Beyond the Test World
Fiji enjoy high-level support
Fiji’s cricket team met President Ratu Josefa Iloilo as the side prepared to travel to Tanzania for the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4 .
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
Fiji’s cricket team met President Ratu Josefa Iloilo as the side prepared to travel to Tanzania for the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4.
Jone Salele, the Fiji Team Manager presented a whale’s tooth to the president as part of a reception at Government House. “Let the flags fly when you return and remember cricket is a sport for chiefs so keep that reputation,” said Ratu Iloilo, himself a former cricketer, reported the Fiji Daily Post News.
“It would be hard to let our country down knowing support is with us and with strong words from the President, we are hoping for a positive outing” added Salele.
Fiji face Afghanistan on the opening day of the tournament, which begins on October 4.
Full postExpats boost cricket in Italy
Cricket has a rather odd place in Italian sporting history, and that it used to be played widely by British expats indirectly led to football becoming the major sport in the country.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
Cricket has a rather odd place in Italian sporting history, and that it used to be played widely by British expats indirectly led to football becoming the major sport in the country.
Several of the top football sides owe their existence to cricket, perhaps most famously AC Milan which was formed as a cricket club in 1899 by two British expats from Nottingham. But now Asian expats are reintroducing cricket to the country, and earlier this year the IPL was broadcast on an Italian satellite channel.
"There are loads of people playing cricket in the streets," the Italian board president Simone Gambino told Reuters. His organisation’s challenge is to foster the enthusiasm of the Asian community and spread it among the local population. There is also a problem with finding enough pitches to play on.
Gambino said he was confident that the Italian side was good enough to beat much better opposition. “If Zimbabwe played Italy in a series of five matches, we would certainly win one game yet they are Full Members."
Full postMCC revamps touring policy
The MCC has announced an overhaul of its touring policy which will enable it to concentrate on areas of development.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
The MCC has announced an overhaul of its touring policy which will enable it to concentrate on areas of development.
Until now, the club has undertaken a number of trips each year with tours categorised as A, B or C status depending on the strength of the opposition. A tours were fully funded by the club while B and C tours were partially or fully paid for by the participants.
From 2009, the MCC will scrap the three tiers and only send a limited number of trips to countries which can fully benefit from MCC playing members’ coaching skills and passion. All such tours will be fully funded by the club.
MCC will send a team to a European country every year plus teams to three out of four ICC regions of Asia, the Americas, East Asia/Pacific and Africa. In 2009 teams will go to Croatia, Japan and Indonesia, Nepal and Mozambique. There will also be special tours to the USA and Canada to mark the 150th anniversary of the first cricket tour across the Atlantic.
Full postNew Twenty20 tournament for USA
A new Twenty20 tournament is being launched in the USA and will feature teams from across the North East region.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
A new Twenty20 tournament is being launched in the USA and will feature teams from across the North East region.
The event, sponsored by dreamcricket.com, will feature 12 teams and runs from September 27 to October 18. The sides will be split into two groups with the top two in each progressing to semi-finals. The total prize money on offer is $10,000, of which $5000 will go to the winners.
The preliminary matches will be played on cricket grounds in Central NJ - Colonial Park, Weston Road-2, Edison Cricket Club ground and South Brunswick. The semis and the final will be played at Warinanco Cricket Park in Roselle, NJ.
Group A Tri-State Argonauts, Holmdel Hurricanes, NJ Royals, New York Knights, Edison Daredevils and Global Challengers
Full postDavison looking forward to World Cup qualifiers
John Davison says he's still committed to Canada, and wants to help them qualify for their third straight World Cup
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
Tony Munro
This article on Cricinfo on Sunday referred to Canada's use of overseas-based players and in particular, John Davison, the former captain. BTTW asked John, now 38, about his career with Canada, and his reaction to that article:
Full postNew season kicks off in Mexico
Aztecs are the current Mexican champions and are favourites at the start of the new season
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
By Yasir Patel
Cricket has been played in Mexico since 1827. It has mainly comprised of foreign expatriates just looking for a ‘knock’ on a free day. However, recent developments show a change in this pattern.
Currently Mexico City has four teams. There are also teams in Cancun and Puebla, with the aim of developing two more teams in Puerto Valleta and Guadalajara. The main cricket is played at the multi-sport Reforma Club in Naucalpan, which also hosts football and tennis. It has kindly let the association use its ground for free.
The current club captain is Yasir Patel, a British citizen who teaches mathematics at Lancaster School. Mexico City comprises of approximately 60 players of which there are only five Mexican born players.
Full postNew season kicks off in Mexico
Aztecs are the current Mexican champions and are favourites at the start of the new season
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
By Yasir Patel
Cricket has been played in Mexico since 1827. It has mainly comprised of foreign expatriates just looking for a ‘knock’ on a free day. However, recent developments show a change in this pattern.
Full postKalev clinch Estonian title
Kalev Cricket Club retained their Westons Estonian Premier League trophy in dark and windy conditions last week, beating Reval CC at the Tallinn Hippodrome by 60 runs
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
By James Ramsden
Kalev Cricket Club retained their Westons Estonian Premier League trophy in dark and windy conditions last week, beating Reval CC at the Tallinn Hippodrome by 60 runs.
Looking at the dark clouds looming, it was always going to be an important toss to win, and Reval's stand-in skipper Oliver Slovodetsky had his first decision of the day to make when he won the toss. He decided to make full use of the cloud cover and put Kalev into bat.
Full postPNG's Maharu Dai to play in New Zealand
By Tony Munro
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
By Tony Munro
Papua New Guinea (PNG) batsman Maharu Dai will spend the 2008-09 New Zealand season playing for the Christchurch-based Marist CC.
Dai, who also bowls left-arm spin, will play under Stuart McCullum, the father of New Zealand wicketkeeper, Brendon McCullum.
Meanwhile, four of PNG's more promising youngsters will spend the Australian summer playing in the Townsville (North Queensland) competition.
Full postAfghanistan make minor changes
By Tony Munro
Tony Munro
25-Feb-2013
By Tony Munro
Afghanistan have made only minor changes for the ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament to be played in Tanzania from October 4 to 11. Afghanistan, along with the winner, Jersey, have been promoted from Division Five, and will join the host, Hong Kong, Fiji and Italy.
Nasratullah Nasrat, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Shahpur Zadran have come into the squad, which was runners-up in the Division Five tournament in Jersey recently, replacing Jalat Khan Naseri, Abdul Rashid Zadran and Gulbadin Naid.
Squad: Norooz Khan Mangal (capt), Karim Khan Sedeq, Rais Ahamdzai, Dawlat Ahamdzai, Ahamd Shah Ahmadi, Noor Ali Noori, Mohammad Asghar Stanikzai, Hasti Gul Abed, Mohd. Nabi Eisakhil, Samiullah Shenwari, Hamid Hassan, Nasratullah Nasrat, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Shahpur Zadran. Coach: Mohammad Kabir
Full post