RIYADH: With the recognition of cricket rising in Saudi Arabia, the game’s league is increasing with the intention of creating an expert league system and constructing a formidable nationwide aspect that may qualify for the World Cup, not simply win regional tournaments.
The game has undoubtedly flourished with the Saudi Arabian Cricket Federation lining up a collection of packages, gaining sponsorships and powerful patronage. The Saudi group received the ACC Males’s Challenger Cup this 12 months and the inaugural one final 12 months in Bangkok.
The Challenger Cup is the primary staging submit within the Asian Cricket Council’s restructured three-tier pathway towards its prime event — the Asia Cup.
The Saudi cricket group will now play the ACC Males’s Premier Cup, a event that gives a qualification pathway towards the subsequent Asia Cup.
In an unique interview with Arab Information, Kabir Khan, technical director for the Saudi cricket league system, stated: “Our greatest cricket league is the Nationwide Cricket Championship (NCC), wherein all golf equipment related to the SACF take part. We are actually going to restructure the event to construct a formidable aspect that may qualify for the world cup.”
Within the opening NCC in 2021, cricket groups throughout Saudi Arabia battled it out to be topped Nationwide Cricket Champions. The Saudi Sports activities for All Federation and the SACF joined forces to launch the Kingdom’s largest-ever cricket event with the participation of 369 groups and 15 cricket associations.
Within the second NCC final 12 months, greater than 400 groups participated, and now a complete of about 500 groups will play the brand new format of the largest cricket championship within the Kingdom, Khan stated.
“Beforehand, leagues have been being performed with every area having their very own champions, however now prime groups from all areas will qualify for the grand finale and the highest 4 groups will play the semi-final, two will qualify to the ultimate, and in the end one is to be topped because the winner of the NCC,” he informed Arab Information.
“First there can be inter-club matches the place all 500 groups will take part which have about 15,000 registered gamers. Then will probably be adopted by inter-associations matches and eventually inter-region matches,” Khan stated.
In accordance with the SACF, the cricket associations affiliated with the federation embody: Western Province Cricket Affiliation (WPCA) and Jeddah Cricket Affiliation (JCA) in Jeddah, Riyadh Cricket Affiliation (RCA) and Riyadh Cricket League (RCL) in Riyadh, Japanese Province Cricket Affiliation (EPCA) and Japanese Area Cricket Affiliation (ERCA) in Dammam, Jubail Cricket Affiliation (JCA) in Jubail, Al-Qassim Cricket League (AQCL) and Al-Qassim Tremendous League (AQSL) in Al-Qassim, Jazan Premier Cricket League (JPCL) and Jazan Area Cricket Affiliation (JRCA) in Jazan, Madinah Munawwarah Cricket Affiliation (MMCA) in Madinah, Aseer Cricket League (ACL) in Abha and Najran Cricket Affiliation (NCA) in Najran. All of them have dozens of membership groups enjoying below their banner, and every affiliation has 20 gamers registered with them.
Khan informed Arab Information that there are six areas — Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Makkah, Madinah and Yanbu — every having 20 gamers with them.
“Thus a event starting with 15,000 gamers will attain 120 gamers on the last stage — inter-region matches, this contains the enjoying 11 and the additional gamers for substitute, by means of step-by-step filtration based mostly on factors desk,” he stated.
“RCA, RCL, WPCA and EPCA are the largest leagues by way of membership membership. Nonetheless, we shouldn’t have a rating system for the home league.”
Khan stated: “On the fundamental degree, cemented or concrete pitches can be found the place cricket is performed. There are greater than 100 cricket grounds throughout the Kingdom. In Riyadh itself there are about 25 grounds. These are all sandy grounds. Solely Yanbu has a grass cricket floor. As we intention to restructure the system, we are going to change the cement pitches to a turf pitch.”
Turf cricket pitches are the standard alternative, and revered for his or her pure enjoying traits.
Khan, who can also be the top coach of the Saudi cricket group, stated that the SACF’s goal was to make the Kingdom a world-class cricketing vacation spot according to Saudi Imaginative and prescient 2030.
The SACF was established in 2020 with 12 associations, and had registered greater than 6,000 gamers in its first 12 months.
Rahat Ali Chaudhry, group supervisor on the federation, informed Arab Information: “The matches are principally T20 and 40 overs performed around the 12 months. The 40-overs matches are principally performed in Riyadh and Dammam, the remainder of the associations principally play the T20 format.”
Because of the searing warmth in the course of the summer season, there’s a two-month break for gamers in Riyadh in June and July, he stated.
Saudi Arabia is at the moment positioned 31 within the ICC T20 rating and is searching for an ODI rating.
