ÖMS tournament is curtain-raiser to 2003 Austrian cricket season

The 2003 season in Austria starts this weekend with the reintroduced Österreichische Meisterschaft competition (ÖMS). In order to allow all the four participating teams to play three games in a weekend, the format has been altered to 30 overs per side, which means that the format also allows younger bowlers to bowl a full spell of 6 overs, and is the format used in ECC youth cricket tournaments.

Furthermore, teams are required to field seven Austrians, by birth or passport, with the opportunity of giving indigenous Austrians a starring role in the game, with the long-term goal of attracting more indigenous Austrians to the sport. Players like Tim Simpson and Erwin Grasinger, who are established National Team players, and born and bred Austrian cricketing talents, originally cut their cricketing teeth in the ÖMS tournaments in the mid 1990s.

The tournament will also be the first time that a weekend tournament has been spread across three grounds, with Vienna CC's Seebarn grounds, and Concordia CC's Markomannenstrasse ground being used on the Saturday and Sunday respectively. The participating teams are CC Velden '91, from Carinthia, Concordia CC, Lords CC and Vienna CC. The tournament will also be the first in Austria since it was decided to move into line with ECC tournaments over the use of helmets and bowling restrictions.