Canada flagCanada Squad
Current ranking5 (ICC) 5 (CricketEurope)
ODI record since 2007 World Cup Played 9 Won 2 Lost 7 NR 3
Group phase schedule 1 April: Oman, LC de Villiers Oval
2 April: Uganda, WITS University
4 April: Namibia, LC de Villiers Oval
6 April: Ireland, Willowmoore Park
8 April: Scotland, Willowmoore Park
Key playersRizwan Cheema, John Davison, Ashish Bagai, Umar Bhatti
Wise Old HeadSunil Dhaniram
Emerging playerHarvir Singh Baidwan
CoachPubudu Dassanayake
PreparationSri Lanka & South Africa

Life hasn't always been easy for the Canadians, on or off the field, since they qualfied for the 2007 World Cup, and with only four slots available this time they will need to up their game if they are to make it through for the third time in succession.

But they are hoping that newcomer Rizwan Cheema, who caused a sensation with back-to-back half-centuries against the West Indies last August and then followed it up with another against Sri Lanka in a Twenty20 tournament two months later, will be equally successful against Associates opposition.

Canada team (photo by Eddie Norfolk)He is certainly an exciting player, and he will add another dimension to a side which will also have plenty of experience, with the Antipodes-based trio of John Davison, Ian Bilcliff and Geoff Barnett all available alongside other stalwarts like Sunil Dhaniram and Qaiser Ali.

Wicketkeeper Ashish Bagai is no mean batsman, and opposing bowlers will remember that he was the player of the tournament when the top six Associates contested Division 1 of the World Cricket League in Nairobi in 2007.

So the Canadians will bat deep, and that should make life easier for their attack.

Umar Bhatti is a reliable opening bowler, and the squad has been strengthened by the inclusion of ex-Lahore seamer Khurram Chauhan, who provides an alternative to the lively but sometimes wayward Henry Osinde.

Other seam options include Harvir Singh Baidwan, at 21 the baby of the side, Eion Katchay and Cheema, while Dhaniram's left-arm spin and Davison's off-breaks will now be complemented by the leg-break/googly bowling of Balaji Rao, a former Indian youth international who took 94 wickets in seven seasons for Tamil Nadu prior to 2001.

One question mark against this squad, however, is its age: the average age is 31-plus, and only five out of the fifteen players are under the 30 mark. They may not be the only ones who will find the physical demands of a possible ten games in 19 days tough, but youth is decidedly not on their side.

The draw has given them what should be a fairly steady build-up, with games against Oman and Uganda before they encounter the up-and-coming Namibians, Scotland and Ireland.

Victory in those first two games would, probably, secure them a place in the Super Eights, but points will be at a premium in the latter stages of the competition, and wins against their main rivals in the group phase would certainly come in handy later.