Champions League Twenty20 2009 - LIVE TV, PHOTOS,NEWS

	Kyle McCallan: "The conditions in England will be more familiar to our players than our opposition, so that's obviously a big advantage to us." © Getty Images

Ireland coach Phil Simmons has big ambitions for his team at the ICC World Twenty20 and will be disappointed if his side doesn't make it through to the Super Eight stage of the tournament.

Simmons wants the squad to repeat their success from the 2007 World Cup in West Indies when they reached the last eight after beating Pakistan in the qualifying section. Ireland also beat Bangladesh later in the tournament.

The Ireland squad are preparing to leave for a training camp and their warm-up games ahead of their first match at the ICC World Twenty20 against Bangladesh, at Trent Bridge, on June 8. The players will travel in good spirits after demolishing Worcestershire for 58 in the Friends Provident Trophy last week.

"The win against Worcestershire was exactly what we needed in our last competitive game before the Twenty20," Simmons said. "It was also achieved without our top county players which says a lot for the depth of the squad. We will, of course, have everyone available and I'll be very disappointed if we don't make our mark.

"Obviously our best chance lies in the game against Bangladesh but the beauty of Twenty20 cricket is its unpredictability. We will be going into the warm up games and the tournament in a confident mood."

Kyle McCallan, the vice-captain and one of the most experienced players, was also confident that Ireland will be there to more than just make up the numbers. "We're relishing the opportunity to showcase Irish cricket on the world stage again," he said. "The 2007 World Cup in the West Indies was a fabulous experience for all concerned, and I'm sure it'll be the same again in England.

"It'll be a wonderful experience playing in front of sell out crowds, and I'm sure there will be plenty of Irish supporters adding to what I'm sure will be an incredible atmosphere.

"I know just how much all the guys are looking forward to it, and if we play to our capabilities, we have a genuine chance of progression. We're well prepared and have already played a lot of cricket this year. The conditions in England will be more familiar to our players than our opposition, so that's obviously a big advantage to us."

Ireland will take on New Zealand in a Twenty20 game at Derby on May 27 before moving on to a training camp at Wormsley , where they will face a PCA Masters XI and West Indies in practice games. They will then face Netherlands and West Indies again in warm-up games at Lord's and The Oval.

Ireland will be at full strength apart from the loss of Eoin Morgan who has been selected in England's World Twenty20 squad.

	Tim Nielsen: Twenty20 cricket is not just an exhibition game © Getty Images

Australia's coach Tim Nielsen has called on cricket's administrators to show greater respect to the Twenty20 format and end its "exhibition" status at international level.

As Australia prepared to depart for the ICC World Twenty20 in England on Wednesday, Nielsen said the time had come for international schedules to reflect the growing importance of the 20-over game by scheduling regular three-to-five game series, rather than shoehorning one-off Twenty20 contests around Test and 50-over games.

Since competing in the first ever 20-over international, against New Zealand in 2005, Australia have played 21 matches - six of them at the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa. That is the most of any team in world cricket, yet still well short of the 122 ODIs and 46 Tests the Australians have played over the same period; a reflection of the cautious attitude of administrators in introducing Twenty20 to international calendars.

But with the World Twenty20 now overshadowing the Champions Trophy for recognition and importance, and the Indian Premier League spreading its tentacles across the cricketing spectrum, Nielsen insists the time has come for the 20-over game to command a more significant place on the international calendar.

"If they're fair dinkum about Twenty20 cricket - and when you look at everything that's happening around the world, they should be - then we have to get to a point where we're no longer just squeezing Twenty20 internationals into the schedule as exhibition matches," Nielsen told Cricinfo. "They've had a couple of bucks each way so far. We have a tournament like the World Twenty20, which is growing in importance, but for the rest of the cycle games are scheduled as one-offs, and used to get new spectators through the gates.

"I believe [Twenty20 cricket] will work at international level, but only if it is given more credibility. And you will only get that by scheduling series of three to five games, which will make it more than a promotion, and make a real competition out of it. The hardest part at the moment is trying to get your team and tactics right for a tournament as important as the World Twenty20 when you only play a handful of Twenty20 internationals each year. A team's focus, if we're to be honest, is usually on the next Test or ODI series, and not on the one-off Twenty20 matches they're playing."

Nielsen's comments came on the same day Cricket Australia announced its home schedule for the 2009-10 season - which will feature only three Twenty20s against West Indies and Pakistan - and just hours before the team departed for England ahead of the World Twenty20.

The Australians were soundly defeated by India in the semi-final of the inaugural World Twenty20; a result that played a sizeable role in the format's evolution. India's subsequent victory over Pakistan in the final was met with overwhelming excitement by Indian supporters - the victory parade through the streets of Mumbai attracted in excess of a million well-wishers - and prompted a once reluctant BCCI to embrace the 20-over game and set the wheels in motion for the formation of the IPL.

In the subsequent two years, Twenty20 cricket has expanded exponentially at domestic level, and developed specific tactics and skill-sets. Indeed, Nielsen concedes the Australians were largely unaware as to how to approach the 2007 World Twenty20 in South Africa; a fact he believes will not repeat itself in England next month.

"Twenty-over cricket had really only been around a couple of years then, and I think everyone was still trying to work out the best way to approach it," he said. "There was no mention of the IPL back then. You look at India - they rested a lot of their important players and played youngsters in South Africa ... but now it's more accepted that you play your best players. Tactics have come a long way, too.

