
A Bowler may bowl a maximum of only 4 overs per innings.
Umpires may award 5-run penalty runs at their discretion if they believe either team is wasting time.
The following fielding restrictions apply:
No more than 5 fielders can be on the leg side at any time.
During the first 6 overs, a maximum of 2 fielders can be outside the 30-yard circle.
After the first 6 overs, a maximum of 5 fielders can be outside the fielding circle.
Should a bowler deliver a no ball by overstepping the popping crease, it costs 2 runs and his next delivery is designated a free-hit, from which the batsman can only be dismissed through a run out.
If the fielding team do not start to bowl their 20th over within 75 minutes, the batting side is credited an extra 6 runs for every whole over bowled after the 75 minute mark; the umpire may add more time to this, if he considers the batting team is wasting time.
If the match ends with the scores tied and there must be a winner, the tie is broken with a bowl-out (similar to a penalty shoot-out in football); with 5 bowlers from each side delivering 2 balls each at an unguarded wicket. If the number of wickets is equal after the first 10 balls per side, the bowling continues and is decided by sudden death.
20-20 World Cup Squad
Australia 20-20 squad: Ricky Ponting (captain), Adam Gilchrist, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Matthew Hayden, Brad Hodge, Brad Hogg, Michael Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Andrew Symonds, Shaun Tait, Shane Watson.
Bangladesh 20-20 squad: Mohammad Ashraful, Aftab Ahmed, Tamim Iqbal, Saqibul Hasan, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Farhad Reza, Alok Kapali, Mahmudullah Riyad, Mushfiqur Rahim, Abdur Razzaq, Junaid Siddique, Nazimuddin, Nadif Chowdhury, Syed Rasel, Ziaur Rahman.
England 20-20 squad: Paul Collingwood (captain), Ravi Bopara, Stuart Broad, Andrew Flintoff, James Kirtley, Darren Maddy, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior (wk), Chris Schofield, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebottom, Jeremy Snape, Vikram Solanki, Chris Tremlett, Luke Wright.
India 20-20 squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Dinesh Karthik, Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Joginder Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Sreesanth, Irfan Pathan, RP Singh, Rohit Sharma.
Kenya 20-20 squad: Steve Tikolo (capt), Rajesh Bhudiya, Jimmy Kamande, Tanmay Mishra, Alex Obanda, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Collins Obuya, David Obuya, Thomas Odoyo, Peter Ongondo, Lameck Onyango, Elijah Otieno, Maurice Ouma (wk), Tony Suji, Hiren Varaiya.
Pakistan 20-20 squad: Shoaib Malik (captain), Salman Butt , Imran Nazir , Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi , Misbah-ul-Haq, Fawad Alam, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Asif , Shoaib Akhtar , Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Yasir Arafat, Abdul Rehman.
New Zealand 20-20 squad: Daniel Vettori (captain), Shane Bond, Peter Fulton, Mark Gillespie, Gareth Hopkins, Chris Martin, Craig McMillan, Brendon McCullum, Nathan McCullum, Jacob Oram, Jeetan Patel,Bradley Scott, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor, Lou Vincent.
Scotland 20-20 squad: Ryan Watson (captain), John Blain, Dougie Brown, Navdeep Poonia, Gordon Drummond, Gavin Hamilton, Majid Haq, Ross Lyons, Qasim Sheikh, Neil McCallum, Gregor Maiden, Dewald Nel, Colin Smith, Fraser Watts, Craig Wright.
South Africa 20-20 squad: Graeme Smith (captain), Gulam Bodi, Loots Bosman, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Justin Kemp, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Vernon Philander, Shaun Pollock, Thandi Tshabalala, Johan van der Wath.
Sri Lanka 20-20 squad: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Chamara Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Farveez Maharoof, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lasith Malinga, Dilhara Fernando, Hasantha Fernando, Gayan Wijekoon, Kaushal Lokuarachchi, Jehan Mubarak.
West Indies Twenty20 squad: Ramnaresh Sarwan (captain), Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Devon Smith, Marlon Samuels, Runako Morton, Denesh Ramdin, Dwayne Bravo, Darren Sammy, Dwayne Smith, Ravi Rampaul, Daren Powell, Fidel Edwards, Narsingh Deonarine, Pedro Collins.
Zimbabwe Twenty20 squad: Prosper Utseya (captain), Gary Brent, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Elton Chigumbura, Keith Dabengwa, Tymicen Maruma, Hamilton Masakadza, Stuart Matsikinyeri, Johnson Marumisa, Christopher Mpofu, Tawanda Mupariwa, Vusimusi Sibanda, Tatenda Taibu, Brendon Taylor, Shaun Williams.
In the first match South Africa will take on West Indies,the best batsmen in the game will be encouraged simply to hit the ball out of the ground
(Sources: www.cricinfotwenty20.com)