Awesome August for ICC Associates and Affiliates

The month of August is the busiest month ever for the developing cricket world, as one look at the international calendar for non-Test playing international teams confirms.

There are 45 Associate and Affiliate Members playing in 102 senior men's international matches staged across six countries during the course of the month, with 10 of those matches ODIs, three of them involving an ICC Full Member.

There are also two matches in the ICC Intercontinental Cup, the four-day first-class competition for non Test-playing Members, as well as a host of one-day matches in major regional events that form part of the ICC World Cricket League.

In junior and women's cricket, the Europe U/15s (4 teams - 6 matches) was held from 1-3 Aug in Denmark (won by Ireland), and the European Women's U/21s (4 teams - 6 matches) will take place from 15-17 Aug in the Netherlands.

Commenting on the program for August, ICC Global Development Manager Matthew Kennedy said: "The schedule is a hectic and challenging one but above all it illustrates the interest in and appetite for cricket that exists throughout the world below Test level.

"Events like the ICC Intercontinental Cup and the ICC World Cricket League are vital in helping Associate and Affiliate Members improve as they offer the players involved the chance to test themselves at international level.

"They also allow those players a chance to compete at a higher standard than they may be used to and, in the case of the WCL, the matches will, for the first time, allow all Associates and Affiliates to be ranked by their performances on a regional and global level.

"The program of matches, which adds up to the busiest month ever for developing nations, underlines the ICC's ongoing commitment to ensure the game continues to grow and thrive at all levels and among boys and girls, not only from the top Test-playing sides but also in our 87 Associate and Affiliate Members."