ICC needs HK team in elite event, says coach

Hong Kong head coach Charlie Burke has called for the International Cricket Council to pick his team for the Intercontinental Cup and to play all the home games at the Guangzhou cricket stadium built for the Asian Games last year.

By finishing in the top four at the ICC World Cricket League Division Two tournament, Hong Kong is eligible to become one of two teams who will join the six countries from division one in the Intercontinental Cup which is four-day matches played on a home-and-away basis.

Burke is pushing for Hong Kong's case saying it would help "grow the game in China" and has called for the ICC development committee to include the side in the competition.

"If the ICC is serious about growing the game in China, this would be a superb opportunity to showcase cricket by including Hong Kong in the Intercontinental Cup," Burke said.

"We could play all our home games in Guangzhou, a superb facility which is available to us. The ICC would benefit hugely by having four-day games in China," Burke added.

Two teams from division two - not necessarily the top two which are the United Arab Emirates and Namibia - will join the associate member elite fraternity of Afghanistan, Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands, Kenya and Scotland at the Intercontinental Cup.

The UAE are expected to be a shoo-in. Apart from their cricketing credentials, they are also the host nation where the world governing body is headquartered. The wonderful facilities in Dubai, which includes a splendid 25,000-seater stadium plus two lush grounds at the ICC Global Cricket Academy, is tailormade for international events.

The other spot is up for grabs with Namibia, Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong in the running. The ICC's development committee will take a decision early next month.

"I would like to think that Hong Kong is in with a chance. Yes, we won only one game in this tournament, but we were not blown away," Burke said. "We were in positions to beat both the UAE and Namibia and also came close against Bermuda and PNG. I hope they consider that rather than just look at the results.

"We are also a young team and this should be taken into account. But the main factor which should benefit us is that the ICC is looking at expanding the game in China and this will be a wonderful opportunity to promote cricket in China," Burke added.

Over the last year, Hong Kong has progressed from division three into division two - a berth they will occupy for the next three years at least. Financially, this will translate into more than US$1 million in ICC grants with the world body funding high performance countries to the tune of US$350,000 annually.

"All in all it has been a success. We came here to finish in the top four and we have achieved that goal," Burke said. "We have made our own luck. We have worked hard for the past year and I'm glad that we will now benefit financially.

"It was vital that we remained in division two. We didn't want to step back after having come so far. But this is just the beginning, we have a lot to do, and we have to start by making our domestic league more competitive," he added.

If the ICC hadn't pushed the goalposts on the eve of this tournament - announcing that the 2015 World Cup would be only limited to the ten test-playing nations - Hong Kong would have found itself in the running for a berth at the next World Cup.

The original pathway was for the top four teams in division two plus the top six in division one, to play in a tournament in Scotland in 2013 to decide which teams would qualify for the 2015 World Cup.

"It is a real shame that idea has been scrapped and the ICC have decided not to include any associate members in the next World Cup. But there is still a lot of cricket to play, starting with the Intercontinental Cup and I hope the ICC can look at the bigger picture and realize the importance of Hong Kong as the gateway to China," Burke added.