Page 54 - The Indian EYE 042321

SPORTS APRIL 23, 2021 | The Indian Eye 54

usa crickeT:

can cricket capture

the imagination in the usa?

usa cricket —two terms for the 2027 World Cup. The
that do not go together, following year, Los Angeles
But did you know: hosts cricket at the 2028 Olym-
pics. A few years later, say by
he first international 2036, USA hosts a T20 World
cricket match was played Cup. Next thing you know, the
Tbetween the United MLC regularly starts attracting
States of America and Canada international stars, spectators
way back in 1844? increase, funding stabilizes and
Cricket was played in the US there you go, cricket established
for several decades after inde- in the American market within
pendence with Philadelphia as 10-15 years.
its major center. Even George
Washington is said to have BroKen cricKet dreams what is most likely going
played a game of cricket at Val- to Happen: the major
ley Forge. NITESH MATHUR league soccer (mls) model
After the Civil War, popu- The issue with the Afghan-
larity declined and by the time www.brokencricketdreams.com istan Model is it already was a
World War I ended, baseball cricket crazy nation. USA is not.
& The World Series had taken Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ment with the best USA and in- The only template crick-
over. and Trinbago Knight Riders ternational talent, beginning in et has for a new sport to mix
(TKR) franchises, buys stake in 2022. According to the organiz- into the mainstream is soccer.
the sleeping giant Major League Cricket (MLC). ers, “MLC is developing crick- After North American Soccer
USA is the sleeping giant Satya Nadella, Microsoft eting infrastructure including League in 1968, it took Team
of world cricket. The North CEO, has expressed interest international quality stadiums, USA 22 years to qualify for the
American sports market has a in investing in MLC. CEO of elite youth academies, and FIFA World Cup (1990), host-
value of a whopping $71 billion Adobe, CTOs of Facebook & high-grade training facilities.” ed the 1994 World Cup, and fi-
and is expected to rise around Dropbox, and other high-pro- T20 leagues like the IPL nally MLS began in 1996.
$83 billion by 2023. file names have already pitched have widened cricket’s popular- Women’s Soccer started to
in. ity, and MLC has a similar po- take shape in the late-1980s
let that sink in. Ex-cricketers from other tential in the USA. and won the 1999 World Cup,
$20 Trillion economy, 330 nations recruited. Corey An- just 10 years later. It has taken
million population, about 6 mil- derson (New Zealand), Sami what i wish to Happen: a further 20 years for the sport
lion immigrants from cricket Aslam (Pakistan), Dane Piedt the afghanistan model to come in the public eye.
playing nations, and the gradual (South Africa), Narsingh De- The Afghanistan Nation- If cricket follows a similar
decline of baseball, surely crick- onarine (West Indies) have re- al Cricket Team is well-known model, the women USA team
et in America is a possibility? tired from their home countries for its rapid rise. In a war-torn will qualify by 2030, USA men’s
and signed MLC deals, while country, it became an Affiliate cricket team will qualify for the
recent developments World Cup winner Liam Plun- Member in 2001. Rising from 2043 World Cup, and host the
USA Cricket has been in kett and South African expatri- Division 5, they qualified for 2047 edition. By the team we
the news for various reasons re- ates are targeted (since Kolpak the T20 World Cup in 2010, be- hit 2050, cricket may finally
cently. deals expired). came an Associate Member in come into the sports conversa-
AirHogs Stadium, former 2013, a Full Member in 2017, tion.
minor league baseball stadium, major league cricket and have produced talents like It may take a generation or
in Grand Prairie, Texas is being USA Cricket has partnered Mohammad Nabi & Rashid two more for cricket to spread
converted into a cricket stadi- with the American Cricket En- Khan. to each city, grade level, and
um. It has support from local terprises (ACE), who invested In my ideal scenario, the compete with American foot-
authorities and USA cricket. $1 billion in MLC. newly recruited international ball, basketball, and baseball.
Knight Riders group, the The vision is to create a cricketers help USA climb up The money is here, the au-
owner of the highly successful 6-team world-class T20 tourna- the ladder in qualification bid dience here. Let’s play.

www.TheIndianEYE .com