Saidullah: Review of Canadian cricket (31 Oct 1995)

ARTICLES FROM THE CANADIAN CRICKETER

CRICKET IN THE HALLS OF LEARNING needs to be encouraged, writes Ahmad Saidullah

Cricket is alive and well in Canada. Cricket, you say, where people play for five days and break for tea at the slightest provocation? Why not? Cricket requires skills, best learned when young (hence the importance of junior development programs), and strategy. The shorter version or "one-day cricket" played in Canada is a tough, exciting team sport that requires discipline and concentration.

Although cricket is played in 36 countries, the highest level of professional or "test cricket" is played in only nine countries: namely, the West Indies, Australia, Pakistan, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe. Canada is said by some to be in line for the big league. An associate member of the governing body of cricket, the International Cricket Council (I.C.C.), Canada qualified for the 1979 World Cup and has bid to host the next I.C.C. trophy in Toronto. The 1998 cricket World Cup in South Africa will field 16 teams, increasing Canada`s chances for world recognition.

A cricket revival

In fact, cricket is as Canadian as maple syrup and ice-fishing. Cricket was Canada`s national sport before confederation and the Canada-U.S. matches, first played in 1844, the oldest international cricket series, antedate the "ashes" (played between England and Australia) by about thirty years. Introduced into Canada in the the eighteenth century by British army officers in Quebec, cricket has surged in popularity recently

When I founded the U of T Cricket Club, I was surprised to learn that cricket had been played at universities and colleges in Upper Canada as far back as the 1800s. (A print of Dr. W.G. Grace`s 1872 English tourists` match with University College in the background hangs in the U of T President`s office.)

"Cricket". confirms former Olympic track star and U of T phys ed prof. Bruce Kidd, "is now an officially recognized sport in inner-city Toronto schools. Once the most popular sport in the nineteenth century, cricket is becoming increasingly popular among young Torontonians. A number of young men and a few young women would like to revive it at the university".

Of course, cricket cannot be compared with professional sports at the university level. According to Jennifer Brenning, CIAU director of international programs in Ottawa, level 1 sports such as football, basketball and hockey are preferred because they "act as a feeder system to national teams".

So what is missing? Cricket remains invisible in mainstream media (devoted to U.S. sports coverage) partly due to how it is perceived. Despite its long history in Canada, cricket is seen as a recent immigrant phenomenon. The media can be lobbied for coverage but why do so many of our youngsters lose contact with the sport after they finish school? My theory is that college and university cricket which provides the transition to senior cricket is in poor shape in Canada. We lose many cricketers to other sports every year because the structure and continuity are not there.

CIAU league

Dr. Geoff Edwards, Canadian Cricket Association`s director-atlarge, felt it was important that "we should get university cricket up and going in any form and means", including indoor cricket for students, staff, alumni, and supporters which would also open up facilities to the public. Community colleges such as George Brown where "professional programs are not so demanding" should be included in the league, according to Dr. Edwards. Cricket may eventually depend on schools, colleges and universities for its survival in Canada.

In the 1980s, some Ontario colleges and universities approached the Ontario Cricket Association with the idea of forming an inter-university league but nothing came of it. The U of T Dept. of Athletics and Recreation would not support the idea of a U of T Cricket Blues. Needless to say, without official backing, the U of T club died. Dr. Edwards notes that the century-old Guelph University club has just folded.

This tradition may be hard to revive without support. In the 1980s, C.C.A. president Jack Kyle approached Queen`s with a proposal to set up a program but funding was not available. Saskatoon and Memorial, to name two, have many cricketers who may not be able to fulfil their potential because of limited opportunities. Although U of T PE students qualify as level 1 cricket coaches as part of their undergraduate program, the recent $1.2 million cut in sports funding at U of T means that low-priority sports such as cricket will have to be self-supporting.

The national and provincial cricketing bodies need to put forward a proposal to set up cricket in colleges and universities across Canada. U of T, Queen`s, York, Ryerson, Windsor, Western, Wilfrid Laurier, Waterloo, McMaster and Guelph could play in an Ontario league. Once provincial leagues have been set up, we can try for CIAU status.

To qualify for CIAU participation, cricket must be played at 17 of the 40-odd Canadian universities, Brenning said. The CIAU cricket championships would need a minimum of three conferences, with at least three teams in each conference. There are enough university and college teams in eastern and western Canada to satisfy these conditions. A few years ago, some students at McGill organised a successful inter-university tournament and there is a move to stage a tournament in Scarborough in August 1994.

A CIAU league would ensure continuity between junior and senior grades, lower the high dropout rate of school cricketers, and contribute to the pool of cricketers available at the national level. It is time to do something before this rich tradition of university and college cricket in Canada dies out from apathy and neglect. The time to act is now. And we all have to do our bit, you and I. Remember, it`s not only our history that`s at stake; it`s also our future.

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