"At the moment, the World Twenty20 is really the only way to gauge teams' 20-over form. The other games are usually one-offs, and if you're on the other side of the world, it can be a costly exercise bringing the players you want over. We flew two or three players over to South Africa specifically because we had two Twenty20s there, but with only one in the UAE [against Pakistan], we stayed with the same squad from the ODI series."

Nielsen has already sought out Brad Hodge for insights into the tactics and methodologies employed at this year's 2009 IPL, and will canvas opinions from Andrew Symonds and Mike Young, the fielding coach, both of whom were involved with the triumphant Deccan franchise.

"It's great for us to have had someone like Mike inside the system, and we can definitely learn from that," Nielsen said. "We have one of the tougher draws at the World Twenty20 with the West Indies and Sri Lanka, and we will be looking for any advantage that might help us."

	Andrew Flintoff: ruled out of the World Twenty20 © Getty Images

Yorkshire's legspinner Adil Rashid has been called into England's ICC World Twenty20 squad as a replacement for Andrew Flintoff, after the England management conceded that Flintoff would not be fit following his recent bout of knee surgery.

Flintoff, 31, sustained a tear to the meniscus in his right knee while playing for Chennai Super Kings in the recent Indian Premier League. Though he was named in England's squad for the Twenty20 tournament that gets underway against Holland at Lord's on June 5, the likelihood of him recovering in time was always slim.

"Andrew is making excellent progress and there is no swelling or pain now in the knee," said England's chief medical officer, Nick Peirce. "He has been putting in some extremely hard training with Lancashire and should start running and practicing this week. After discussions with his surgeon we have decided that he should continue the remainder of his rehabilitation with physio Dave Roberts, who has overseen his previous rehabilitations."

Having missed all of this season's Tests and ODIs against West Indies, Flintoff will now aim to regain his fitness ahead of the Ashes opener at Cardiff on July 8. The intention is for him to begin his comeback in Lancashire's County Championship fixture against Hampshire at Liverpool on June 17.

The ECB confirmed they had approached the World Twenty20 technical committee for permission to add Rashid to the squad that was originally named on May 1.

"We had to name Andrew in the 15 because we hoped he would be fit," said England's national selector, Geoff Miller. "But in reality the timescale was always optimistic. We have now obtained permission from ICC to name Yorkshire's Adil Rashid as a replacement. There is a lot of cricket still to play this year and it is important Andrew is fully fit for it."

Rashid, who made his first appearance in a senior England squad during the winter tours of India and West Indies, has been drafted in as an extra spinner to support Graeme Swann even though he has been omitted from Yorkshire's first two Twenty20 Cup matches. He was preferred ahead of his seam-bowling team-mate Tim Bresnan, as well as the Nottinghamshire allrounder, Samit Patel, who was controversially overlooked for the original squad because of his failure to meet the team's fitness standards.

"It is an exciting opportunity for Rashid, who was in the original 30 we named in early April," said Miller. "He has impressed the England management after being a part of the Test tour to India and the subsequent Caribbean tour and deserves his chance."

For Rashid, 21, the call-up is another big step in his rapid rise to prominence in English cricket. In addition to his legspin, he is also a genuine batting prospect with two first-class hundreds to his name. Last week, that his primary goal this summer had been to get involved in England's Ashes set-up, and that his ultimate ambition is to play Test cricket.

The shortest format can be a cruel game to bowlers, Rashid conceded. "When you're coming on for two overs then coming off again, it is difficult to get the pace and rhythm right," he told Cricinfo. "But Twenty20 does teach you where to bowl, how to bowl and when to bowl, and if a batter gets after you, what to bowl.

"You've got to be looked after," said Rashid. "If you get hit for a six and a four, the captain must accept that a legspinner is also a 'risk' spinner. He goes for runs but he's there to take wickets as well. It shouldn't be a bad thing if he gets hit for a six or a four, he shouldn't be taken off in the next over."

	Andrew Flintoff injured his knee at the IPL, and is now a doubt for the ICC World Twenty20 © Getty Images

England could be forced to go into next month's ICC World Twenty20 without the services of their premier allrounder, Andrew Flintoff, after he revealed that he has yet to start running after undergoing surgery on a knee injury sustained during his brief stint at the IPL in April.

Flintoff was one of 15 players named in England's squad for the tournament, which starts at Lord's on June 5. But England could have to name a replacement if he cannot prove his fitness in the next three weeks. "I'd love to play in the Twenty20," he told Sky Sports, "but that might be too tight."

With the Ashes fast approaching in July, England desperately need Flintoff, 31, to be fully fit and firing before the arrival of the Australians. But despite his history of injury problems, which include a hip complaint that caused him to fly home midway through the tour of the Caribbean in March, he remains confident about recovering in time.

"I had an operation two weeks ago and I'm already off my crutches," he said. "The Ashes are a long way off - and I'll be fine for them."

England's Twenty20 captain, Paul Collingwood, conceded that the loss of Flintoff for the tournament would be a "huge blow", but felt sure that they would be able to make do without him.

"He's very much two players in one - as I've always said," said Collingwood. "But I think we've got quite a versatile squad with the players we've got in there. It would be a huge blow if he wasn't going to be fit, but we certainly have the players in the squad to overcome that in many ways."

Collingwood even raised the prospect of leaving Flintoff's place in the squad open for a late return, if he was able to recover in time. "Without Fred, it makes it very difficult to get the right balance between batters and bowlers in the final 11," he said Collingwood. "It's something we're going to have to gauge.