Henriques chases T20 World Cup dream with Portugal
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- Moises Henriques has switched allegiance to Portugal and will captain the side at a 10-team European sub-regional T20 World Cup qualifier in Finland starting Friday, having played 4 Tests, 16 ODIs and 24 T20s for Australia between 2009 and 2021.
- Henriques said reaching the T20 World Cup would be 'nirvana,' pointing to Italy, who played their maiden T20 World Cup earlier this year after starting at the same qualifying level as Portugal.
- Portugal, ranked 37th in the world, have been drawn in Group B with Czech Republic, Germany, Greece and Israel, with a European final regional qualifier against Scotland, Jersey and Denmark next year if they progress.
- Henriques was born in Funchal on Madeira, moved to Sydney aged two with his father Alvaro, and said cricket gave him confidence as a child who 'didn't speak English that well' at school.
- Portugal's squad includes professionals beyond Henriques — batter Cameron Shekleton, 26, has played for South Africa's Proteas A side, while former New Zealand Under-19 captain Craig Cachopa, 34, represented Sussex, Auckland and Wellington.
- Henriques said he hasn't played on a synthetic wicket in 25 years and is coming off back surgery five months ago, making bowling off a full run-up on artificial surfaces his main challenge at the Finland qualifier.
Why it matters: Henriques' switch is a symbolic boost for Portugal's cricket ambitions — the 37th-ranked side starts two qualifying rounds from the T20 World Cup, and even reaching the European final qualifier would mark the country's deepest run in the pathway that took Italy to this year's tournament. His profile, plus professionals like Shekleton and Cachopa, gives Portugal a roster Henriques himself called unexpectedly strong.
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