Hellenic Cricket Federation (HCF), the governing body for cricket in Greece, has signed a 10-year commercial agreement with UAE based sports management company Pacific Star Sports. It is exciting news for cricket in the Mediterranean nation which has largely languished in the lower levels of European Championship Cricket, despite becoming an ICC Affiliate (now Associate) member in 1997.
The commercial partnership will mark the 200th year of celebrations for cricket in Corfu (the official home of Greek cricket) with the launch of an international T10 event. An offshore island in the Ionian Sea, Corfu possesses a rich cricketing history harking back to 1823, when the sport was introduced there under British rule (1815-1864). Despite the subsequent departure of the British, cricket survived and thrived, gaining a foothold amongst the local Greek community with the formation of clubs.
In modern times, the sport remains a popular pastime in Corfu. The island houses most of Greece’s cricket clubs and also produces the vast majority of its national players. It’s in stark contrast to the rest of the country, where the sport is barely known.
Speaking in a press release, HCF President Mr. Kyriakos Katsoras hailed the signing of the commercial agreement.
“We welcome Pacific Star Sports as our partner. They have a vision of building new cricket tournaments in the country, which aligns with our vision for Cricket in Greece. We look forward to a great partnership,” he stated, describing HCF’s intentions of promoting the game nationally.
Mr. Ali Akbar Khan, Director of PSS also struck a similar tone. “Greece has one of the oldest cricketing cultures in Europe with clubs from the 19th century still playing cricket in Corfu. We look forward to working closely with HCF and introducing new domestic & international tournaments in Greece”.
Apart from the T10 event, HCF will also institute new 10 and 20 over national cricket competitions, titled Olympia T10 and Olympia T20. Additional information about these events will be released in the near future.
The Greek international men’s team recently took part in the European qualifying leg of 2024 T20 World Cup, finishing bottom of Group A after losses to Italy, Finland, Sweden and Croatia. It is currently ranked a lowly 73rd in ICC T20I rankings
Women’s Balkan Cup 2022
In other cricket news, the Greek women’s team is all set to make its official international debut alongside Romania and Serbia in the inaugural Women’s Balkan Cup 2022 tournament. The tournament will be played from September 9th to 11th at Moara Vlăsiei Cricket Ground in Ilfov County, Romania. Fixture details are as follows.
Women’s Balkan Cup 2022 Schedule
9th September 2022: Romania Women vs Greece Women, 15:00
10th September 2022: Greece Women vs Serbia Women, 09:00; Serbia Women vs Romania Women, 13:00
11th September 2022: Semi-Final (2nd vs 3rd), 09:00; Final (1st vs Winner Semi-Final), 13:00
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