Cricket enters unknown territory on Saturday, when the first major tournament to be held in the United States begins in Texas with the opening game of the T20 World Cup.
Cricket enters unknown territory on Saturday, when the first major tournament to be staged in the United States begins in Texas with the opening game of the T20 World Cup. A month-long festival of the sport’s quickest and most explosive form, which will be held across Texas, Florida, New York, and the Caribbean, begins on Saturday with the United States taking on Canada at Grand Prairie Stadium on the suburbs of Dallas.
It marks the beginning of the first major International Cricket Council (ICC) event to be hosted in part in the United States.
While the majority of the tournament will take place in the Caribbean, 16 of the 20-team tournament’s group stage games will be held on American territory, including the group stage’s highlight, a match between India and Pakistan on Long Island, New York.
The remainder of the tournament will take place in the West Indies, including the Super Eight stage, semi-finals, and final at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
It kicks off the first major International Cricket Council (ICC) event to be hosted in part in the United States.
While the majority of the tournament will take place in the Caribbean, 16 of the 20-team tournament’s group stage games will be played on American soil, including the highlight of the group stage, a match between India and Pakistan on Long Island, New York.
The remainder of the tournament will take place in the West Indies, including the Super Eight stage, semi-finals, and final, all of which will be contested at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
While cricket is popular at the recreational level in the United States, with substantial presences in all three states picked for games, organizers are realistic about their odds of “converting” mainstream American sports fans.
Instead, they anticipate that significant immigrant populations with cricket-loving backgrounds, including thousands of Indian fans in particular, will throng the stadiums.
“I believe that, first and foremost, we want to reward those who are already die-hard cricket fans. They deserve to watch the world’s greatest players come to their neighborhood and have that opportunity,” T20 World Cup USA, Inc. CEO Brett Jones told AFP.
“Number two, I think it’s about spiking curiosity in the game,” he stated.
The ICC also sees the tournament as a springboard to the sport’s return to the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, where the T20 format will be played.
Major League Cricket, a T20 tournament that debuted last year, stands to benefit from any increase in interest in the big-hitting, spectacular shortest format.
The ICC is not only focused on the American market; the tournament’s expansion has created opportunities for emerging cricket nations to participate on the international stage.
In recent years, the sport has been able to develop outside of its traditional strongholds, with Ireland and Afghanistan securing berths in the 12-member elite.
In recent years, the sport has been able to spread beyond its traditional strongholds, with Ireland and Afghanistan joining the 12-strong elite squad with full Test status.
However, the ICC sees the T20 format as the ideal vehicle for expanding the game, and this year’s edition will have three T20 World Cup debutants from the United States, Canada, and Uganda.
Nepal, Papua New Guinea, and Oman are among the other newcomers to the international stage who will be hoping to make an impression and get attention with an upset victory.
With Ireland and Afghanistan gaining spots in the 12-strong elite with full Test status, the sport has been allowed to grow outside of its historical strongholds in recent years.
Three T20 World Cup rookies from the USA, Canada, and Uganda will compete in this year’s tournament; nonetheless, the ICC believes that the T20 format is the ideal means of expanding the game.
Among the other countries who are relatively new to the international scene and hoping to leave their imprint and garner some notice with an unexpected victory are Nepal, Papua New Guinea, and Oman.
