Cricket is the fastest growing sport in Canada, and the Canadian Men’s Team is looking forward to competing on an international level once again.
The Canada Senior Men Cricket Team is looking to regain international status, something they lost in 2011, and this year they got a little help from local Victorians.
“This is my passion, I grew up with it, I have been involved for 46 years,” said Alphonso Franco, president of the Victoria & District Cricket Association and now Team Canada manager.
World Cup qualifiers take place in December. In preparation, the team will travel to Oman to play a triangular series against Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Bahrain. From there they will head to Malaysia.
“The next World Cup is 2024, and if Canada does well, it has a pretty good chance of being included,” Franco said.
The 2024 International Cricket Council Men’s Twenty20 World Cup will be the ninth ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, an international T20 cricket tournament.
It is scheduled to be played in June 2024 in the West Indies and the United States, making it the first ICC World Cup Tournament to feature matches in a state.
Franco said all the team had to do was win a few games to stay ahead in the table.
“We have a pretty strong team and at the moment we lead the table with the most wins, we need to finish five more wins to make our case for the best for the World Cup,” added Franco.
Currently, four members of the team are from British Columbia, two of whom are reserves. This is a first in the last decade of cricket.
Franco, a 46-year VDCA veteran hopes his experience, along with the talented head coach, Pubudu Dassanayake, and a focused group of young athletes, Team Canada will once again become a strong contender at international level.
To follow the team over the next few months, click here.
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