The Mexico Cricket Association Junior Schools tournament took place on June 8, 2008 with teams from Lancaster, Edron, Victoria and Lomas Altas taking part. The games were played in excellent spirit and many promising female players took part, according to ICC Americas.

Next week's ICC annual get-together promises to have more than its fair share of politicking, posturing and controversy. But, unless there is a major about-turn, it should also be a watershed for the Associates and Affiliates.

In 2009, income from the ICC's six-year media deal with ESPN-Star, worth over US$1 billion, kicks in, and while the game's big boys will still keep the lion's share, the rest will see substantial increases in their incomes.

Continue reading "Future bright beyond the Test world"

February is the busiest month of the year for the Mexico Cricket Association and 2008 has been no different with the four MCA teams in the middle of a hotly contested 2008 League Championship while preparations are also underway for the year’s biggest fund-raising event, the Spring Ball, on March 8.

The Ball, which usually attracts around 200 members and guests to the Reforma Athletic Club, is a black tie dinner held in conjunction with a tour match between the MCA and the Houston Memorial Cricket Club. The proceeds of ticket sales and raffles contribute the lion’s share of the MCA’s income during the year and this year’s event already appears to be a financial success with strong ticket sales and solid support from the business community led by British Airways, who are offering a free return ticket to London for one of the club’s raffles.

The matches between the MCA first and second teams and the Houston Club – with a social round of golf as prelude – promise to be enormously competitive as Houston will be keen to reclaim the trophy wrested from their grasp when a MCA team toured last November. This was only the second time in 29 years the team from Mexico was successful in beating Houston on the American club’s home turf.

Continue reading "Review of Mexican cricket, February 2008"

The number of people actively participating in cricket outside the Test-playing countries increased 17% in 2007, according to the ICC.

The research, carried out by the ICC's development program, was collated from 33 Associate and 58 Affiliate members. It showed that there were 338,051 male and female players in those countries in 2007, an increase of 49,158 on the previous year. Since 2002, when there were 144,047 participants, there has been a 135% rise.

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On a beautiful sunny day under blue skies, a group of around 40 enthusiastic youngsters from four different schools in and around Mexico City got together at the Reforma Athletic Club for the sixth time in two years to play inter-schools cricket. This initiative, promoted by the Mexican Cricket Association as part of a development plan aimed at getting Mexicans involved in cricket at grass roots level, has been enormously successful in these early stages.

The standard of cricket has risen dramatically since the first event was held and some genuine talent is beginning to appear and develop. Perhaps more importantly, all of the boys and girls who have participated have shown a level of enthusiasm and a respect for the spirit of the game that would be an example to many seasoned players - no questioning of decisions, high levels of sportsmanship and excellent relationships between the teams have been characteristics of the tournaments played so far.

There is definitely a sensation that this is the beginning of something significant. Credit must be given to the teachers, parents and members of the MCA who have supported this program. There is a real possibility of Mexico being able to field a team of Mexicans in the not too distant future.

From ICC Americas' regional newsletter

Mexico, the host country, captured the second Central America Championship with wins against Costa Rica and El Salvador, who were playing their first ever internationals. Costa Rica defeated El Salvador, with Ben Smith making 102 of the 253 runs then rolling them for 81, to finish second.

Continue reading "Mexico takes Central America Championship"

It won't get many column inches in the mainstream cricket press, but the World Cricket League, which started in Nairobi yesterday and continues into next week, features the best of the rest, the six sides just under the ten Test-playing countries. For the two finalists, the rewards are bountiful - a place among the big boys in the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa this September, along with $250,000. For countries used to surviving on annual handouts from the ICC of less than $200,000, that's big money.

Continue reading "A long way from home"

Tony Munro's weekly column has been published today. This week, he looks at Mexican cricket, news from Taiwan and the Central American Championships. Read it here. If you want to contact Tony, either email him or leave a comment below.