**Official Cricket World Cup Thread**

[MediaPA]

Here's the real question. The US hosted the soccer world cup in 1994 to try and help grow the sport. When is cricket going to try the same thing?

Pulling for South Africa, I might actually spring for the DishTV rugby package, cricket is too much time right now to enjoy a match properly.

[Isura]

[ QUOTE ]

Here's the real question. The US hosted the soccer world cup in 1994 to try and help grow the sport. When is cricket going to try the same thing?

[/ QUOTE ]

But the US already had pro soccer well before the world cup. It would be a big thing to see even just an international level match in the US. But I heard that there will be a 4 team one-day tourney in Toronto this August, so that is a good start.

[cognito20]

The ICC Trophy tournament to qualify the Associate nations for the 2003 World Cup was held completely in Toronto. I went up to see some matches (5-hour drive), and was not disappointed. Good, competitive cricket. There were originally matches scheduled to be held in -this- World Cup in Miami, but for whatever reason (probably the complete and total ineptitude of US Cricket, an organization with whom I once applied for a public relations and liaison job), those plans were cancelled. For there to be even the slightest interest in one-day cricket in the US, even in passing, the USA is one of these days going to have to throw off the West Indian mafia and boys' club that runs the USCA, get competent administrators in there, and actually do well enough in a future ICC Trophy to qualify for a World Cup. They've made the final -stage- of the ICC Trophy a few times, but have not yet come close to qualifying. IIRC, I think they finished 7th in the 2003 ICC Trophy, where the top 3 qualified, and that's the best they've ever done.

Although it is one of the greatest sports in the world, the USA sports fan in general just does not have the attention span, patience, intellectual curiosity, or cricketing tradition to ever follow TEST cricket, and I don't feel too confident about there being any future for the 1-day game either. For one thing, native-born Americans generally don't even know the rules of the game, much less play it. I'm the only native-born American to ever play for the club team I bowl for in Ithaca, NY, in over a decade of existence, and I have a build that is...well....very similar to Leverock's. The only thing I could -maybe- see taking off under the right set of circumstances is 20-20 cricket, which is cricket in name only. Basically, it's a 3-hour hitting-the-ball-far contest.

--Scott

[skp]

I agree that 20/20 is about the only form of cricket that has a chance in the North American market. There had been talk of India and Australia playing a 7 game ODI series in the States but that fizzled out when it was discovered that there were no adequate venues for a cricket pitch/ ground dimensions etc, for an international cricket match.

Toronto hosted matches on several occasions in the 90s betwen India and Pakistan (Sahara Cup). I am not quite sure why that tourney was later discontinued.