The St Petersburg Times reports on a tournament for international students in the city at the Polytechnic Institute Stadium near Ploshchad Muzhestva.

"The pitch was not exactly as clipped as Lord’s, the ball was borrowed from another sport and the British team crashed out early, but participants in the The St. Petersburg Cricket Cup 2006 brought to the city the passion of one of the world’s most popular and perplexing sports."

The ball they used was a tennis ball, partly because cricket balls are hard to come by, partly because without protective equipment, it was felt that a cricket ball could cause some serious damage!

Elsewhere, it is reported that cricket in St Petersburg has all but died with the disappearance of the main organiser ... along with almost all the club kit!